At Microsoft, A Promotion For Satya Nadella After He Revamped It

Satya Nadella, 53, succeeds John Thompson, who will return to the role of lead independent director, a position he held before being named chairman in 2014, Microsoft said Wednesday in a statement.

Microsoft Corp. named Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella as board chairman, strengthening his influence at the world's largest software maker after more than seven years as the top executive. Nadella, 53, succeeds John Thompson, who will return to the role of lead independent director, a position he held before being named chairman in 2014, Microsoft said Wednesday in a statement. The change is a vote of confidence in Nadella, who was appointed CEO in February 2014. Thompson, 72, has been scaling back his work as chairman over the past few years, Microsoft said. The two have been discussing the new roles since last fall. When Nadella took the CEO job, Bill Gates stepped down as chairman of the company he co-founded, significantly reducing his role at Microsoft, and Thompson was tapped to replace him. The idea was that Nadella would benefit from mentoring by Thompson, a technology executive for several decades.