Microsoft names CEO Satya Nadella as new board chairman

Microsoft on Wednesday named Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella as its new chairman, in place of John Thompson.

Nadella, who took over as CEO in 2014 from Steve Ballmer, has been instrumental in scaling up its business including billion-dollar acquisitions like LinkedIn, Nuance Communications and ZeniMax.

The company said Thompson, who took over as chairman from the software giant's co-founder Bill Gates in 2014, will serve as lead independent director.

The top-level executive change comes just over a year after Gates stepped down from the board, saying he would focus on philanthropic works of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the world's biggest charities.

The company had last month said it conducted a probe into Gates' involvement with an employee almost 20 years ago after it was told in 2019 that he had tried to start a romantic relationship with the person.

Microsoft had declined to comment on whether its board had decided Gates should go.

The company also declared a quarterly dividend of 56 cents per share payable Sept. 9.

In other news the company's upcoming software Windows 11 OS has leaked ahead of its purported launch date of June 24. However, the leak has given a sneak-peek into Windows 11 and this indicates it will come with a redesigned user interface and menu bar. With a new release on the horizon, the company says it will eventually drop support for Windows 10 in 2025.

• With inputs from HT Correspondent.