(MENAFN- ProactiveInvestors) () the world’s largest chipmaker said its president Renée James will step down to seek a chief executive officer role elsewhere.
James 51 is one of the most prominent female executives in Silicon Valley and the highest-ranking woman ever at .
She agreed to stay until the end of the year to help with transition planning chief executive officer Brian Krzanich said in a letter to employees late yesterday.
She will receive $4 million in severance if she remains through January during the transition according to a filing.
Laura Anderson an spokeswoman said James “is seeking a role” but has not secured a new job.
James was named president in May of 2013 alongside CEO Krzanich after the pair made an unusual joint pitch to the company’s board of directors following the retirement of former CEO Paul Otellini.
“When Brian and I were appointed to our current roles I knew then that being the leader of a company was something that I desired as part of my own leadership journey. Now is the right time for me to take that next step” James said in a message distributed internally to employees.
In James’ 28 year career at she led the company’s expansion into software and services. Under James made two big software acquisitions the $7.6 billion purchase of online security company McAfee and the $884 million buy up of embedded software company Wind River Systems.
In another high-profile change longtime Capital chief Arvind Sodhani 61 would retire in January the company said.
Sodhani whose career with the company spans 34 years is a vice president too. "I have been a financial investor all my professional life and that will most likely not change" Sodhani said.
Mike Bell a former executive who ran ’s unsuccessful moves into mobile devices and more recently was running its wearable technology business is retiring. Hermann Eul another relatively recent hire who was working in mobile is also leaving.
supplies chips for more than 80 percent of the personal computer market but has been wounded of late by declining PC sales. Krzanich is looking to expand beyond ’s core businesses by providing chips for smart cars and so-called Internet of Things appliances. That was a major strategic motivator behind ’s purchase last month of in an all-cash transaction valued at a whopping $16.7 billion.
Shares of have lost 16 percent so far this year and closed at $30.56 up 1.2 percent yesterday.
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