Intel Corp. removed Brian Krzanich as CEO after the chipmaker learned he previously had a consensual relationship with an employee, a violation of the company’s policies.
Chief Financial Officer Robert Swan was made interim CEO while the board searches for a permanent replacement, the company said in a statement Thursday. Krzanich is the latest in a string of CEOs forced out for having an inappropriate relationship. Lululemon Athletica Inc. and Priceline Group Inc. both had to replace their leaders for similar reasons.
Under Krzanich, the chip giant is as vehicles become more computerized in a connected and autonomous age. In 2017, it announced a $15.3 billion acquisition of Mobileye, an Israeli computer vision and camera sensor maker. The deal, which closed last August, gave it technology key to self-driving car development and access to a large portion of the auto industry.
In addition to buying Mobileye, Intel is also collaborating with BMW on an automated driving platform that they can also supply to other manufacturers.
Krzanich’s ouster throws into turmoil the leadership of a company that’s been a model of stability and organization for 50 years. Krzanich, 58, leaves Intel at record performance levels financially but facing a group of new challengers as the computer processing market it dominates reshapes itself to deal with new trends such as artificial intelligence.
“It’s a shame for a career to end this way,” said Kim Forrest, a senior portfolio manager at Fort Pitt Capital Group. “Brian has been a strong contributor towards Intel’s success. I’m sure that a capable replacement will be found. It wouldn’t surprise me if the ex-CFO, Stacy Smith, gets the nod to be the next CEO.”
Krzanich moved up the ranks at Intel over more than three decades. Since becoming CEO in 2013 he has overseen the company through an era of intense competition and consolidation in the chip industry. Krzanich had been trying to remake Intel into a more general provider of chip. The mission remains a work in progress; the data-center chip business is still the biggest sales engine and will determine Intel’s success for the foreseeable future.
Known as “BK” at Intel because of the difficulties some have in pronouncing his surname (Kris-an-itch), he worked his way up Intel’s ranks as a factory manager. He joined Intel in 1982 in New Mexico as an engineer, just as the personal-computer industry was beginning to take off.
Swan, the former chief financial officer of Ebay Inc., has been Intel’s CFO since October 2016. He oversees finance, information technology and corporate strategy. He previously was CEO of Webvan Group Inc.