ABB announced today that CEO Joe Hogan has decided to leave the company for private reasons. A date for his departure has not yet been set, and he has agreed to continue at the helm until a successor is named.
“I have informed the board that I have decided to leave ABB,” Hogan said in a statement. “This has been a difficult decision as I leave behind a strong and talented executive committee and a cohesive board whose support I could always count on. I look forward to making a smooth transition with as little disruption as possible to the positive momentum that ABB has established.”
Hogan took over as ABB’s CEO in September 2008, gaining a considerable amount of notoriety not just as the leader of a major player in the power and automation space, but as an American leading a Swiss company. His background was with GE, which he joined in 1985. He served in several different leadership positions there, including president and CEO of GE Fanuc Automation North America, and more recently of GE Healthcare.
Hogan took over the ABB reigns at a time when the company was optimistic about its future, but facing the beginnings of a formidable economic downturn. “Joe is a great and successful CEO and has done a remarkable job of leading the company through the deepest economic crisis in living memory,” said Hubertus von Grünberg, ABB’s chairman. “ABB today is in a much better position than it was when he joined five years ago.”
At ABB’s most recent Automation & Power World, held in late March in Orlando, Fla., Hogan made reference to the company’s investments in the U.S., in particular. "We've invested aggressively for the past five years because we believe these economies worldwide will recover, and so we'll be able to compete and grow in them," he said.
During the company’s time with Hogan as CEO, ABB has invested about $20 billion to strengthen the company. Major investments have been made in acquisitions and in R&D to help secure ABB’s technological leadership in power and automation.
“Under Joe’s leadership, ABB’s competitiveness has significantly improved by investing boldly in measures to drive growth and innovation, and by carefully managing costs,” von Grünberg added.
