HP appoints new chief executive

HP has replaced ousted chief executive Carly Fiorina with surprise choice: former CEO of computer services company NCR, Mark Hurd.

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Hurd, 48, who will take up his post on 1 April, was president and CEO of NCR from March last year, and previously spent three years as president and chief operating officer of the company's Teradata division, which he built to become a global leader in enterprise data warehousing services.

Patricia Dunn, HP's non-executive chairman, said the HP board had 'unanimously' selected Hurd based on his track record of leading a 'complex organisation', as well as his strong executive and personal qualities.

'Our search for a new leader to return HP to sustained success has been focused and thorough,' said Dunn. 'Mark came to our attention because of his strong execution skills, his proven ability to lead top performing teams and his track record in driving shareholder value.

'He demonstrated these skills by turning around NCR, which, while smaller than HP, is a complex organisation with multiple business segments.'