Ben Verwaayen, outgoing CEO of Alcatel-Lucent
The CEO of network equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent Ben Verwaayen is stepping down from the role and will not seek re-election as a director at this year’s annual general meeting in the spring.
Verwaayen’s resignation will take effect once a new CEO is successfully in place, the company said in a statement.
“Alcatel-Lucent has been an enormous part of my life,” said Verwaayen, who served as Alcatel-Lucent’s CEO for four years.
“It was therefore a difficult decision to not seek a further term, but it was clear to me that now is an appropriate moment for the board to seek fresh leadership to take the company forward.
“The combination of our recent refinancing and the implementation of our restructuring plan will put the company on a secure footing for the successor the board will seek to appoint,” Verwaayen added.
The company has released its fourth-quarter and full-year 2012 financial results today, which show a full-year net loss of €1.4bn.
Alcatel-Lucent has been struggling to return to profit in the past few years. In the face of competition from companies such as Huawei, Ericsson, and Nokia Siemens Networks, the company has undergone restructuring that included laying off staff.
