Satya Nadella’s message to employees: Key leadership changes, Kathleen Hogan steps down as CPO

Satya Nadella has announced a major leadership reshuffle at Microsoft, appointing a new Chief People Officer (CPO) as part of a broader rethink of the company’s performance review system, reported Business Insider.

Kathleen Hogan, who has served as CPO since 2014, will transition to a newly created role as Executive Vice President of the Office of Strategy and Transformation. According to the publication, Hogan will be succeeded by Amy Coleman, a long-standing Microsoft executive with 25 years of experience spanning engineering, sales, marketing, and business development.

New Chief People Officer Appointed

In an internal email to employees, Nadella highlighted the need for constant evolution in the face of rapid technological advancements, particularly in the era of artificial intelligence (AI), the report stated.

"As we’ve seen time and again throughout our 50-year history, times of great change for the world and for our industry require us to have a mindset that enables us to continually adapt and transform ourselves," Nadella wrote.

Reportedly, the leadership change follows a wave of recent job cuts at Microsoft, which saw nearly 2,000 employees laid off in January and February, reportedly due to performance-related concerns.

Hogan, who joined Microsoft over two decades ago, previously held senior roles at McKinsey and Oracle before being appointed CPO shortly after Nadella became CEO. In her new position, she is expected to play a key role in shaping Microsoft's long-term strategy and transformation initiatives.

“I've asked Kathleen Hogan to transition to a new role focused on defining our overarching corporate strategy and structure and leading our continuous transformation as a company. Kathleen will assume a new role as EVP, Office of Strategy and Transformation, reporting to me. It is hard to overstate the impact Kathleen has had on Microsoft as Chief People Officer,” wrote Nadella in the email to employees, as per the report.

Amy Coleman’s Leadership in HR

The report added, “With this transition, I'm very pleased to share that Amy Coleman will assume the role of EVP, Chief People Officer, leading our HR organisation. She joins the senior leadership team reporting to me. Amy has led HR for our corporate functions across the company for the past six years, following various HR roles partnering across engineering, sales, marketing, and business development spanning 25 years,” said Nadella about Coleman.