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Swedish telecom gear maker Ericsson today said that its board of directors has appointed Borje Ekholm as President and CEO, effective January 16, 2017.
Ekholm joins Ericsson from his current position as CEO of Patricia Industries, a division within Investor. His appointment comes almost three months after the company ousted global CEO Hans Vestberg.
“I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Borje Ekholm. Having served on Ericsson’s Board of Directors for the past 10 years, Borje Ekholm has full understanding of the challenges and the opportunities Ericsson currently faces,” Ericsson Chairman of the Board, Leif Johansson said in a statement.
Ericsson has been struggling across all major geographies. In the third quarter, the company reported a 14 per cent decline in sales with highest de-growth of 28 per cent in India on a year-on-year basis.
Vestberg served as Ericsson CEO for seven years. He stepped down from the company in July 2016 after Ericsson declared 11 per cent decline in sales in the second quarter result.
Ericsson in India has also been struggling and has posted continuous dip in sales since fourth quarter of 2015.
Ekholm joins Ericsson from his current position as CEO of Patricia Industries, a division within Investor. Investor is the leading owner of Nordic-based international companies, founded by the Wallenberg family a hundred years ago. It has stake in Ericsson as well.
Prior to assuming this position in 2015, Ekholm held the position as President and CEO of Investor AB between 2005 and 2015. “As the networks and applications become even more important in a 5G connected world, our customers, and the industry, look for continuous innovation. I look forward to joining the great team at Ericsson and work closely with existing and new customers around the world,” Ekholm said.
Ekholm is a member of the Board of Directors for Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson, Alibaba Inc, NASDAQ OMX Group Inc and Trimble Navigation Ltd.
He is also a member of the University Board of KTH Royal Institute of Technology.
Born in 1963, Ekholm holds a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden, as well as a Master of Business Administration from INSEAD, France, the statement said.
Jan Frykhammar will remain interim CEO until January 16, 2017, it added.
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