Microsoft Names CEO Satya Nadella As Board Chair

Microsoft Corp MSFT said Wednesday CEO Satya Nadella will take over the role of company chair.

What Happened: Nadella, who is the third CEO at the technology giant after founder Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, will also become the third chair of the software making company after Gates and company veteran John Thompson.

Thomspon will continue as a lead independent director, a role he held previously from 2012 to 2014, the company said.

“In this role, Nadella will lead the work to set the agenda for the board, leveraging his deep understanding of the business to elevate the right strategic opportunities and identify key risks and mitigation approaches for the board's review,” the statement said.

See Also: Microsoft Beats Q3 Earnings Estimates, Sees Azure Revenue Up 50%

Why It Matters: Nadella took over as Microsoft’s CEO in 2014 replacing Ballmer and has since turned the software giant into America’s second largest company by value after Apple Inc AAPL.

Microsoft shares have risen nearly sevenfold since Nadella took over the reins at the company operating in areas such as personal computing, cloud, gaming, professional networking. 

Gates had last year announced he was stepping down from Microsoft’s board to focus on philanthropic priorities including global health, development, education, and his increasing engagement in tackling climate change.

A WSJ report last month said Gates resigned from his position as a director of the company due to an internal investigation into a romantic relationship with an engineer at Microsoft. He resigned just three months after being re-elected to serve as a director.

Price Action: Microsoft shares closed 0.4% lower at $257.38 on Wednesday.