AT&T CEO Retiring as Telco Plans for Three Years of Cost Cuts and Layoffs

upstart writes in with an IRC submission for AnonymousCoward:

AT&T CEO retiring as telco plans for three years of cost cuts and layoffs:

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson is retiring at the end of June and handing the reins to executive John Stankey, who will lead the telco through a multi-year cost-cutting program. Stankey, the company president and COO, will become CEO on July 1, AT&T announced today. Stephenson "will serve as Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors until January 2021 to ensure a smooth leadership transition."

Stephenson, 60, has been AT&T's CEO since 2007; he began his AT&T career in 1982 with Southwestern Bell Telephone, a subsidiary.

"Stankey's selection as AT&T's next CEO completes the final phase of a succession planning process that AT&T's Board began in 2017, which included a thorough evaluation of internal and external candidates," today's announcement said.

Stankey, 57, has been with AT&T since 1985 and has been president and COO since October 2019. He has recently taken on a more prominent role as part of succession planning. Last month, Stankey detailed a cost-cutting plan to "generate double digits of billions over a 3-year planning cycle." That will include job cuts, which Stankey called "headcount rationalization."

[...] In today's succession announcement, Stephenson said he looks forward to working with Stankey "as the leadership team moves forward on our strategic initiatives while navigating the difficult economic and health challenges currently facing our country and the world. John has the right experiences and skills, and the unflinching determination every CEO needs to act on his convictions."

Stankey said he "couldn't be more excited about the new opportunities we have to serve our customers and communities and create value for our shareholders."

Meanwhile...

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