Publications
Publications
- November 2015 (Revised February 2017)
- HBS Case Collection
Cisco Systems: In Search of the Next CEO
By: Boris Groysberg, Sarah L. Abbott, Olivia Hull and J. Yo-Jud Cheng
Abstract
It’s August 2014 and John Chambers is expected to announce his retirement after 17 years as CEO of global technology giant Cisco Systems. Under Chambers’s leadership, Cisco has grown from $2.2 billion in annual revenues and under 4,000 employees to revenues of $46 billion and more than 66,000 employees. With Chambers’s retirement imminent, Cisco’s board of directors must design a detailed succession process that will allow a smooth transfer of power. What type of selection process should the board members use? Which qualities should they look for in potential candidates? Who should the board select for their shortlist of final candidates? In addition to exploring the history of Cisco, its current market position, and profiles of potential candidates, the case provides an overview of different types of succession planning processes.
Keywords
Leadership; Succession Planning; CEO Succession; Managing Change; Person-organization Fit; Management Succession; Transition; Talent and Talent Management; Change Management; Retirement; Innovation Leadership; Recruitment; Corporate Governance; Experience and Expertise; Technology Industry; Information Technology Industry; United States; San Jose; California
Citation
Groysberg, Boris, Sarah L. Abbott, Olivia Hull, and J. Yo-Jud Cheng. "Cisco Systems: In Search of the Next CEO." Harvard Business School Case 416-027, November 2015. (Revised February 2017.)