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AMD's Sanders to stand down next April
Ruiz waits in wings
AMD's silver-haired leader Jerry Sanders is to finally stand down next spring.
Flamboyant chip chief WJ Sanders III will continue as CEO until the annual shareholders' meeting in April 2002, AMD said today. This is ever so slightly earlier than the last time the date for his retirement was announced - in September last year, the company said Sanders would step down in the second half of 2002.
Hector de J Ruiz, Sander's anointed successor, will ascend the AMD throne then - unless Sanders changes his mind between times of course.
Sanders, who founded AMD in 1968, and once famously compared his company to a monkey and rival Intel to a gorilla, will continue as chairman of the board until the end of 2003.
On Ruiz, Sanders comments: "We have a great working relationship across the waterfront of strategic and planning issues..." no enough of that, real people don't talk like this (AMD press release writers take note).
Ruiz, in his mid-50s, is said to be "quiet and thoughtful". Last year Motorola decided to sue him for allegedly poaching staff to take to AMD. ®
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