Equinix CEO leaves company after 11 years over poor judgment in employee matter
After eleven years, Steve Smith has resigned as CEO of Equinix and from the data center company's Board of Directors after exercising poor judgment with respect to an employee matter.
The Equinix Board of Directors accepted Smith's resignation "in the best interests of the company", and has appointed executive chairman Peter Van Camp as interim CEO.
"The Board gave this matter the deepest consideration and recognizes the many contributions Steve made over the past eleven years to achieve the global scale, reach and market leadership the company enjoys today. He has worked hard to grow and sustain the business, and we greatly appreciate his efforts," explains Van Camp.
The Board will commence a formal process to appoint a new CEO. Gartner analyst Ted Chamberlin, in an article for DataCenterNews, says he would not be surprised if an internal candidate emerged for the CEO role.
"Charles Meyers and Karl Strohmeyer make the most sense," Chamberlin said in the article.
Van Camp commented on the matter, saying this action was not related to the company's operational performance or financial condition.
"Board and leadership team remain fully committed to the strategy," adds Van Camp.
Van Camp has been with Equinix in key roles for more than 17 years. Van Camp served as CEO of Equinix for seven years (2000 to 2007). Since 2007, he has served as executive chairman of the Equinix Board of Directors.
Van Camp will retain his Executive Chairman responsibilities during the interim period.
Van Camp adds, "The company is well-positioned strategically, with tremendous depth at the leadership level and a passionate team that will guide the business and continue to drive the performance of the company.
"With our 2018 strategy and plan securely in place, we are well-positioned to capitalize on the role Equinix plays in helping companies evolve from their traditional business practices to the digital world by globally interconnecting with the people, locations, cloud services and data critical to their operations."
