Texas Instruments Inc. has named company veteran Haviv Ilan as its next Chief Executive Officer (CEO), succeeding current leader Rich Templeton in a long-planned succession. Ilan, who currently serves as the company’s Operating Chief, will take the CEO job on April 1st. Templeton, who turns 65 later this year, will remain Chairman.
Templeton reshaped Texas Instruments during his almost two-decade run at the top of the chipmaker. He refocused the company on analog chips and embedded processing, choosing products that require less upfront investment in manufacturing and have become increasingly pervasive as everyday items acquire more electronic functions.
Ilan follows Templeton as an executive who has worked his way up the ranks over decades inside the company, a process the chipmaker called a “well-planned succession.” He became a Senior Vice President in 2014, then Executive Vice President and COO in 2020. He joined the board the following year.
Templeton is retiring from the top job a second time. He was forced to return in 2018 when his first successor left the company after a breach of workplace rules.
Ilan joined Texas Instruments in 1999 when the company acquired Israeli wireless startup Butterfly Communications. He has a degree in electrical engineering from Tel Aviv University and an MBA from Northwestern University. Previously in his career at Texas Instruments, he ran its two main businesses, analog, and embedded processing.
Under Templeton, the company has undergone a favorable reevaluation by investors. Its current market capitalization is $144 billion, more than three times where it was when he took over the top job. The company has focused heavily on investor returns, typically giving all of its free cash back in the form of dividends and stock repurchases.
One of Ilan’s major tasks as the new CEO will be to make sure the company gets a slice of the more than $50 billion the US government has set aside to encourage the return of domestic chip production and decrease the growing dependency on East Asia. He’s also walking into the top job at a turbulent time for the industry. After two years of rapid revenue growth during the shortages caused by the pandemic, demand has cooled in key markets such as smartphones and computers. Analysts, on average, predict Texas Instruments’ revenue will shrink 8% in 2023.
In conclusion, Texas Instruments has named Haviv Ilan as its next CEO in a long-planned succession. Ilan has worked his way up the ranks over decades inside the company and has a proven track record of delivering results, an intense focus on innovation, and a passion to win. He will be taking over the position at a challenging time for the industry, with a decline in demand in key markets, and will have to navigate the company to get a slice of the government’s investment to encourage the return of domestic chip production.
