Nokia Corporation has announced a leadership transition, naming Justin Hotard as its new President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) from April 1, 2025.
Pekka Lundmark, the current CEO, will step down on 31 March 2025 to pursue new opportunities and will continue as an advisor to the new CEO until the end of the year.
Nokia today announced a leadership transition with @PekkaLundmark deciding to step down as President and CEO on March 31 and handing over to @justinhotard to lead @Nokia. Pekka will stay on as an advisor until the end of the year. Read more here: https://t.co/J9CK4cCLNJ pic.twitter.com/5wnXlYaE0A
— Nokia (@nokia) February 10, 2025
Justin Hotard has more than 25 years of experience in the technology industry, most recently serving as Executive Vice President and General Manager of Intel’s Data Center and AI Group. He formerly held top positions at Hewlett-Packard Enterprise and NCR Corporation.
“I am honored by the opportunity to lead Nokia, a global leader in connectivity with a unique heritage in technology. Networks are the backbone that power society and businesses and enable generational technology shifts like the one we are currently experiencing in AI. I’m excited to get started and look forward to continuing Nokia’s transformation journey to maximize its potential for growth and value creation,” said Justin Hotard.
Since 2020, Lundmark has led Nokia back to the forefront of 5G technology, reinforced its cloud-native core networks, and improved its network infrastructure and intellectual licensing business.
Sari Baldauf, Chair of Nokia’s Board of Directors, expressed confidence in Hotard’s appointment. “I am delighted to welcome Justin to Nokia. He has a strong track record of accelerating growth in technology companies along with vast expertise in AI and data center markets, which are critical areas for Nokia’s future growth. In his previous positions and throughout the selection process, he has demonstrated the strategic insight, vision, leadership and value creation mindset required for a CEO of Nokia.”
“I want to thank Pekka for his significant contributions to Nokia; he will leave with our highest respect. The planning for this leadership transition was initiated when Pekka indicated to the Board that he would like to consider moving on from executive roles when the repositioning of the business was in a more advanced stage and when the right successor had been identified. Now, both of those conditions have been met, and he has decided to step down,” said Sari Baldauf.
