Two months into 2020, Microsoft Corp.’s senior leadership team is undergoing some significant changes.

The technology giant today announced that long-time LinkedIn Chief Executive Officer Jeff Weiner will step down on June 1. In conjunction, veteran Microsoft watcher Mary Jo Foley reported, the company’s Windows user experience group and hardware units are being merged.

First, the leadership reshuffle at LinkedIn: Weiner (pictured, left, next to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman) took over the reins at LinkedIn in 2008 and grew the social network from 33 million members to nearly 675 million today. Weiner will be succeeded by lieutenant Ryan Roslansky, currently LinkedIn’s senior vice president of product, while the outgoing CEO will transition to the role of executive chairman.

“Ryan was the first hire I made after joining LinkedIn in December 2008,” Weiner wrote in a blog post. “He has been essential to the company’s success ever since. Ryan will report directly to Satya and serve as a member of his senior leadership team, in the same way I have over the last three years.”

Roslansky is stepping into the CEO role at a time when LinkedIn is becoming an increasingly important part of Microsoft’s business. The social network generated $7.5 billion in revenue for the company over the past year from advertising, recruitment tools and a budding online education business. LinkedIn is also becoming more integrated with Microsoft’s other product lines thanks to a widening array of connectors for solutions such as Office 365.

Roslansky’s old role as head of product will pass over to Tomer Cohen, currently vice president of LinkedIn Marketing Solutions. Cohen’s appointment will go into effect on June 1 as well. 

“Tomer has led our Marketing Solutions product during a time of record revenue as it continues to be our fastest growing business at scale,” Weiner wrote.

The leadership transition at LinkedIn was announced against the backdrop of the report that Microsoft is integrating the Windows Experiences and Devices unit with its Surface hardware teams, which will together now be known as the Windows + Devices group. The insiders who leaked the news said the combined group will report to Microsoft Chief Product Officer Panos Panay.

The Windows Experiences and Devices unit is responsible for the Windows user experience but not the operating system’s core architecture, which is developed by the Azure business. Microsoft’s Surface hardware teams, in turn, oversee its enterprise-oriented Surface family of devices. The product lineup includes tablets, notebooks, a smart whiteboard and, as of late last year, a foldable Android handset as well.

Panos reportedly told employees in an internal memo that “we believe this will make the Windows Client experience better for the entire PC ecosystem. Designing hardware and software together will enable us to do a better job on our long-term Windows bets (dual screen, silicon diversity, connectivity, app platform, etc.).”

Patrick Moorhead, president and principal analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, called Panay “a guy who gets things done. Surface, under his leadership, has seen a lot of growth, and I’m interested to see what he can do with Windows.”

The restructuring is said to be accompanied by additional management changes. Joe Belfiore, the current head of the Experience and Devices group being merged with the Surface teams, will reportedly move over to the Office division to help lead interface design efforts. Microsoft Teams is being moved under the responsibility of Jeff Tepper, the corporate vice president who heads the Office, SharePoint and OneDrive groups.

With reporting from Robert Hof

Photo: Microsoft