Dirk Meyer, CEO and president of AMD, has resigned effectively immediately. AMD's Board of Directors has announced that Senior Vice President and CFO Thomas Seifert will replace him as interim CEO. According to a press release issued by AMD, A CEO Search Committee has been formed to begin the search for a new CEO. The Committee is led by Bruce Claflin, Chairman of AMD's Board of Directors, who has been named Executive Chairman of the Board as he assumes additional oversight responsibilities during the transition period. Seifert will maintain his current responsibilities as CFO and has asked not to be considered for the permanent CEO position.
The announcement comes as a complete surprise: there were no rumblings of major changes in upper management on the rumor mill, and no knowledge of personal or medical issues that would cause Meyer to suddenly resign. Neither AMD nor Meyer have given a reason for the sudden departure. The resignation comes on the heels of the successful launch of AMD's first Fusion processors for netbooks and ultraportable laptops. AMD's stock has started to fall in after-hours trading, following the announcement.
