Nokia appoints Rajeev Suri as President and CEO

Espoo, Finland — Nokia Board of Directors has appointed Rajeev Suri as President and CEO of Nokia Corporation, effective May 1, 2014. Suri joined Nokia in 1995 and has held a wide range of leadership positions in the company. Since October of 2009, he has served as CEO of NSN, the former joint venture between Nokia and Siemens that is now fully owned by Nokia. During his tenure as CEO, that business went through a radical transformation to become one of the leaders in the telecommunications infrastructure industry.

“As Nokia opens this new chapter, the Nokia Board and I are confident that Rajeev is the right person to lead the company forward,” said Risto Siilasmaa, Chairman of the Nokia Board of Directors. “He has a proven ability to create strategic clarity, drive innovation and growth, ensure disciplined execution, and deliver results. We believe that his passion for technology will help ensure that Nokia continues to deliver innovations that have a positive impact on people’s lives.”

Siilasmaa, who has also been serving as an interim CEO, will return to focusing exclusively on his role as Chairman of Nokia’s Board of Directors as of May 1, 2014.

“I am honored to have been asked to take this role, and excited about the possibilities that lie in our future,” said Rajeev Suri. “Nokia, with its deep experience in connecting people and its three strong businesses, is well-positioned to tap new opportunities during this time of technological change. I look forward to working with the entire Nokia team as we embark on this exciting journey.”

Long-term leadership targeted in three key areas

Nokia believes that over the next 10 years billions of connected devices will converge into intelligent and programmable systems that will have the potential to improve lives in a vast number of areas: time and availability, transportation and resource consumption, learning and work, health and wellness, and many more.

This new world of technology will require 1) connectivity capable of handling massive numbers of devices and exponential increases in data traffic; 2) location services that seamlessly bridge between the real and virtual worlds; and 3) innovation, including in sensing, radio and low power technologies. Nokia’s vision is to be a leader over the long term in these three areas.

“The world of technology is on the verge of a change that we believe will be as profound as the creation of the internet” said Rajeev Suri. “With our three strong businesses – Networks, HERE and Technologies – and position as one of the world’s largest software companies, we are well placed to meet our goal to be a leader in the technologies for a world where everybody and everything is connected.”

Official News Release by Nokia