Another longtime Microsoft executive is retiring

It’s already been a busy year in terms of high-profile departures at Microsoft, with longtime Xbox chief Phil Spencer leaving last month, alongside his expected successor, Sarah Bond. Today, it’s the turn of Rajesh Jha, head of experiences and devices at Microsoft, who is leaving the company after more than 35 years.

Jha, who has overseen some of Microsoft’s most important products and services, including Windows, Office and Teams, said in a statement that he has been planning his succession alongside CEO Satya Nadella for some time. Rather than hiring a direct replacement, four members of his team will be promoted to executive vice president and report directly to Nadella.

Ryan Roslanksky, executive vice president of Office and CEO of LinkedIn, Pavan Davuluri, president of Windows and Surface, Charles Lamanna, president of Business and Industry Copilot (BIC), and Perry Clarke, head of Microsoft 365 Core, will assume these new, more senior roles. The outgoing Jha, who said his long career at Microsoft had been “an incredible privilege,” will officially leave Microsoft on July 1, after which he will remain in an advisory role.

“When I think of the pantheon of leaders who have truly shaped this company, Rajesh stands firmly among them,” Nadella said in a statement, adding that Jha had been a “constant” during his tenure at the company. “He embodies the commitment that helped build and transform Microsoft into the company it is today, and it is on the strength of that foundation that we will continue to move forward.”