Xerox has announced that it has made important progress on its three-year, $2.4 billion strategic transformation program to deliver significant productivity gains and cost reductions across its businesses, and that the company is on track to complete its separation into two independent publicly traded companies by the end of 2016. Xerox expects to incur one-time separation costs of approximately $200 to $250 million in 2016, inclusive of $8 million incurred in the first quarter.
The Document Technology company, comprising Xerox’s Document Technology and Document Outsourcing businesses, will retain the Xerox brand name. With approximately $11 billion in 2015 revenue and approximately 39,000 employees, Xerox will be a Fortune 500 scale company with a diverse portfolio of hardware, software and services supporting governments and commercial enterprises.
The Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company will be named ‘Conduent.’ With approximately $7 billion in 2015 revenue and 96,000 employees worldwide, Conduent will be a Fortune 500 scale business process services company with expertise in transaction-intensive processing, analytics and automation.
The name Conduent is inspired by the new company’s expertise in connecting clients and their constituents through seamless transactions in areas such as customer care, transportation solutions, and healthcare payer and provider services. Conduent reflects the company’s position as a partner to businesses and governments, delivering experiences that drive satisfaction and retention among consumers, patients, commuters and employees.
“Conduent will begin its next chapter as a standalone company with a name that conveys the vital business we conduct every day,” said Ursula. “Conduent is well-positioned to build on its strong heritage as a leader in business process services and will carry forward the values and culture of innovation, diversity and integrity from Xerox.”
“With unparalleled brand equity in printing and imaging, there is no better name for our document technology and document outsourcing businesses than Xerox. Building on its deep understanding of how the world works, communicates and shares content, the new Xerox will continue to help clients improve their workflow, productivity, and business performance, no matter where they are on their digital journey,” said Ursula.
Ursula Burns named chairman of the board of the Document Technology company
The Board of Directors of Xerox have announced that Ursula Burns will serve as chairman of the board of the Document Technology company. Ursula will continue in her current role as chairman and chief executive officer of Xerox until the separation.
“Ursula’s deep industry experience and relationships along with her proven leadership skills will be valuable assets for the Document Technology company and will help ensure a smooth transition to a new management team,” said Ann Reese, Xerox’s lead independent director. “The company will be well positioned to leverage its global industry leadership, strategic focus and ability to innovate post-separation and we are very pleased that Ursula will continue to play a critical role in making that happen.”
“I am looking forward to my role as chairman of the Document Technology company and to continuing my deep personal and professional commitment to its success,” Ursula said. “I remain focused, however, on ensuring Xerox and the post-separation companies are positioned to build on our strong heritage and capture new opportunities we have identified to create value for employees, customers and shareholders.”
Jeff Jacobson to take over as CEO of Xerox
Jeffrey Jacobson currently serves as president of the Xerox Technology business and will continue in his current role until the separation is complete. He was named to this position and appointed an executive vice president of the corporation in July 2014.
In his current role, Jacobson leads the company’s technology business, which offers a diverse portfolio of hardware, software and services to customers ranging from small businesses to multinational enterprises. He is responsible for worldwide strategy, sales channel operations, marketing, technical services and customer support, and product development, manufacturing and distribution.
Jacobson joined Xerox in 2012 as the president of Global Graphic Communications Operations where he led strategy, operations and product development of the company’s production systems portfolio for the global graphic communications market. In 2014, as the chief operating officer of the Xerox Technology business, his responsibilities were expanded to include strengthening the technology product and solutions portfolio, managing the cost base and driving supply chain, manufacturing and overall efficiencies.
Prior to Xerox, Jacobson served as the president and chief executive officer of Presstek, adding the title of chairman in 2009. Previously, Jacobson was chief operating officer of Eastman Kodak Company’s $3.6 billion Graphic Communications Group. He also served for five years as CEO of Kodak Polychrome Graphics, a $1.7 billion joint venture between Sun Chemical and Eastman Kodak.
Jacobson, age 56, is a graduate of the State University of New York Buffalo and holds a master’s degree in industrial relations from the Cornell School of Industrial Relations. He also holds a juris doctor degree from Pace University School of Law and is admitted to the bar in New York and New Jersey.
“Jeff is a great leader with a passion for our business and employees, deep customer relationships and a clear strategic vision to capitalize on the opportunities ahead,” said Ursula. “During his four years at Xerox, Jeff has driven significant productivity and cost efficiency efforts while maintaining our commitment to innovation, quality and leading technology. With his previous public-company CEO experience and his track record and achievements at Xerox, the Board and I are confident he is the best person to lead Xerox forward.”
“I am honored by the board’s decision to appoint me to lead one of the world’s most iconic companies and confident that we will build a bright future for Xerox on the foundation of disciplined management, operational excellence and customer focus that is in place today. As an independent company and with the benefit of the strategic transformation we are aggressively implementing, we will capture the many opportunities available to us to strengthen core businesses and pursue select growth opportunities,” Jeff said.
Ashok Vemuri named CEO of Conduent
Ashok Vemuri joins Xerox as the chief executive officer of Xerox Business Services and executive vice president of Xerox, effective July 1, 2016. After the completion of Xerox’s planned separation, Vemuri will serve as the chief executive officer and a director of Conduent.
Ashok previously was president, chief executive officer and a member of the board of directors of IGATE Corporation, a New Jersey-based global technology and services company now part of global technology and outsourcing company Capgemini. During his tenure from 2013 to 2015, Ashok successfully transformed the company’s organization, go-to-market strategy, brand and balance sheet. He oversaw the company becoming the only IT services company to make the Fortune 100 Fastest Growing companies in 2014. Before joining IGATE, Ashok spent fourteen years at Infosys, a multinational consulting and IT services company, in a variety of leadership and business development roles. From 2012 to 2013, he served as senior vice president and head of Americas and global head of Manufacturing and Engineering Services. Ashok was a member of the board from 2011 to 2013. He was also the key architect of the company’s vertical go-to-market model.
Prior to joining Infosys in 1999, he worked in the investment banking industry at Deutsche Bank and Bank of America. Ashok is a member of the World Economic Forum IT Board of Governors. He won the Board of Enterprise Asia Outstanding Entrepreneur Award and IAIR Businessman of the Year award in 2015. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree with honors in physics from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi and received his MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
“Ashok’s deep industry experience and proven track record of leading growth and corporate transformations will be instrumental for the BPO company’s future success,” said Ursula. “He’s an excellent leader with the right combination of operational, financial and client experience to successfully drive our BPO company’s go-forward strategy. I look forward to working with Ashok to successfully launch the new BPO company and build on its position as an industry leader.”
“I’m excited to join Xerox at this stage of its new path forward. Xerox’s BPO business is already in several attractive markets and has an impressive client list that includes top global brands and vital government agencies. The standalone BPO company will have many new opportunities, leveraging its differentiated capabilities and executing a more focused value-creation strategy for the benefit of clients, employees and shareholders,” Ashok said.
