Stephen Elop is set to head up Microsoft’s huge Devices and Studios department once the Nokia acquisition is complete.
The former Nokia CEO was heavily rumoured to be in the running for the top CEO position at Microsoft following Steve Ballmer’s ouster, but that position was filled by Satya Nadella instead.
If Elop hasn’t won full control of his former (and soon to be present) company, he will soon be in charge of Microsoft’s most exciting department. That’s according to a leaked internal email from the current Devices and Studios head, Julie Larson-Green, which was published by GeekWire.
In the memo to her team, Larson-Green speaks of moving on to a new role in the Applications and Services Group. She also name-drops here successor:
"I’ll remain in role leading the DnS organization in the interim until the Nokia deal closes and Stephen Elop makes his transition to Microsoft. We've been meeting regularly throughout and are making a lot of progress, ensuring our teams are ready for the Day 1 close and beyond."
Elop’s new role will put him directly in charge of Microsoft’s lucrative Xbox brand and the new Xbox One console. It also places him at the head of Microsoft’s internal game studios, which are responsible for the likes of Forza and Halo.
Besides games, Elop will be responsible for overseeing Microsoft devices like the Microsoft Surface range, as well as the Nokia smartphone team he was largely responsible for guiding to its new home.
We’ll need to wait for official confirmation, of course, but it seems as if Elop has snagged himself one heck of a reward for bringing the former world’s biggest mobile phone manufacturer to the world’s biggest software company.
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