HP chairman resigns from board amid health concerns
After a little more than a year as chairman, Ralph Whitworth has resigned from Hewlett-Packard's board of directors.
HP confirmed the news early on Tuesday, affirming that Whitworth is departing to focus on personal health concerns. The move is effective July 16.
Whitworth will also be taking a leave of absence from his investment company, Relational Investors, which he co-founded in 1996.
A member of HP's board of directors since 2011, Whitworth was appointed interim chairman in April 2013, stepping in for then-chairman Ray Lane amid the fallout after the Autonomy acquisition debacle.
HP's recovery has been an ongoing public struggle, which CEO Meg Whitman has admitted and stressed repeatedly that this should be expected for at least the next few quarters -- if not the next few years.
Nevertheless, Whitworth had positive words for Whitman's leadership during the transition, remarking that while he is "disappointed to step down from HP's board at such an exciting time for the company, it gives me great comfort that HP is in such talented and steady hands."
An interim replacement for Whitworth has not been named yet. HP's board is scheduled to discuss the appointment of a new chairman during its next board meeting.
Hewlett-Packard's board of directors now stands at 11 members, including Whitman, Lane, and venture capital titan Marc Andreessen.