Ingram Micro CEO To Step Down As Veteran Executive Assumes Role

Ingram Micro plans to promote Alain Monie to CEO, effective Friday. He will replace Greg Spierkel, CEO since 2005.

Spierkel will remain at the company through April 15 to assist in the management transition, according to Ingram Micro. In a statement, Spierkel said the time was right to spend more time with his family.

"I'm confident the company is in capable and experienced hands," Spierkel said in the statement.

Monie, 61, is currently the company's president and COO, joined Ingram Micro in January 2003 as executive vice president. He left Ingram Micro briefly in 2010 to become CEO of April Management, an industrial company based in Asia. He returned to Ingram last November, taking up his prior responsibilities.

Monie said his return to Ingram Micro last November did not include an eventual succession to the CEO position.

"Ingram is a big company and having a CEO and COO was necessary, so it was great to be back at Ingram. I came back without any particular objective [to be CEO]," Monie said in an interview with CRN.

Monie added he does not anticipate any significant changes in strategy or direction under his watch.

"We are going to continue on execution of our strategy and make sure our core business produces better and better," Monie said. "We will continue to develop the new areas where we see higher margins like IM Logistics and mobility is a great growth category. Cloud is another area I'm interested in pushing. I think there's a lot more to be done and we want to remain in the top pack."

Dale Laurance, chairman of Ingram's board of directors, thanked Spierkel for his service to the company in a statement.

"Greg has ably steered the company through periods of both growth and challenge," Laurence said in the statement. "We are confident that Alain is uniquely positioned to guide the company. He is an outstanding and worldly leader, fluent in three languages with first-hand global business experience. He has proven to be a strong executive with good strategic thinking."

Spierkel was a popular CEO with Ingram's VARs, often engaging them in conversations over a beer at the distributor's VentureTech Network conferences.

"I've met both [Spierkel and Monie] several times. I like both of them. Greg did more than other Ingram executives in terms of engaging with the resellers," said Larry Hedin, vice president of sales and marketing at Heartland Technology Solutions, Joplin, Mo. "Alain, obvsiously from an international standpoint, has the ability to continue Ingram's growth. He has a strong financial background and he will make a good leader for Ingram."