The world’s No. 1 PC manufacturer and a growing force in global smartphone sales is restructuring its management and internal organizations. The changes come less than a week after Lenovo made a $2.3 billion deal with IBM to acquire substantial parts of its server business.

Lenovo disclosed the mix of organization and management changes early Tuesday. The news came hours after research firm IDC reported that Lenovo shipped more than 45 million smartphones in 2013 – 5 million above the company’s goal. Lenovo ranks fifth overall in total smartphone shipments for 2013 but was fourth in the fourth quarter.

The reorganization takes effect April 1. Gerry Smith, Lenovo’s top Americas executive, will lead the IBM integration effort.

The move includes additional responsibilities for Gianfranco Lanci, the head of Europe, Middle East and Africa business, who joined Lenovo as a consultant in 2011. The former CEO of PC rival Acer was promoted to executive vice president and chief operation officer. He will be charged as well to lead Integrated Operations and Alliances. Lanci also will manage the newly formed PC Business Group.

Lenovo underwent a major reorganization in 2012 after a series of international acquisitions and in an acceleration of its diversification strategy known as “PC Plus.”

Saying the company needed a new structure to capitalize on growth opportunities, Lenovo is breaking its two previous business groups into four:

  • PC Business Group (including Lenovo and Think brands)
  • Mobile Business Group (smartphones, tables, smart TV)
  • Enterprise (servers and storage)
  • Ecosystem and Cloud Services (including Windows and Android)

The previous two groups were Lenovo Business Group (consumers, mobile) and Think Business Group (commercial).

While geographic areas are not affected a great deal, the Asia Pacific region outside China has been split into “Mature Markets” (Japan, Australia, New Zealand) and Emerging Markets.

The majority of Lenovo’s business is done in China, and most of its employees are located there.

The company operates its executive headquarters in Morrisville.

If the IBM deal is approved by regulators later this year, some 2,000 IBM employees in the Triangle will be transferred to Lenovo.

“Today, Lenovo is in one of the most important and exciting phases in our history,” Chairman and CEO Yang Yuanqing said in a statement. “We are the number 1 PC company in the world. We are number 3 in Smart Connected Devices (PC, tablet, smartphone). And we just announced the intent to make an acquisition that will make us a significant competitor in the Enterprise space.

“Given that momentum, now is the perfect time to prepare for the next phase in our growth.”

The new positions:

  • Smith, who leads Lenovo’s Americas geography group, will direct the new Enterprise organization.
  • Gianfranco Lanci, the head of Europe, Middle East and Africa business, will manage the PC Business Group.
  • Liu Jin, the leader of the Business Group, will direct the Mobile Business Group
  • George He, the company’s current chief technology officer, will head Ecosystem and Cloud Services
  • Peter Hortensius, who had led the Think Business Group, takes over as CTO, replacing He.

“The new structure will help us be even faster, more focused and more efficient in providing innovative products and services to an incredibly diverse global market with a wide range of technology needs,” Yang said in the announcement. “We know we must anticipate the next set of opportunities for our company, and we are preparing our organization for the future. This way Lenovo can not only continue as the world PC leader, but become a true leader in the PC+ era.”