MORRISVILLE – Sparked by global orders for personal computers due to the global pandemic which has millions of people working and learning from home, revenue and profits for Lenovo soared to record levels in the last quarter of 2020. But that was hardly all the news Lenovo made early Wednesday.

The world’s No. 1 PC manufacturer also said its No. 2 executive, Gianfranco Lanci, is going to retire in September. Lanci is Lenovo’s president and chief operating officer as well as the head executive for business operations and sales.

Lenovo, which operates global headquarters in Morrisville and Beijing, unveiled as well a new corporate structure and the creation of a new Solutions & Services Group that combines all its service and solutions teams from across its various divisions. Ken Wong, a current Lenovo senior vice president, will lead the group.

In his own words: Lenovo CEO spells out reorg, says aim is to ‘sharpen our execution’

As part of that move, Lenovo said the global conglomerate will now operate as three “main business groups” under a “3S” strategy:

  • Smart IoT, Smart Infrastructure, and Smart Verticals are the 3 S’s in our “3 S Strategy”
  • The three main business groups are Intelligent Devices Group (IDG), Infrastructure Solutions Group (ISG, renamed from DCG) and Solutions and Services Group (SSG)
  • IDG will be led globally by Luca Rossi. ISG will be continue to be led by Kirk Skaugen. SSG will be led by Ken Wong.
  • Matt Zielinski will lead International Sales Organization and Liu Jun will lead China GEO Sales. All five leaders mentioned above will report directly to Yuanqing Yang and sit on the Lenovo Executive Committee (LEC).

The new structure goes into effect April 1.

Lenovo CEO Yang Yuanqing praised the company’s performance in its record-setting quarter and its adaptation to a changing economic climate.

“The delivery of yet another record-breaking quarter is a reflection of our innovative product portfolio and operational excellence, which drove growth across all businesses,” he said in a statement.

“Clearly, 2020 was a challenging year that brought remarkable changes to our world, yet Lenovo quickly responded to the changing market driven by new work and lifestyle trends and delivered strong results. Now, as we begin to see the results of our transformation investments, we will further invest in technology and innovation, drive intelligent transformation across industries, and create sustainable growth.”

Yang cited the COVID-19 pandemic as a reason for Lenovo’s growth.

“The pandemic is driving people’s new behaviour…We believe even after the pandemic the new normal will continue,” he told Reuters in an interview.

Revenues climbed to a new company high of $17.35 billion, up 22% from the previous quarter.

Earnings hit $395 million, well above expectations of $294 million.

Lenovo also acknowledged its move to offer as much as 10% of its stock in a new listing on the Science and Technology Innovation Board of the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

“We want to leverage the booming China stock market to fund our growth, with the new IPO it will definitely expand our investor scope,” Yang told Reuters.

Note: This story has been revised to correct information about the reorganization and leadership.