Honeywell CEO Cote To Step Down Next March; Successor Named

Honeywell president and COO Darius Adamczyk will succeed company chairman and CEO Dave Cote on March 31, 2017. Adamczyk reportedly plans to redouble Honeywell's efforts to expand its software offerings for industrial customers.

MORRIS PLAINS, N.J. — Honeywell announced Tuesday that Darius Adamczyk, current president and COO, will succeed Dave Cote as CEO on March 31, 2017.

Cote, who turns 64 in July and has been Honeywell chairman and CEO since 2002, will continue as executive chairman until the company's annual shareowners meeting in April 2018. He will then start a five-year consulting and non-compete agreement with Honeywell.

Adamczyk, 50, was named Honeywell president and COO earlier this year, promoted from president and CEO of Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies.

"Darius is absolutely the right person to lead our company into a new era where we will need to keep evolving to become even more global, more of a software company and more nimble. He has the growth mindset, global acumen, and software expertise to be a highly successful CEO for Honeywell," Cote said.

Adamczyk told the Wall Street Journal that he would redouble Honeywell's efforts to expand its software offerings for industrial customers.

"As industrial manufacturers evolve, Mr. Adamczyk said, organic sales growth will increasingly come from software that can help Honeywell’s customers — from airlines to petroleum refineries—squeeze more efficiency out of their heavy machinery," the WSJ said, then quoting Adamczyk, “Software is going to be the medium by which that value is going to be delivered."

"It is a privilege to have the opportunity to take on a bigger role at Honeywell and ultimately to become the CEO, fully supported by Dave, our very strong board and a talented and experienced leadership team," Adamczyk said. "It has been energizing to see all the ideas we are developing and implementing to build on our great positions in good industries."

Honeywell's board of directors have also developed a criteria for selection of a lead director position. The board selected Chico Pardo, 66, for a two-year term with expanded responsibilities. Pardo has been a board member for 16 years.

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