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Daniel Zhang has unexpectedly resigned as head of Alibaba's cloud division after just two months. Zhang, who recently shifted focus from his CEO role, will be replaced by Eddie Wu amid the company's larger restructuring plans.
On Sunday, Sept. 10, Alibaba Group said that Zhang has stepped down and will be replaced by Eddie Wu. Moreover, what makes his decision to quit more surprising is the fact that he gave up his chief executive and chairman role in June so he could dedicate his time to the company's cloud unit, and now, he is leaving this same division.
As per Reuters, Zhang has been simultaneously serving three executive roles in the past, and at that time, he was also leading Alibaba's cloud intelligence unit. This division is said to be the largest cloud service provider in China. It was recently formed as part of Alibaba's restructuring scheme that saw the company being split up into six units with their own board, chairmans and CEOs.
In any case, the Chinese e-commerce and technology company shared that Zhang announced his departure from the cloud business through an internal letter that was sent to his staff. The note also affirmed the appointment of Wu as his replacement.
Alibaba has big plans for its cloud unit. An IPO is being planned for it, and the target is making this happen within the next 12 months. To achieve this, the group said it will continue implementing the cloud business's spin-off plan and appoint a management team.
"The board of our company expresses its deepest appreciation to Mr. Zhang for his contributions to Alibaba Group over the past 16 years," Joseph Tsai, Alibaba's executive vice chairman, said in the announcement of Zhang's departure from the cloud unit. "Daniel has expressed his wish to transition away from his role as chairman and CEO of Cloud Intelligence Group."
He added, "Following careful consideration, the Alibaba board respected and accepted Daniel's decision and appointed Eddie as acting chairman and CEO of Cloud Intelligence Group, effectively immediately."
Meanwhile, Zhang will still be part of the Alibaba Group, and Tsai said he will just "switch to a different approach and continue to fight alongside us at the company." Nikkei Asia reported that the outgoing head of the cloud unit will also be given an "emeritus" title, a first in the history of Alibaba.
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