Jay Parikh, Facebook’s Top Infrastructure Engineering Exec, Leaving Company

Kurt Wagner (Bloomberg) -- Facebook Inc.’s top engineering executive, Jay Parikh, is leaving after more than a decade.

Parikh, who announced the move on his Facebook page Tuesday, oversees all engineering and infrastructure efforts, and manages thousands of employees around the world. He was instrumental in building the massive data centers that power Facebook’s social-media services. Other projects included bringing wireless internet connectivity to rural areas through solar-powered drones and undersea fiber cables, and the use of more renewable energy.

He joined Facebook in late 2009 and reports to Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer. Parikh will stick around for a few months and transition his duties, he wrote on Facebook. “I’m not going anywhere just yet,” he said, adding that he doesn’t have another job lined up. “I’m excited to spend time rediscovering what else is happening across our industry and to meet up with many new people.”

Facebook will probably distribute Parikh’s responsibilities to multiple executives. David Mortenson, a vice president of engineering who has been at the company for almost nine years, will take over the infrastructure side of Parikh’s job, according to a company spokesman.