HP Veteran Smith is New Equinix CEO

HP executive Steve Smith has been named the new chief executive officer of Equinix, the company announced today. Smith, 50, is a 19 year industry veteran and recently served as senior vice president of HP Services, the $15 billion professional services segment of HP. He will begin his new post on April 2.

Equinix, which operates data centers and interconnection facilities, announced last October that chairman and CEO Peter Van Camp would transition to the role of executive chairman and remain actively involved with the company. The company is in the midst of a major building program, with a new data center that just opened in northern Virginia market and two more under development in Chicago and northern New Jersey.

"Steve possesses exactly the broad leadership skills and experience needed to continue to expand our strong market leadership position: broad knowledge of the global technology industry; a total commitment to customer success; and a deep appreciation for the importance of team and culture," said Van Camp. "I'm confident Steve will serve Equinix customers and shareholders well. In my new role, I expect to continue to spend 50 percent of my time at Equinix and I very much look forward to working closely with him at a strategic level to take the company forward."

Before joining HP, Smith was vice president of Global Professional and Managed Services at Lucent Technologies, and also spent 16 years in management and sales positions with Electronic Data Systems Corporation. Smith served eigh years in the U.S. Army, where he was aide-de-camp to the office of the commander in chief of the U.S. Armed Forces in the Pacific. Smith graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering.