DURHAM, N.C. — Wolfspeed, Inc. announced that Thomas Werner, a board member since 2006, has been elected the new Chairman of the Board, effective immediately. Werner succeeds Darren Jackson, who stepped down as chair after five years in the role. Jackson will continue to serve as a member of the Wolfspeed Board. In addition, Board Member Stacy Smith will replace John Replogle as the Chair of the Governance and Nominations Committee.
“Wolfspeed is thrilled to welcome Tom as our new Board Chair,” said Gregg Lowe, Wolfspeed President & CEO. “Tom is a proven innovator with vast experience in the energy and semiconductor industries, and will provide invaluable leadership as we further scale our operations to meet the growing demand for silicon carbide power devices.”
“It is my honor to serve as Wolfspeed’s Board Chair, and help Wolfspeed as it leads the transition from silicon to silicon carbide,” said Werner. “Wolfspeed is on the cusp of truly changing the power electronics industry, and I am excited to be a part of that transformation.”
Werner is a distinguished industry leader with more than 25 years of experience in semiconductor, disruptive technology and energy organizations. Werner previously served as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for SunPower Corporation, a publicly traded manufacturer and marketer of high-efficiency solar cells and solar panels, after serving as the Chief Executive Officer of SunPower for 18 years.
Smith is the Executive Chairman of Kioxia Corporation (formerly Toshiba Memory Corporation), a leading flash memory company, and Non-Executive Chair of the Board at Autodesk, Inc., a global leader in design and make technology. Prior to his Board positions, Smith worked at Intel Corporation for three decades in a variety of roles including as Group President of Sales, Manufacturing and Operations, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Information Officer, and Head of Europe Middle East and Africa.