Capita CEO Jon Lewis to retire

Outsourcer Capita said on Monday that chief executive Jon Lewis is planning to retire.

Lewis will step down as CEO and a director on the board towards the end of the year, while remaining in the business until July 2024 to ensure an orderly transition.

He will be succeeded by Adolfo Hernandez, who is currently vice president, global telecommunications for Amazon Web Services (AWS), and has had a 30-year career in the technology sector, including senior leadership roles at SDL and Alcatel-Lucent.

Capita said Lewis informed the board last year that he was interested in exploring his future options, including eventual retirement from Capita and handover to a new CEO, "once the business had pivoted to growth following its completed turnaround and a potential successor had been identified".

Chairman David Lowden said: "On behalf of the board and everyone at Capita, I would like to offer our sincere thanks to Jon and pay tribute to his significant commitment and achievements at Capita over the past five years.

"He has shown outstanding leadership and determination in rebuilding Capita from the ground up. It is now a purpose-led business which Jon has refocused, strengthened and returned to growth, while rebuilding client trust and improving colleague engagement. He should be rightly proud of his achievements.

"I also want to pay particular tribute to his leadership in recent months, during which he decided to delay his possible retirement from Capita due to the cyber incident we experienced in March."