Intel announced that Christoph Schell, who led the sales and marketing group since 2022, has decided to leave the company by the end of June. This information is also confirmed on his LinkedIn profile. His position will be taken over by Greg Ernst, who previously led sales in the North American region.
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According to the memo, Schell is leaving to take up the post of CEO of the German company KUKA, a leading manufacturer of automated systems with annual revenues of about €4 billion and a workforce of about 15,000 people. He has been a member of KUKA’s supervisory board since 2023, which likely played a significant role in his decision to leave Intel.
Ernst, corporate vice president and general manager of North American sales, will serve as the group’s leader during the transition period. In a memo, CEO Lip-Bu Tan described Ernst as a people- and customer-focused leader with nearly 20 years of sales experience at Intel. Tan also announced the promotion of Jason Grebe, senior vice president and general manager of Intel’s corporate planning, to the executive team and report directly to the CEO. Tan emphasized that the appointment reflects the strategic importance of the corporate planning group and Grebe’s leadership over his nearly 30 years at the company.
As CCO, Schell led the sales and marketing group during one of the most turbulent periods in Intel’s history. Under his leadership, the group underwent a major transformation that included significant cost and headcount reductions. These measures were part of an initiative by Pat Gelsinger, Tan’s predecessor, to optimize costs amid deteriorating financial performance. In August 2024, Intel notified employees that it would cut the group’s budget by more than 35%. Overall, the company reduced its headcount by more than 15% in 2023 and planned to cut more than $10 billion in expenses.
In the fall of 2024, Intel’s partner organization launched a new regional engagement model, identifying five key geographic areas: North America, Latin America, Asia Pacific with Japan, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and India. Beginning in 2025, partner infrastructure investments will be concentrated in 44 countries and regions. These changes are a continuation of the transition to a new service model in which some partners engage with the company through third-party distributors rather than directly with Intel’s sales force.
At the Intel Vision event, Schell said Intel is making changes that will deliver long-term benefits, but warned of short-term challenges. Schell also noted that the company has reallocated resources and redesigned processes to become more agile. He said Intel is looking to expand its partner model to include integrators, independent software developers, and system developers — not just to bring products to market, but to co-create solutions. He added that developing such partnerships was a priority in 2024 and will become more important in 2025.