Tessera Names Interim CEO

Richard S. Hill has been named interim CEO of Tessera Technologies Inc., replacing former President and CEO Dr. Robert A. Young, who decided to step down in the best interest of the company.

“After a careful deliberation, I have decided to move on with my investment and business activities to avoid further distraction for Tessera,” Young said. He has also resigned from the board, effective immediately, but will remain a shareholder.

The announcement is the latest in a series of recent changes at the company. Last month, Tessera announced several board appointments and said it was searching for a new CEO. (See: Tessera Makes Board Changes, Seeks New CEO) Its subsidiary DOC also announced that it would restructure its business operations to focus on differentiated microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)-related technologies. (See: DigitalOptics Refocuses on MEMS, Drops Vertical Integration)

Hill, who joined the board in August 2012, has public-company experience in management, manufacturing, R&D and finance. He was the CEO of Novellus Systems Inc. from 1993 and chairman from 1996, until its acquisition by Lam Research Corp. in June 2012. Before that, he held numerous senior management roles during his 12 years at Tektronix Inc. He is the immediate past chairman and a current executive committee member of the University of Illinois Foundation and holds board positions at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Arrow Electronics, LSI Corp. and Cabot Microelectronics Corp.

Hill will return to his nonexecutive chairman position once a CEO has been selected.

For more information, visit: www.tessera.com