AT&T chief Randall Stephenson stepping down

April 24, 2020

AT&T Chief Executive Randall Stephenson is stepping down after leading the telecommunications giant for 13 years.

The Dallas-based telecom named John Stankey as chief executive, effective July 1.

Stankey, 57, has been president and chief operating officer since October 2019. He joined AT&T in 1985.

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Stephenson, 60, will stay on as executive chairman until January 2021. During his tenure at the top, AT&T has been transformed from the former Ma Bell into a multimedia conglomerate for the digital streaming era with the acquisition of DirecTV and Time Warner.

His retirement last year was postponed after an activist investor questioned the elevation of Stankey. That dispute has been settled.