on May 1, 2020, according to a formal announcement Monday of the changing of the guard. The company described the move as the “culmination of comprehensive multi-year succession planning process” led by Legere and the board of directors.
The $26 billion merger of T-Mobile and Sprint will produce a larger No. 3 competitor to U.S. wireless leaders AT&T and Verizon. It has received approval from several key regulatory agencies and is expected to close in early 2020. On a conference call with Wall Street analysts to discuss the leadership transition, Legere batted down reports that he was in talks with WeWork to become CEO of the distressed startup. “I was never having discussions to run WeWork,” he said. With the T-Mobile announcement pending, “I couldn’t say it, but it did create a weird, awkward period of time.”
Tim Höttges, Deutsche Telekom CEO, and Chairman of the Board of T-Mobile U.S., said Legere’s tenure has put the company “in an incredibly strong position.” The board, he added, “is pleased that John will support this leadership transition while focusing on closing our pending acquisition of Sprint.” Sievert, who has been at T-Mobile since 2012, is “absolutely the right choice as T-Mobile’s next CEO,” Legere said in a press release. “Mike is well prepared to lead T-Mobile into the future. He has a deep understanding of where T-Mobile has been and where it needs to go to remain the most innovative company in the industry.