Public story: John B, President & COO, “leaves for a CEO role elsewhere”.
Alternative story: he was walked to the door with an excuse.
"Think about it": you don’t pour 2-3 years into Reinvention, secure the Lexmark deal, build the org around your plan… and then bail two weeks before the real integration battle begins... unless someone either makes it impossible for you to stay or strongly suggests you go.
The narrative is classic:
Announcement wrapped in cloying praise (corporate damage control).
Immediate successor already lined up (succession was planned waaay before the news went public).
Keeps a Board seat and a ceremonial “Integration Committee” role (an elegant exile to save face, not actual operational control).
If this was his choice, it’s because he saw the cost overruns, turf wars, and ugly compromises coming once Lexmark and Xerox cultures start grinding against each other.
If it wasn’t his choice, it’s because someone higher (guess who?) decided the Reinvention architect wasn’t the right one to live in the house he designed.
Either way, JB’s timing is perfect: he leaves with his reputation (almost) intact, before anything collapses, while keeping a Board seat so he can still claim credit if it somehow works. He’s also safely out of the firing line when the knives come out.
Bruno gets his big career upgrade. The rest of the leadership team gets to “own” the unfinished Reinvention house.
We, the employees-peasants, get to keep holding up the walls while the "architect" waves from a safer place.