William Amelio

William J. "Bill" Amelio
William J. "Bill" Amelio
Occupation	Corporate executive
Years active	1979–2020
Known for	CEO of Lenovo, CEO of Avnet

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article William Amelio, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 10 August 2025

William J. "Bill" Amelio is a prominent American corporate leader recognized for his tenure as CEO at both Lenovo and Avnet.

Education

Amelio earned a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Lehigh University and completed a master's in Management at Stanford University, where he was distinguished as a Sloan Fellow.

Career

Starting his professional journey with IBM Corporation in 1979, Amelio advanced to the position of General Manager for Worldwide Operations, Distribution, and Reengineering within the Personal Computer Division. He transitioned to AlliedSignal in 1997, and from 1999 to 2000, he held the role of President and CEO of AlliedSignal's Transportation and Power Systems division, where he propelled AlliedSystems to a leading position in turbocharging technology.

Between 2000 and 2001, Amelio served as Executive President and Chief Operating Officer at NCR Corporation, managing Retail Solutions, Financial Solutions, Customer Service, and Systemedia businesses. During this period, the company generated $5 billion in revenue and employed 27,000 individuals globally.

From 2005 until 2009, Amelio was at the helm of Chinese technology company Lenovo Group Ltd., which produces personal computers, laptops, servers, and related hardware. He directed the integration following Lenovo’s acquisition of IBM’s PC Division for $1.75 billion in 2005. Under his leadership, Lenovo’s revenues increased from $13 billion to $15 billion by 2008, accompanied by an expanded global brand presence and seven straight quarters of sales profits surpassing market expectations. However, after a $97 million loss in the fourth quarter of 2008, his contract was not extended.

In August 2010, Amelio took on the role of CEO at CHC Helicopter Service AS, a position he held until February 2015 when Karl Fessenden succeeded him.

Amelio joined Avnet initially as Interim CEO in July 2016 before being named permanent CEO in September. His tenure included overseeing Avnet’s sale of its Technology Solutions division to Tech Data for around $2.6 billion in September 2016 and orchestrating the acquisition of UK-based Premier Farnell, a notable distributor and manufacturer recognized for the Raspberry Pi. He resigned as Avnet CEO in August 2020, with Phil Gallagher stepping in as Interim CEO.

Philanthropy

Together with his wife Jamie, Amelio established Caring for Cambodia through the Amelio Foundation in 2003. This non-profit organization is dedicated to enhancing education for Cambodian children by constructing schools, training educators, and supplying essential resources. By 2011, the initiative supported 5,300 students, trained over 100 teachers, managed six schools, and maintained four libraries. Additionally, Amelio has personally adopted two children from Cambodia.

Education

Career

Philanthropy

Further reading

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