Adobe Searches Inside and Outside for Next CEO as AI Pressure Mounts
Adobe is considering two internal executives for its next chief executive while simultaneously hiring a search firm to find external candidates with experience building and monetizing AI products at scale.
David Wadhwani and Anil Chakravarthy, who lead Adobe's two main business units, are the top internal candidates. Wadhwani oversees the creative software division that includes Photoshop and Acrobat, which generate roughly three-fourths of Adobe's $17.7 billion in annual revenue. Chakravarthy runs the marketing and analytics business, which brought in $5.9 billion last year.
Adobe hired search firm Heidrick & Struggles to identify external candidates, particularly those with AI product development experience. Microsoft executive Charles Lamanna, who oversees product development and AI integration at the software giant, held discussions about the role but chose not to continue, according to people familiar with the process.
Shantanu Narayen, who has led Adobe for nearly two decades, announced in March he would step down once a successor is found. He will remain chairman.
Stock Pressure Drives a Broader Search
Adobe's stock has dropped 59% from its early 2024 peak as investors worry the company will lose market share to AI-native competitors. That decline likely explains why Adobe launched a public external search rather than simply promoting Wadhwani, who had long been viewed as the heir apparent.
"If this were two years ago, I'm not sure they would have done a big external search," said Jackson Ader, an analyst at KeyBanc. "It probably would have just gone to Wadhwani."
The Internal Candidates
Wadhwani left Adobe in 2015 to lead AppDynamics, a software startup that Cisco acquired for $3.7 billion in 2017. He spent time as a venture partner at Greylock before rejoining Adobe in 2021 as executive vice president.
Chakravarthy joined Adobe in 2020 after serving as CEO of data integration company Informatica. His business unit is viewed as complementary to the creative software division, though some analysts argue Adobe has gained ground by focusing on larger customers and better integration across the platform.
In an April podcast interview, Chakravarthy said double-digit revenue growth with healthy margins would help convince skeptical Wall Street investors. "Continuing to see that for the next couple of years I think will change a lot of minds," he said.
What the Search Firm Is Looking For
Heidrick & Struggles is seeking executives with hands-on experience with AI tools. The firm is also considering leaders with operational backgrounds running large organizations.
An external hire is not guaranteed. The same search firm led Disney's recent CEO search, which resulted in the promotion of Josh D'Amaro, an internal candidate who headed the company's theme parks and consumer products division.
Kirk Materne, an analyst at Evercore ISI, noted that no single hire can fix Adobe's challenges overnight. "While some investors will want an 'AI native' product guru, the reality is there is no silver bullet for reshaping the business overnight," he wrote. "Adobe is a big boat to turn."
For product development professionals, understanding how companies approach AI integration at the leadership level is increasingly relevant. AI for Product Development and AI Learning Path for Product Managers offer frameworks for the decisions Adobe's next leader will face.
Your membership also unlocks:
