FedEx founder and CEO Fred Smith plans to step down in June, as the company names COO Raj Subramaniam to the top job

• FedEx’s CEO and founder, the legendary Fred Smith, is stepping aside as CEO.
• He will be replaced by company veteran Raj Subramaniam.
• “It is my honor and privilege to step into this role and build upon what he has created,” Subramaniam said.

FedEx CEO Fred Smith, who founded the company more than 50 years ago, is stepping aside. 

Smith will be replaced as chief executive on June 1 by President and Chief Operating Officer Raj Subramaniam, according to a company press release on Monday. Subramaniam has been at FedEx in various capacities since 1991. 

Smith will transition to the role of executive chairman.

“[Smith] founded one of the world’s greatest and most admired companies, and it is my honor and privilege to step into this role and build upon what he has created. As we continue to transform as a company and reimagine what’s next, we will keep our people-service-profit philosophy at our core,” Subramaniam said in the release.

Subramaniam was not a surprise pick. In December 2019, the 77-year-old Smith told Bloomberg he had recommended Subramaniam to the board as his successor if he retired or was incapcitated. 

Smith also told Bloomberg at the time that he wanted to get the company in a good place before stepping down as CEO. 

 “As we look toward what’s next, I have a great sense of satisfaction that a leader of the caliber of Raj Subramaniam will take FedEx into a very successful future,” Smith said in the release.

In June 2021, Smith also announced he would take a step back from quarterly earnings calls, passing the burden of updating investors and analysts to top leaders at the company, including Subramaniam. 

Smith is a high-profile American entrepreneur. He was briefed, along with other business leaders, about the Russian-Ukrainian war at the White House last week, per NPR, was friends with former President George W. Bush, wrote op-eds for the Wall Street Journal, and served as chairman of the US-China Business Council. He founded FedEx in the 1970s. 

Back in 2019, when Subramaniam was named as Smith’s preferred successor, times were rough for the company, Insider reported tariffs hurt international movement of packages, the company was dealing with its Amazon breakup, and margins were down. But the pandemic’s e-commerce boom boosted FedEx’s fortunes.