Qualcomm Incorporated ·QCOM

Licensing and chip businesses run as parallel presidential divisions

Technology · Fortune #86 · Divisional structure · 50K employees · San Diego, CA

View as of:
7
CEO span
↓ tighter than peers (avg 9)
2.6
Avg span
moderate
3
Max depth
3 levels
5.3 yr
Avg tenure
stable vs FY2024
71%
Internal hires
↑ above industry avg
Consolidated financials FY2025 · period end 2025-09-28 · 10-K
Revenue
$44.3B
Operating income
$12.4B
Net income
$5.5B
Total assets
$50.1B
Shares out
1.07B

Sourced from Qualcomm Incorporated DEF 14A · filed 2026-01-22 ↗ View on SEC

Interactive org chart

Qualcomm Incorporated organizational chart

Explore the executive structure, reporting layers, and scenario-ready operating model from public filings.

Open editable chart

Qualcomm is structured around two parallel presidents running chips (QCT) and licensing (QTL), both reporting directly to CEO Cristiano Amon. This page maps the divisional org, executive team, recent leadership changes, and how Qualcomm’s structure compares with other major semiconductor peers.

What to model

Use the chart to test org decisions, not just view reporting lines

Start with the public baseline, then use the scenario views and source-backed changes to ask what happens when leadership, span, or team ownership shifts.

Latest signal James H. Thompson departed as Chief Technology Officer

Retired effective February 3, 2025; transitioned to advisory role.

Source · See change log

Scenario views in the chart

  • Add Chief AI Officer Create a Chief AI Officer role to coordinate on-device and edge AI strategy across QCT and research.

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The people

Who's running this

8 executives identified as Named Executive Officers in the most recent SEC proxy. Bar length scales with tenure.

internal

Cristiano R. Amon

President and Chief Executive Officer

Executive

5 yr

19 reports

internal

Akash Palkhiwala

Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer

Finance & Operations

6 yr

2 reports

internal

Alex Katouzian

President, Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (QCT)

Semiconductor Products

4 yr

3 reports

internal

Baaziz Achour

Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer

Technology & R&D

2 yr

3 reports

internal

Alexander H. Rogers

Executive Vice President and President, Qualcomm Technology Licensing

Licensing

6 yr

2 reports

internal

Ann Chaplin

Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

Legal

7 yr

2 reports

Heather Ace

Senior Vice President, Human Resources

Human Resources

4 yr

0 reports

Don McGuire

Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer

Marketing

3 yr

0 reports

The pay

Executive compensation

From the most recent DEF 14A Summary Compensation Table. 2 named executive officers disclosed. Bar length scales with total compensation.

Cristiano R. Amon $29.7M
Base salary
$1.35M
Stock awards
$24.16M
Non-equity incentive
$3.19M
Other
$1.00M
Fiscal year
FY2025
Source
SEC DEF 14A ↗
Akash Palkhiwala $13.1M
Base salary
$900K
Stock awards
$10.51M
Non-equity incentive
$1.59M
Other
$136K
Fiscal year
FY2025
Source
SEC DEF 14A ↗

The skin in the game

Beneficial ownership

Insider stock holdings and the company's ownership requirements for executives and directors. Disclosed in the most recent DEF 14A.

Stock ownership requirements
6×CEO base salary
3×NEO base salary
5×Director cash retainer

Stock ownership guidelines disclosed in proxy statement.

HolderShares% of class
Cristiano R. Amon 217K<1%
Akash Palkhiwala 55K<1%

The businesses

How Qualcomm Incorporated divides the work

4 divisions report into the group CEO. Tile size scales with estimated headcount.

Qualcomm CDMA Technologies

30K employees

President, Qualcomm CDMA Technologies (Alex Katouzian)

QCT develops and sells Snapdragon and other semiconductor platforms across handsets, automotive, and IoT.

Qualcomm Technology Licensing

2K employees

President, Qualcomm Technology Licensing (Alexander H. Rogers)

QTL manages Qualcomm’s patent portfolio and licensing programs for cellular and related technologies.

Research & Development

12K employees

Chief Technology Officer (Baaziz Achour)

Centralized R&D responsible for standards, advanced wireless, AI, and platform technologies.

Finance & Operations

3K employees

EVP, CFO and COO (Akash Palkhiwala)

Oversees finance, accounting, supply chain, and global operations.

The thesis

Why this org is unusual

Licensing and semiconductor operations are deliberately separated, with two presidents—QCT and QTL—both reporting directly to the CEO.

This parallel structure reflects Qualcomm’s long-standing need to balance product execution with IP monetization. The CFO also serves as COO, consolidating financial discipline and operational execution under a single leader.

The org is four levels deep, but power is concentrated at level two, where business-unit presidents control P&Ls. Technology and legal functions sit alongside the business units rather than beneath them, underscoring the strategic importance of standards, patents, and litigation in Qualcomm’s model.

  • Separate QCT and QTL presidents
  • CFO also serves as COO
  • CTO elevated after prior CTO retirement

The comparison

How Qualcomm Incorporated stacks up

Compared with peers like NVIDIA and Broadcom, Qualcomm is unusual in keeping licensing as a first-class division rather than a supporting function. Many semiconductor peers lack a dedicated licensing president. Qualcomm’s combined CFO/COO role is more common among IP-heavy firms but less so in product-centric chip …

C-suite size

Qualcomm Incorporated
8
NVIDIA
9
Broadcom
8
Intel
10
AMD
7
Apple
12

Reporting depth

Qualcomm Incorporated
3 levels
NVIDIA
4 levels
Broadcom
4 levels
Intel
5 levels
AMD
4 levels
Apple
5 levels

Avg C-suite tenure

Qualcomm Incorporated
5 yr
NVIDIA
6 yr
Broadcom
7 yr
Intel
4 yr
AMD
5 yr
Apple
8 yr

Has COO / Has CAIO

Qualcomm Incorporated ✓ COO — no CAIO
NVIDIA — no COO — no CAIO
Broadcom — no COO — no CAIO
Intel ✓ COO — no CAIO
AMD — no COO — no CAIO
Apple ✓ COO — no CAIO

Current signals

What changed recently

The most significant change was the transition of the CTO role to Baaziz Achour following James Thompson’s retirement.

  • departed
    James H. Thompson Chief Technology Officer

    Retired effective February 3, 2025; transitioned to advisory role.

    Source
  • Date not confirmed new
    Baaziz Achour Chief Technology Officer

    Appointed CTO during fiscal 2025 following prior CTO retirement.

    Source
  • Date not confirmed departed
    Christopher D. Young Director

    Stepping down from Board effective 2026 Annual Meeting (announced Jan 13, 2026).

    Source

Leadership Timeline

Year-over-year executive structure based on SEC proxy and annual filings.

FY2025
DEF 14A filed 2026-01-22
CEO
Cristiano R. Amon
CEO span
7
C-suite
6
Avg tenure
5.1 yr

CTO transition completed during fiscal 2025.

Named executive officers (5)
  • Cristiano R. Amon - President and CEO since 2021
  • Akash Palkhiwala - CFO and COO since 2019
  • Alexander H. Rogers - President, QTL since 2019
  • Baaziz Achour - CTO since 2024
  • Ann Chaplin - General Counsel since 2018
FY2024
DEF 14A filed 2025-01-25
CEO
Cristiano R. Amon
CEO span
6
C-suite
5
Avg tenure
4.8 yr

CTO role held by James Thompson prior to retirement.

Named executive officers (5)
  • Cristiano R. Amon - President and CEO since 2021
  • Akash Palkhiwala - CFO and COO since 2019
  • Alexander H. Rogers - President, QTL since 2019
  • Ann Chaplin - General Counsel since 2018
  • James H. Thompson - CTO since 2017
FY2023
DEF 14A filed 2024-01-26
CEO
Cristiano R. Amon
CEO span
6
C-suite
5
Avg tenure
4.5 yr

Stable executive team with combined CFO/COO role.

Named executive officers (5)
  • Cristiano R. Amon - President and CEO since 2021
  • Akash Palkhiwala - CFO and COO since 2019
  • Alexander H. Rogers - President, QTL since 2019
  • Ann Chaplin - General Counsel since 2018
  • James H. Thompson - CTO since 2017

Year-over-year changes

FY2024 → FY2025

Fiscal 2025 reflects the CTO succession and a modest expansion of the CEO’s span of control.

  • CEO span: 6 → 7
  • C-suite size: 5 → 6
  • Avg tenure: 4.8 → 5.1 yr
  • departed James H. Thompson - Chief Technology Officer (was CTO) (DEF 14A filed 2026-01-22)
  • new Baaziz Achour - Chief Technology Officer (DEF 14A filed 2026-01-22)

The board

Board of directors

3 directors. 3 of 3 independent (100%). Source: most recent DEF 14A.

Mark D. McLaughlin

Chair Independent

Former CEO, Palo Alto Networks

Director since 2013

Jeffrey W. Henderson

Lead Indep. Independent

Former CEO, Cardinal Health

Director since 2016

Ann M. Livermore

Independent

Former EVP, Hewlett-Packard

Director since 2010

The board, organized

Board committees

2 standing committees. Audit and Compensation must be 100% independent under SEC rules; the rest vary.

Audit Committee

100% independent 8 mtgs/yr
  • Jeffrey W. Henderson Chair

HR and Compensation Committee

100% independent 4 mtgs/yr
  • Ann M. Livermore Chair

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is the CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated?

Cristiano R. Amon has been President and CEO since June 2021.

What type of organizational structure does Qualcomm Incorporated use?

Qualcomm uses a divisional structure, with separate presidents for its chip and licensing businesses.

How many direct reports does Qualcomm's CEO have?

The CEO has seven direct reports, including business-unit presidents and core functional leaders.

How has Qualcomm's leadership changed recently?

In 2025, Baaziz Achour became CTO following James Thompson’s retirement, and two directors announced departures ahead of the 2026 annual meeting.

Who reports directly to Qualcomm's CEO?

The CFO/COO, presidents of QCT and QTL, CTO, General Counsel, Chief HR Officer, and Chief Marketing Officer report directly to the CEO.

Sources

  • Form 8-K, Dec 12, 2024
  • Company Proxy Statement, Jan 2026
  • Form 8-K, Jan 16, 2026
  • SEC EDGAR: Qualcomm Incorporated DEF 14A Proxy Statement
  • SEC EDGAR: Qualcomm Incorporated 10-K Annual Report

Reference

Cite this page

If you reference this page in research, analysis, or news writing, use one of the formats below. Citation includes the SEC filing source where applicable.

APA 7th
Creately. (2026). Qualcomm Incorporated organizational structure. Creately. Retrieved , from https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/qualcomm/
MLA 9th
"Qualcomm Incorporated Organizational Structure." Creately, April 1, 2026, https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/qualcomm/. Accessed .
Chicago 17
Creately. "Qualcomm Incorporated Organizational Structure." Last modified April 1, 2026. https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/qualcomm/.
Original SEC source View on SEC ↗
Qualcomm Incorporated. DEF 14A. Filed 2026-01-22. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/804328/000110465926005781/tm2528704-1_def14a.htm

Permanent URL: https://creately.com/org-chart/fortune-500/qualcomm/ · last updated 2026-04-01

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