Motorola names Rick Osterloh new president and COO

Motorola Mobility has a new President and COO: Rick Osterloh. Formerly SVP of Product, Osterloh is taking over the helm of Motorola from form CEO Dennis Woodside. Woodside, if you'll recall, stepped down in September to take a position as COO of Dropbox, following Google's selling of Motorola to Lenovo.

From Motorola's announcement of the move:

Rick is a Silicon Valley veteran and a familiar face across Motorola, where he has been leading all product management and helping to define the ‘go forward’ strategy for the past two years. Rick first joined the company 7 years ago when Motorola acquired Good, and he started Motorola down the Android path while managing product and engineering teams. Between stints here, Rick joined Skype, where he oversaw design and product for more than 250 million monthly users until it was acquired by Microsoft.Since his return, Rick’s had a key role in the company’s reinvigoration. He’s been a guiding visionary on the entire product front and a passionate advocate for our philosophy to focus everything we do on the consumer experience.

Osterloh is stepping into the job in place of Google's Jonathan Rosenberg, who took over on a temporary basis after Woodside's departure.

Source: Motorola

Derek Kessler

Derek Kessler is Special Projects Manager for Mobile Nations. He's been writing about tech since 2009, has far more phones than is considered humane, still carries a torch for Palm (the old one), and got a Tesla because it was the biggest gadget he could find. You can follow him on Twitter at @derekakessler.

21 Comments
  • I guess it's good Lenovo is letting existing personnel head the company instead of bringing in people from their own side. android central app
  • Agreed, and based on what's presented here it sounds like he had a hand in making the Moto X. Hopefully that translates well into future products and Moto's overall direction.
  • Lenovo probably wouldn't have much influence on Motorola decisions at this point.
  • What is the pay rate for an interim CEO? Posted via my oldie but goodie Nexii 4 using the Android Central App
  • I'm kinda exciting to see what Moto does under Lenovo. Just received a very interesting survey concerning my Motorola Credit account asking if I would be interested in things like discounts on devices and accessories, trade-in programs, and free upgrades. If they're even considering 10% of the stuff they talked about in that survey, then it indicates that they are interested in retaining some of the brand loyalty the the Moto X has earned them.
  • I think, branding aside, Motorola is better off under Lenovo then they ever where under Google.
  • I disagree, I don't like what Lenovo did to the IBM thinkpads and I don't like how I can not swap out a hard drive in a Lenovo yoga. I believe they'll lock down their stuff pretty tight.
  • But Lenovo has the distribution networks and resources Moto needs that Google couldn't provide. As long as they keep Moto to their own ideas while providing support when they need it. Plus Moto could also change the philosophy of Lenovo's own phone lines.
    Posted via Android Central App
  • they keep the same engineers and team. I dont think lenovo is to blame for that. It was incredibly frustrating when Google owned Lenovo, because there was so much potential but google kept saying "No, it would upset our partners"
  • You make a habit out of "swapping" hard drives in laptops? Posted via my tricked out Moto X.
  • I don't like him.
    No reason, just don't like him. Posted from my newly Kit Katted Droid Ultra
  • I am agreeing for no reason whatsoever.
  • Now I'm changing my mind because I like his silver hair.
  • Silver hair equals lots of experience. Don't count him out yet. Posted via Android Central App
  • silver? Id say blonde, I wouldnt trust him!
  • I value your right to change your mind Posted from my newly Kit Katted Droid Ultra
  • Just because his looks? I recommend a class on sociology.
    android central app
  • Whatever is the case, please do not screw up Motorola's progress! Posted via Android Central App
  • I recommend not taking the class and getting a job. Posted via Android Central App
  • I'd recommend a class on reading comprehension Posted from my newly Kit Katted Droid Ultra
  • Stop acting like a wise ass, asshole. I missed his 2nd post, but regardless of what he originally typed, he saw the article and the visual cue was an influence of his initial opinion. Common sense would mean he would not make the original remark if there were only texts and no portrait or history of the subject.