Workday CEO Eschenbach Steps Down, Co-Founder Aneel Bhusri Returns as CEO

2026-02-10

Workday, a provider of enterprise resource planning software, announced on Monday that CEO Carl Eschenbach is stepping down. He will resign from his position and leave the company's board of directors immediately. Aneel Bhusri, co-founder and former CEO of Workday, will return to the CEO role.

Eschenbach joined Workday in December 2022, serving as co-CEO alongside Bhusri, and became the sole CEO in February 2024. Bhusri has been leading the company since 2009—sometimes as co-CEO and sometimes as the sole CEO—and has served as the company's executive chairman since 2024.

Workday confirmed that Bhusri will return to the role permanently, rather than serving on an interim basis while a replacement is sought.

Workday stated that this leadership change is aimed at focusing on the company's next phase of development, which will undoubtedly center on artificial intelligence.

"We are now entering one of the most critical moments in the company's history," Bhusri said in the company's press release on Monday. "The transformation brought by AI is even more profound than that of SaaS—it will define the next generation of market leaders. I am excited to return to the CEO role, working alongside our presidents Gerrit Kazmaier and Rob Enslin, and I look forward to the opportunities ahead."