Lenovo, a leading global PC manufacturer, has appointed Gianfranco Lanci as senior vice president and president of Lenovo Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

Lanci, formerly CEO and president of Acer, has outlined plans to drive Lenovo to becoming a top three PC company in EMEA by 2013.

Lenovo has been the fastest growing major PC company in the world for more than two years and last year acquired MEDION in Germany to help fuel continued growth in Europe, a statement said.

“The last year has seen turmoil and uncertainty in the PC market for a number of players, but our strategy has remained consistent throughout – to protect and grow our heritage THINK business, while attacking new markets such as the consumer space,” said Lanci.

“We are already strong in Russia and Germany in the consumer sector and our strategy for this year is to roll out IDEA consumer products to many more countries across EMEA.”

Lenovo chairman and CEO Yuanqing Yang added: “For Lenovo, we recognise we are entering a new era – the PC-plus age – in which the PC remains central to the digital lives of millions of people and business and at the heart of an ecosystem of tablets, smart phones and smart TVs.”

“In this new era we must not only continue to win in commercial spaces, but also expand our global consumer presence in PCs and other personal technology devices.

Gianfranco Lanci brings great experience, leadership and expertise to Lenovo in exactly these areas.  I am certain he can help drive us forward to achieve these goals in EMEA and around the world.”

Lanci noted that the rise of tablets and movement of new form factors in PC, like thin Ultrabooks into the mainstream, creates many new opportunities for Lenovo.

“EMEA is a strategically critical market for us. We must maintain our commercial leadership – we are number one in the world in commercial – while dramatically expanding our consumer and SMB presence across the region.  This will help us achieve 10 per cent share in the top 10 countries in EMEA and realise our longer term objective of becoming a top three player in EMEA,” he added.

Lanci is responsible for all business across Lenovo’s largest geography – which includes 121 countries, 40 offices and 1,800 employees – and is part of Lenovo Group’s leadership executive committee.

Gianfranco Lanci graduated from the Politecnico of Turin where he earned his degree in civil engineering. Lanci resides in Milan and is married with three children. – TradeArabia News Service