Cisco announced its executive chairman John Chambers will not stand for re-election to the board of directors in December, with CEO Chuck Robbins set to take his place.

Chambers was named executive chairman in July 2015 and has since focused on supporting Robbins and engaging closely with customers and governments around the world through Cisco’s Country Digitisation initiatives, the firm said in a statement.

Chambers joined the company in 1991 as the head of sales and was CEO of Cisco since January 1995. During his time as CEO, he built the company from $1.2 billion in annual revenue to nearly $50 billion, the statement added. Indeed, to this day Chambers is still recognised by many as the face of the company.

According to Robbins, Chambers’ “influence on the industry is immense and he built Cisco around a culture of integrity and innovation that will continue to serve our employees, partners and customers for decades to come. I have no doubt he will continue to have a lasting impact with his future endeavours.”

At its next annual meeting, the Cisco board is expected to reduce its size to 11 members, ten of whom will be independent directors.

Last month Robbins talked-up increased demand for security products and strong progress in the company’s transition from a hardware to a software company, as it booked a 14 per cent year-on-year drop in net income for its fiscal Q4.