BIG DATA

HP has announced that Raj Gupta, chairman and chief executive officer of Rohm and Haas Company, has been elected to serve on the HP board of directors. Gupta will join the board in January 2009, bringing the total number of members to 11, ten of whom are outside directors. “For nine years as chairman and CEO, Raj Gupta has successfully guided Rohm and Haas through today’s ever-evolving global business environment,” said Mark Hurd, HP chairman and chief executive officer. “We look forward to welcoming his financial, operational and corporate governance expertise to the HP board of directors.” Gupta, 62, has served in his current position at Rohm and Haas, a worldwide producer of specialty materials, since October 1999. Previously, he occupied various other positions at Rohm and Haas since first joining the company in 1971, including vice chairman from 1998 to 1999; director of the Electronic Materials business from 1996 to 1999; and vice president and regional director of the company’s Asia-Pacific region from 1993 to 1998. Gupta also is a director of The Vanguard Group and Tyco International Ltd.