The board of directors at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) will now implement its CEO succession plan after the promotion of three senior vice presidents to company co-COOs, said Morris Chang at a March 5 press event. TSMC is considering appointing more than one CEO, according to Chang.

Chang also reiterated that he will remain as chairman for TSMC, even after the new CEO or co-CEOs are named, dismissing speculation about his retirement plans.

TSMC's appointment of new co-COOs is part of the company's CEO succession plan, Chang disclosed. Chang added that in principle, he will relinquish the CEO role by mid-2014.

Chang indicated that in the banking and venture capital industries, it is common to see more than one CEO running a company. Of course there are examples to show the co-CEO structure can be an unsuccessful approach, but you cannot only blame it for any company failures, Chang said.

In addition, Chang pointed out that he will not relinquish his role as chairman if the company decides to have more than one CEO to run its business.

TSMC announced on March 3 the promotion of Shang-yi Chiang, Mark Liu and CC Wei, who lead company R&D, operations and business development, respectively, to executive VPs and co-COOs. The trio will report directly to Chang with the new organizational structure taking effect on March 5.