Cisco chairman John Chambers stepping down after more than two decades

Chambers has been with Cisco since 1991

Cisco chairman John Chambers will stand down from his position at the company that he led for 20 years when his term ends in December, the networking giant has confirmed.

He will take the honourary title of chairman emeritus, and be succeeded by current CEO Chuck Robbins. He said that he will mostly work as a strategic advisor to Robbins once he stands down.

"John's brilliant mind, compassion and charismatic leadership have helped shape Cisco for over 20 years, and for that we are all grateful," Robbins said in a statement.

"John's 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."

Chambers joined Cisco from Wang Labs in 1991 as head of sales.

One of Silicon Valley's longest-standing chief executives, he was appointed in 1995 and served until 2015, during which time he built the company from a router manufacturer, with sales of $1.2 billion, to the world's largest networking equipment firm with a turnover of almost $50 billion. He led the company through 180 acquisitions.

Cisco is currently cutting more than 6,500 jobs as part of a restructuring effort. It has forecast a decline of between four and six per cent for its fourth quarter results, following a one per cent fall in third quarter.