WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. — Xylem Inc. announced that its board of directors has appointed Steven R. Loranger as chief executive officer and president, effective immediately. Loranger was chairman, president, and CEO of ITT Corp. when it spun its water businesses off as Xylem in October 2011. He currently serves as a director of Xylem and succeeds Gretchen W. McClain, who has stepped down as president and CEO and as a director to pursue other opportunities. The board is initiating a search for a long-term successor as CEO.

“Steve is an industry veteran who is quite familiar with Xylem’s business. He knows the challenges we are facing and understands the tremendous potential of this business,” said Markos I. Tambakeras, Xylem’s chairman of the board. “He is well suited to provide the leadership Xylem needs to transition smoothly to the next stage of its evolution. We are determined to refine and sharpen our strategic focus in order to position the company for growth in our dynamic industry. We are initiating a comprehensive search to identify the best candidate to serve as our CEO over the longer term.”