The chief financial officer of Durham LED lighting company Cree has resigned.

John Kurtzweil's resignation took effect Monday, the company said in an announcement.

Kurtzweil, who plans to continue as a Cree employee until June 15 to assist with the transition, is leaving to take the same job with Extreme Networks. California-based Extreme provides Ethernet switches for computer and mobile networks and generated $189.3 million in sales for the first nine months of its current fiscal year, making it significantly smaller than Cree.

"The decision to leave Cree was a very difficult one for me as the past six years have been personally rewarding," Kurtzweil said in a statement.  "At this point in my career, however, I decided to move to Extreme Networks, a smaller firm where I can have a more hands-on role in growing the business."

Analyst Daniel Amir of Lazard Capital Markets wrote in a research note that he views the resignation as "slightly negative given that Kurtzweil was respected on the Street. The departure seems to show that Cree does not have a clear succession plan."

White House officials and big-name CEOs will take a whirlwind tour of the Triangle Monday morning as the region awaits the arrival of President Barack Obama.

Members of Obama's administration and Jobs Council will divide up to meet and greet at ad agency McKinney and N.C. Central in Durham, Biogen Idec's and DuPont's operations in Research Triangle Park, and N.C. State's Centennial Campus in Raleigh.

The five "listening and action" sessions are tied to hot economic topics for politicians eager to prove they're fighting to produce more jobs, including entrepreneurship, biotechnology, energy innovation, workforce training and manufacturing. They'll hear from local business leaders, such as Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers, Elster Solutions CEO Mark Munday and Geomagic CEO Ping Fu.

The group's local visit is scheduled to kick off with a reception at American Tobacco Historic District in Durham Sunday night, and will culminate with Obama's visit to Cree, the Durham-based LED lighting company.

Cree, the LED lighting company based in Durham, will host President Barack Obama on Monday, the White House announced today.

Obama will tour the company and make remarks to workers at Cree, again. Obama made a similar stop at Cree in May 2008 when the Democratic presidential candidate was stumping for votes in North Carolina.

During his visit to the Triangle on Monday, he's also scheduled to meet with his new Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, which he appointed this winter. The council is made up of private-sector industry leaders, including General Electric CEO Jeffrey Immelt, Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly and Intel CEO Paul Otellini.

Cree's struggles in China aren't over.

The Durham company, one of the Triangle's most successful technology ventures, reported this morning that its financial results for the quarter that ends March 27 will be weaker than expected.

Cree blamed slower sales of its LED lighting products and "more aggressive pricing." In January, the company warned of declining demand for LEDs used in street lights in China.

WRAL will air a documentary tonight in which CEOs of three North Carolina tech companies reveal the secrets to success.

The CEOs of Cree, Red Hat and SAS reveal how their companies earned billions while others went belly up.  The program is hosted by WRAL News anchor Gerald Owens.

Federal energy officials awarded a $5.15 million, three-year grant to a group led by Durham-based Cree that's working on new "smart grid" technology.

Cree's partners include researchers at N.C. State, ABB and Powerex. Most of the money will go to Cree, which is developing a new semiconductor device. N.C. State announced it will receive about $750,000 of the grant.

The grant is the latest from the U.S. Department of Energy to reach the Triangle. N.C. State has gotten money from previous grants related to electricity grids and renewable energy.

The term "smart grid" refers to a digital system that's expected to improve how electricity is delivered, and allow utilities to store power from renewable resources such as solar and wind.

Great news for energy-efficient consumers - Cree has created a prototype LED bulb to replace conventional 60-watt light bulbs. No word yet on whether they will bring it to the market or how much it may cost.

Read more about it on the .biz blog.

Cree will hold a dedication ceremony tomorrow for the house it helped build in Durham.

It's the first home from a partnership between the Durham-based LED lighting company and Habitat for Humanity. It's also the first Habitat house with LED lights in every fixture.

Dozens of Cree employees helped build it, partly as a philanthropic effort, and partly to demonstrate its LED lights, which last longer and are more energy efficient than traditional lights, reducing electricity bills.

The three-bedroom, 1,150-square-foot house is now home to the Rahlan-Ksor family, originally from Vietnam. Prior to moving in, the family of four lived in a one-bedroom apartment. 

Cree's booming business in the LED lighting market is just gaining momentum, its top executive told shareholders and employees this morning.

LED lights, which use less energy and last longer than traditional bulbs, currently control about 4 percent of the $108 billion annual market for lights and lighting fixtures worldwide, said CEO Chuck Swoboda, during Cree's annual meeting at its Durham headquarters.

"That means 96 percent of the opportunity is still in front of us," he said. "We have to continue to innovate, drive adoption and lead the market."

LED maker Cree will continue expanding its local manufacturing operations, and adding local jobs.

The Durham company announced today that it plans a $135 million expansion that would create an estimated 244 local jobs over the next two years.

Cree will receive state and local economic incentives worth more than $4 million if it meets hiring goals. The new jobs will pay average annual salaries of $42,726, below the Durham County average of $57,772.

It's just the latest expansion announced by Cree, which is increasing production to meet surging demand for energy efficient lighting worldwide.