News
Greene Out at VMware
- By Tom Valovic
- July 8, 2008
In a move that sent shock waves across the virtualization market, VMware's
board of directors announced that Diane Greene, the company's co-founder, president
and CEO, will be replaced by Paul Maritz, a 14-year veteran of Microsoft and
head of EMC's Cloud Division.
The move, effective immediately, surprised many observers. There were few
public indications of problems or issues within the company that suggested the
need for new management.
With impeccable technical and engineering credentials, Greene co-founded VMware
in 1999 with her husband, Dr. Mendel Rosenblum. Under her leadership, VMware
became the clear market leader in the emerging virtualization market.
However, increasing competition from Microsoft, Citrix, Oracle, IBM and others
have caused concern among investors over the last year.
The man chosen to be her successor, Paul Maritz, is also an industry heavyweight.
Maritz left Microsoft in 2000 where he was instrumental in developing several
high-profile products including Windows 95 and Windows NT. In 2003, he founded
Pi Corporation, a startup acquired by EMC last February. Maritz also served
as president and general manager of EMC's Cloud Division at the time of the
acquisition.
In a statement, VMware offered no reasons for the personnel change, although
the timing of the announcement coincides with its quarterly earnings -- which
ended on June 30 -- and a lowering of its revenue forecast.
Greene served as the company's president and CEO since its inception, and retained
the title of president after EMC acquired it as a "separate software subsidiary"
in late 2003 for approximately $625 million.
Becky Nagel contributed to this story.
About the Author
Tom Valovic is a freelance technology writer.