Why does sap have co ceos

Research would prove its efficacy. So why the tendency—well, the mini-tendency—in the tech industry to deploy this wildly unconventional approach? Back in , then-president Safra Catz oversaw internal operations and then-president Charles Phillips ran sales and marketing while CEO Ellison ran product engineering.

That CEO pairing lasted for 5 years. It ended tragically in September of with the untimely death of Hurd. In a very telling outcome, Ellison and Catz determined to drop the dual-CEO structure and have Catz become the sole CEO rather than looking to hire an externally focused and sales-oriented executive to replace Hurd. But Ellison, no doubt in close consultation with the brilliant and universally respected Catz, chose to go back to the single-CEO model.

There was a lot of talk about head-butting between the two, and in mid, Block left Oracle to join Marc Benioff at archrival Salesforce as president and vice-chairman. McDermott, speaking earlier with reporters, denied bowing to pressure from Elliott, saying he would have had to decide on renewing his contract in early He chose not to, on his own terms, in consultation with Plattner. He will stay on in an advisory role until the end of the year.

SAP has brought fresh management talent to the fore over the past year in preparation for the handover. Klein, who came to SAP as a student, was promoted to the position of chief operating officer.

He has been transitioning the company through acquisitions and revamped products, challenging rivals Salesforce. While SAP had pledged to triple cloud revenue by , the effort has shown mixed results and the company has pushed to shore up profit margins with the support of activist investor Elliott Management.

The U. Morgan will continue to be based in the U. McDermott, who will remain as an adviser through the end of the year, said he was uncertain about his future plans. There is no doubt in my mind the future of SAP is even brighter now," he said. Never miss a story! Stay connected and informed with Mint.