In a shake-up, Borland's chief steps down
Article Abstract:
Borland International Inc Chmn and CEO Philippe Kahn, 42, resigns his leadership of the spreadsheet and database software company he founded in 1983. The move was the result of a number of problems that Borland has faced in recent years, notably the ire of investors over three consecutive years of heavy losses. The task of salvaging any remaining value from the company is now in the hands of its recently-appointed president, Gary Wetsel. The move prompted a twenty-five cent accretion in value of Borland stock to $7 per share, a far cry from the low-$80's it traded in at its peak in 1991. As much as Kahn's personal idiosyncracies, the fate of Borland illustrates the difficulty of competing with market leader Microsoft, which controls an 80% share of the market for PC software. The trend towards the bundling of word processors, spreadsheets, DBMS programs and graphics software into low-priced software suites, initiated by Microsoft in 1992, dealt a severe blow to Borland, which built its success on its database and spreadsheet products.
Publication Name: The New York Times
Subject: Business, general
ISSN: 0362-4331
Year: 1995
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Borland names former Apple executive as its chairman
Article Abstract:
Borland has appointed Delbert W. Yocam, a former Apple Exec VP and CEO, as its chairman and chief executive officer. Borland was once the third-largest producer of personal computer applications, but since 1994 has focused on development tools and database applications for corporate users. The emergence of the Java programming language has cut into Borland's development tools market, resulting in serious revenue losses. In 1996 Borland lost several senior managers, including CEO Gary Wetsel. Many analysts believe Yocam is an excellent choice to reverse the company's declining fortunes. He accomplished such a turnaround at Tektronix, a printer and monitor manufacturer, by eliminating underperforming assets and streamlining the company's expenses. Some analysts speculate that Yocam may prepare Borland for an acquisition.
Publication Name: The New York Times
Subject: Business, general
ISSN: 0362-4331
Year: 1996
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A unifying force at Novell
Article Abstract:
Novell Inc's new senior vice president for corporate marketing, Christine G. Hughes, is faced with the task of unifying the variety of software products recently acquired by the networking software company. Hughes' biggest challenge will be to coordinate such products as Borland's Quattro Pro and WordPerfect Corp's applications with Novell's NetWare operating system. Hughes' view of Novell as the dominant player in the networking market and her high regard for Novell CEO Robert Frankenberg prompted her to the join the company. She believes she needs to develop Novell's image as a whole, increasing customers' awareness of the benefits that Novell can bring to their computing needs. Hughes also believes that Novell needs to start looking at NetWare as an infrastructure rather than just a component.
Publication Name: The New York Times
Subject: Business, general
ISSN: 0362-4331
Year: 1995
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