Novell Ousts CEO, CFO in Shakeup

Enterprise Linux firm Novell announced on Thursday that its board of directors had named company president Ronald Hovsepian to replace CEO Jack Messman, while simultaneously ousting CFO Joseph Tibbetts. The shakeup comes as Novell struggles to succeed as an open source company.

Messman, who has been a director since Novell's founding, will remain on the company's board until the end of October, and Novell's current vice president of finance and corporate controller Dana Russell will become interim CFO while the company finds a replacement for Tibbetts.

The changes were not due to any questionable actions or financial improprieties, Novell officials said.

"The Board concluded that a management change would be the best way to accelerate the execution of our growth strategy and build value for shareholders," said Thomas Plaskett, a Novell director now appointed non-executive chairman of the board, in a statement.

"Ron is the ideal choice to lead the company as we continue with our transition to Linux-based products and identity and resource management and leverage our unique support of mixed source environments. He is a talented and proven executive with deep knowledge and expertise in the infrastructure software business and the enterprise market."

Before joining Novell in June 2003 as its North American president, Hovsepian worked for 17 years at IBM. Plaskett said Hovsepian has a close relationship with Novell's customers and understands the company's potential for growth.

"Going forward, we will maintain a sharp focus on meeting customer demand and delivering value through Linux-based, enterprise-wide solutions and identity and resource management products. We have innovative technology, a strong roster of customers and business partners and an extremely talented group of employees," remarked Hovsepian.