Nov 3, 2005 : Novell Names COO, Announces Layoffs

📅 November 3, 2005 - Novell (novell.com) announced on Wednesday that it had promoted Ron Hovsepian to president and chief operating officer and would restructure its operations to cut down expenditures.
 Hovsepian, formerly vice president of global field operations, will be responsible for product development, marketing, sales, consulting and technical services worldwide. Prior to joining Novell in 2003 as president of North America, Hovsepian held a variety of management positions at IBM for 17 years. "Ron's results across our North American field organization are proof that he is a strong leader for Novell," says Jack Messman, chairman and CEO of Novell. "Now that the transformation of our field organization is well underway, it is time for Ron to extend his leadership capabilities across the entire organization. I am confident that, as president and COO, Ron will deliver strong results for our customers, employees and shareholders." Novell's restructuring, slated for early next year, will include a total headcount reduction of approximately 600 positions, roughly 10 percent of Novell's workforce.  "The key driver in this cost reduction is to focus more of our resources on our growth areas," says Joseph S. Tibbetts Jr., senior vice president and chief financial officer for Novell. "By doing so, we will be able to reduce product development expenses, consolidate our worldwide operations, better focus our marketing efforts and realize operational efficiencies in the general and administrative function. While the cost reductions will result in some lost revenue opportunities, the net result is expected to be improved profitability as we enter fiscal year 2006."