CRN Interview: Novell CEO Ron Hovsepian, The First 100 Days

The interview occurred a week before the death of Ray Noorda, Novell's founder and first CEO, at 82. But CRN later got some words from Hovsepian on the passing of the local area networking pioneer.

Hovsepian

HOVSEPIAN: The technology industry is famous for the rapid rise and fall of trends and personalities, but there are a few clear moments in the history of technology that everybody recognizes were truly game-changing. Ray Noorda's embrace and promotion of networking was one such moment. His focus and tenacity in making Novell a leader in the networking business served as a model for many of the technology companies that followed.

People today can effortlessly share files, exchange e-mails and print across networks -- the core things most people do on their computers day in and day out -- thanks in no small part to Ray. Novell is proud of his legacy and honored to continue his commitment as a positive force for innovation.

CRN: Tell me about your first 100 days in Office.

HOVSEPIAN: It's been very interesting. In the first 60 to 90 days, I've met with 30 customers, 15 to 18 key partners, 100 analysts and investors, and 700 employees. It was important to get a feel for what customers and people perceive us to be. We can put all of that together and lay out a good game plan for success for our customers, employees and shareholders. That's where my head has been in first 100 days. I'm excited about the progress we've made inside that first window as we get up and going much more focused on what Novell is at its core: a great software company.

CRN: What have you learned from that feedback?

HOVSEPIAN: The most interesting dimension is the need for clarity around leadership. What people want to know is, what are we going to mean to them as a customer, as a company and to shareholders? And all of that I put under the umbrella of how are we going to lead the company and how will this team lead this company into the future? That's the biggest surprise, the desire for leadership.

CRN: What do they need? Obviously, every company needs strong leadership.

HOVSEPIAN: They want more focus on what Novell's business will be, narrowing the focus and clarity of what we are and what we are not. It's very important. Although you and I take it for granted, it's important to all three [groups] because it helps set the direction, and they know what the boundaries are. It's about depth of leadership. I feel good about the leadership team that's emerged here in the last 18 months.

CRN: What has that done?

HOVSEPIAN: Let's talk about external facing. We just had a great launch of SUSE Linux 10. There's concern Novell is not out there enough. I think what John Dragoon and marketing team has done in first six to nine months is a nice job driving that change and bringing discipline there. Product management is another area we're focused on and being more market-driven. We're taking great innovations in Novell labs and validating it with our customers. That was missing and is something we've been able to do under [Executive Vice President and CTO] Jeff [Jaffe's] leadership. It will be a critical project into next year for us

CRN: Which products have been developed under that system?

HOVSEPIAN: None of the products. We're just starting to put the discipline in place. It starts with the next cycle of products. We won't know for 18 months, in my experience, because takes two cycles to really see it hit. But we're validating our strategies in real time with customers now and doing more one-on-one visits.

CRN: Are channel partners involved in this?

HOVSEPIAN: Partners are absolutely involved. They review strategies and have come back with suggestions. And we've turned and executed in terms of some of the product road maps. In addition, we're doing a third dimension in our route to market and refining and improving and bringing more focus to partnering. Our partner advisory board has played a big role communicating to us about how we can continue the path of improvement and how we can gain market growth and momentum.

CRN: How many partners are on your advisory board currently?

HOVSEPIAN: Eighteen, last time I checked.