EMC parachutes EMEA bigwig into UK boss role

EMC has unloaded UK managing director responsibilities onto EMEA head Adrian McDonald on an interim basis following the defection of James Petter to flash adversary Pure Storage.

Earlier this week it emerged that Petter had opted to join the relative upstart as EMEA veep and replace Steven Rose, an industry veteran who was in the role at Pure for less than a year.

“For the time being Adrian McDonald is running the UK operations,” said a senior spokesman for EMC.

McDonald is already familiar with the business locally, as he ran it for a number of years before taking the top job across the region. And he remains based at the Brentford office.

The EMC mouthpiece told us the company is currently “figuring out our options” but was unable to confirm if Petter’s permanent successor will be sought outside of the business or if there is an internal candidate.

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The departure of Petter could be seen as embarrassing for EMC, a storage beast which is already sueing the relative minnow Pure in the US over allegations it improperly recruited its staff.

EMC is the biggest maker of flash and hybrid flash arrays globally with sales of $112.3m in the first half of 2014, according to IDC, but breathing down its neck is Pure, which turned over $90.9m in revenue for all-flash arrays shipped in the first half of fy 2014. ®