Quest Software appoints new Asian leadership

LEAK The Register has learned that Quest Software has taken “an opportunity to shape the APJ organisation in a way that will create a greater focus on our customers, improve productivity and provide each of you with more opportunities for personal and professional growth.”

That quote comes from an email penned by Quest CEO and chair Jeff Hawn, sighted by The Register, and which explains that “today we are making changes to the APJ leadership team”.

Those changes mean Brenton Smith and Klasie Holtzhausen will depart the company, to be replaced by a chap named Boris Ivancic who will helm the company's Asia Pacific and Japan operations.

Invancic previously held a similar positions at Attachmate.

Hawn's letter says the new leader “is known to achieve outstanding P&L and revenue performance by establishing best practice operating and GTM models, and by placing a strong focus on high-potential employee attraction, development and retention. I am confident that Boris is the leader to take the Asia Pacific region to a new high.”

The letter goes on “to finish by acknowledging that you have all faced some substantial changes over the last year and this can create some fear and uncertainty. My aim, and I know Boris's as well, is to create stability in the organisation as quickly as possible and provide you with the support you need to be successful in each of your roles.”

It's not hard to see why Quest's people would be nervous: Dell acquired the company in late 2012 for US$2.36bn, tossed it into a unit called Dell Software along with some other products, but just four years later decided to ditch it and did so at a loss. That's hardly a ringing endorsement of the company's prospects.

Once freed from Dell's clutches, Quest quickly made a round redundancies. That effort appears to be ongoing.

The Register has asked Quest Software for a response to the letter, but is yet to receive a response at the time of writing. ®