IT will be no comfort to Léo Apotheker that he has made history as one of the shortest-lived bosses of a global technology company. He had taken the helm at SAP, the world’s third-biggest software firm, only in May. So there was great surprise when the company announced his departure on Sunday February 7th. Mr Apotheker resigned after SAP’s supervisory board had decided not to extend his contract.
In more than one way, Mr Apotheker was the victim of bad timing. He had to deal with the economic crisis by cutting costs sharply. SAP’s profits fell by 4% to $1.8 billion in 2009 and revenues dropped even more steeply, by 8% to $10.7 billion. Mr Apotheker also had to save Business ByDesign, SAP’s troubled attempt to offer software as an online service. And he had to deal with the aftermath of an ill-conceived plan to increase maintenance fees, which customers have to pay to get upgrades and support on products they have previously bought.
That said, Mr Apotheker’s performance was less than stellar. It was only in January, after months of customer backlash, that SAP finally decided to scrap the fee increases. Even more important, he never quite managed to win over SAP’s staff, especially in Walldorf, the German town where the firm has its headquarters. According to a recent internal survey, only half of SAP’s 50,000 employees still have confidence in the firm’s top management.
So sorry Mr Apotheker – From Your Most Favorite Business Process Analyst and Thanks to The Economist – The Full Economist Report
