Avaya Seeks CEO
As Eric pointed out, leadership changes are afoot at Avaya. Lou D’Ambrosio has stepped down for medical reasons, Charlie Giancarlo has stepped in as interim CEO, and the company has stepped up its search for a permanent leader.
Lou is not the only top Avayan to leave the firm of late. There has in fact been something of an exodus in Avaya’s executive team. At some point this spring Chief Operating Officer Michael Thurk left the company. Chief Financial Officer Caroline Dorsa resigned in October. And through the grapevine I’ve heard that Carlos Sartorius is no longer president of Avaya’s European operations.
Of course, personnel shakeups are not uncommon for a company undergoing a change in ownership. Management turnover is very much expected. But D’Ambrosio’s combination of professional experience and personal charisma could be difficult to replace.
Or not … Without intending to play career counselor, I think it would be interesting to see Charlie Giancarlo take a permanent place at Avaya’s helm. After all, he was John Chambers’ heir presumptive before leaving Cisco late last year. His decision seemed to stem, at least in part, from the unlikeliness of his becoming Cisco’s top dog within a reasonable amount of time. Perhaps a permanent place as Avaya CEO would be a viable alternative. Granted, Giancarlo’s background leans more to data networking and Cisco’s consumer business rather than the voice networking industry that is so central to Avaya. But his twelve years of experience at Avaya #1 competitor could bring invaluable benefits to the company as it continues to face off against its friends on Tasman Drive.
Regardless of how any of this pans out, I’m eager to see Avaya put its executive house back in order. When the company made the decision to privatize, D’Ambrosio spoke about how the move would provide an “unprecedented opportunity to accelerate our strategy, act boldly in the marketplace, and serve our customers with even greater innovation and responsiveness.” These are certainly desirable qualities and ones that Avaya’s customers and business partners should continue looking for as the company moves forward.
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