More changes at SirsiDynix

  The resignation of Pat Sommers as CEO at SirsiDynix has just been announced. In his time at the company he saw through the merger with Dynix and is now rumoured to be leading a company 5 times the size when he started in 2001.  I met him briefly last year and he surprised me by seeming a fairly quiet man, not the pushy sales/managerial types who get to the top by sheer aggression.

  So what conclusions do we draw from this? Firstly, as there is no successor in place, it is likely he caught Vista Partners by surprise. This is the software industry and loyalty is all, so you are out as soon as you announce your resignation rather than working notice like the rest of us, but he seems to be going of his choice rather than theirs. Secondly, as Andrew Pace notes, it isn’t that surprising. Sommers was appointed by Seagate Capital, SirsiDynix’s previous owner, so Vista Partners will want him out to free space for their own man. Hence he might have seen the future, lined something up, and left in his own time. It will be interesting to see who takes up the helm – currently one of Vista’s people, is standing in, but this isn’t likely to continue for the long term. Maybe Jack Blount will be back in the running?????? 🙂

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