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SAP may sell TomorrowNow in wake of Oracle downloads debacle
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20/11/2007
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Senior managers of SAP’s TomorrowNow third party ERP support subsidiary, including the CEO, have resigned, and SAP is now “considering several options for the future of the business, including possible sale”.
TomorrowNow CEO Andrew Nelson and several members of his senior management team are leaving the company – although Mark White, who was installed as executive chairman of TomorrowNow in July 2007, following SAP’s admission of inappropriate downloads of Oracle IP (intellectual property), will continue in his role.
“Our primary focus is TomorrowNow’s existing customers, who will be supported through this management transition,” says White. “SAP is prepared to manage through these changes to ensure that TomorrowNow’s obligations to its current customers are met.”
White also says he is putting in place programs to secure the delivery of continued support services and assure retention of key managers and support personnel. “Over the next days, we will be communicating with TomorrowNow customers about these changes and our plans to support them going forward,” he says.
Back in March this year, SAP said that TomorrowNow had been authorised to download materials from Oracle’s website on behalf of its customers, but that it acknowledged that some inappropriate downloads of fixes and support documents also occurred.
At the time, it added that it intended to co-operate fully with the US Department of Justice requests for full supporting documentation. “Even a single inappropriate download is unacceptable from my perspective,” said Henning Kagermann, SAP CEO. “We regret very much that this occurred.
“I want to reassure our investors, customers, partners and employees that SAP takes any departure from the high standards we set for all of our businesses very seriously, regardless of where it occurred or how confined it may be… When I learned what happened, I promptly took action to strengthen operational oversight at TomorrowNow while assuring that we maintain excellent service for TomorrowNow’s customers going forward.”
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Author
Brian Tinham
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