Paul Maritz is no longer CEO of virtualisation software pioneer VMware, according to a report by Computer Reseller News.
Maritz is to be replaced by Pat Gelsinger, currently chief operating officer at EMC, the storage giant which part-owns VMware, the site claims, citing sources familiar with the matter.
CRN’s sources speculated that Maritz may now be in line to replace EMC CEO Joe Tucci, who is due to leave the post before the end of the year. Gelsinger has been tipped to be Tucci’s replacement in the past.
Maritz, a former Microsoft executive, replaced VMware CEO and founder Diane Greene in 2008, after whe was reportedly ousted for poor performance.
Since his appointment, Maritz has overseen VMware’s bid to move from a pure virtualisation provider to become a cloud and application infrastructure vendor.
However, according to a report from technology site GigaOm, VMware plans to spin out of some of its cloud-focused products, including its Cloud Foundry open source platform-as-a-service offering.
If true, the reports suggest a strategic repositioning for VMware that may see it refocus on its virtualisation roots.
VMware has yet to issue any comment on the reports.
