Sun Announces Management Shakeup, Huge Losses

Sun Microsystems Inc. on Thursday said two top executives for its core server products were leaving, as the struggling computer maker reported a third-quarter loss of $760 million.

The Santa Clara, Calif.-based, company said Mark Tolliver, 52, chief marketing and strategy officer, and Neil Knox, 51, executive vice president for volume systems products, were leaving to "pursue other interests."

"I want to thank Mark and Neil for their contributions to Sun," Scott McNealy, chairman and chief executive for Sun, said in a statement. "They have played a key role in Sun's transformation and we wish them well as they embark on new endeavors."

The shakeup came the same day Sun reported a loss of $760 million, or 23 cents per share, for the quarter ended March 28, the latest in a string of losing quarters. Revenue dropped by 5 percent to $2.65 billion from $2.79 billion in the same period a year ago.

The management changes were billed as an "evolution" of the company's organization under newly appointed Chief Operating Officer and President Jonathan I. Schwartz, 38. The post, which Schwartz took over this month, had been vacant since Ed Zander left the company in 2002.As part of the management changes, which were effective immediately, Anil Gadre, 47, was named interim chief marketing officer, and Brian Sutphin, 49, vice president of corporate development.

Also, Executive Vice President David W. Yen, 52, became responsible for Sun's microprocessors, enterprise systems and SPARC-based volume systems initiatives; and John Fowler, 43, was now in charge of Intel and AMD processor-based systems. Fowler would also hold the dual roles of network systems' acting executive vice president and lead technology officer.

The management shakeup followed by about two weeks, Sun's decision to enter a partnership with longtime enemy Microsoft Corp., which agreed to pay Sun nearly $2 billion in settling all litigation between the two companies. On the same day, Sun said it would eliminate 3,300 jobs, or about 9 percent of its work force, because of higher-than-expected losses.