Comments on: Ellen Rubin is leaving Netezza http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/ Choices in data management and analysis Sun, 20 Jul 2008 14:02:46 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: Eric Rogge http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-72806 Eric Rogge Fri, 15 Feb 2008 23:20:31 +0000 http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-72806 Well, it was only a matter of time regarding Ellen - My best wishes to her! WRT to the comment about VPs of marketing not being technical, some are and some aren't. I've done my fair share of assembly, Basic, C, Javascript and SQL coding. Well, it was only a matter of time regarding Ellen - My best wishes to her! WRT to the comment about VPs of marketing not being technical, some are and some aren’t. I’ve done my fair share of assembly, Basic, C, Javascript and SQL coding.

]]> By: Daniel Weinreb http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70316 Daniel Weinreb Fri, 01 Feb 2008 12:41:13 +0000 http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70316 At Object Design, the VC's felt that we co-founders were strong on technology but weak on marketing and business, and so they installed a marketing guy from Oracle as CEO. He was not technical to speak of, certainly not enough to use our product. But he actually worked out well: he cooperated well with and trusted the VP of Engineering. So I would not write off a marketing person as a high-tech CEO, per se. That said, my current employer, ITA Software, has a CEO who is highly technical (as well as being a great leader and businessman), and it's a huge plus. Such people are hard to find. (He was the founder.) At Object Design, the VC’s felt that we co-founders were strong on technology but weak on marketing and business, and so they installed a marketing guy from Oracle as CEO. He was not technical to speak of, certainly not enough to use our product. But he actually worked out well: he cooperated well with and trusted the VP of Engineering. So I would not write off a marketing person as a high-tech CEO, per se.

That said, my current employer, ITA Software, has a CEO who is highly technical (as well as being a great leader and businessman), and it’s a huge plus. Such people are hard to find. (He was the founder.)

]]> By: Curt Monash http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70280 Curt Monash Fri, 01 Feb 2008 06:34:51 +0000 http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70280 Thomas, You slightly missed my point. If a marketing VP isn't technical enough to be a decent CEO, then s/he also isn't technical enough to be a good marketing VP in my estimation. I'll confess that it's a little hard to test my claim, because almost everybody started out either as a quota-carrying salesperson or else as a coder. What's more, at large companies it's common to have jobs overseeing either marketing+development (at software vendors) or marketing+sales (at hardware vendors), more than pure marketing. Still, when a venture capitalist puts a star marketing executive like Dave Kellogg or Tom Herring in charge of a company, they're likely to wind up making a nice return on their investment. CAM Thomas,

You slightly missed my point. If a marketing VP isn’t technical enough to be a decent CEO, then s/he also isn’t technical enough to be a good marketing VP in my estimation.

I’ll confess that it’s a little hard to test my claim, because almost everybody started out either as a quota-carrying salesperson or else as a coder. What’s more, at large companies it’s common to have jobs overseeing either marketing+development (at software vendors) or marketing+sales (at hardware vendors), more than pure marketing. Still, when a venture capitalist puts a star marketing executive like Dave Kellogg or Tom Herring in charge of a company, they’re likely to wind up making a nice return on their investment.

CAM

]]> By: Thomas http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70277 Thomas Fri, 01 Feb 2008 06:13:52 +0000 http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70277 Really? Marketing VPs as CEOs are great? Really? All the marketing VPs I know are full of it and couldn't understand technology if the techies weren't there to lead them by the hand. I'd hate to invest in any company with a marketing VP as CEO. Really? Marketing VPs as CEOs are great? Really? All the marketing VPs I know are full of it and couldn’t understand technology if the techies weren’t there to lead them by the hand.
I’d hate to invest in any company with a marketing VP as CEO.

]]> By: Bob Zurek http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70262 Bob Zurek Fri, 01 Feb 2008 04:33:49 +0000 http://www.dbms2.com/2008/01/31/ellen-rubin-is-leaving-netezza/#comment-70262 Good luck to Ellen. Your a great marketing executive. Good luck to Ellen. Your a great marketing executive.

]]>