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On sept. 28, roberta carl-ton, the corporate PR manager at Ottawa software tools supplier Cognos Inc., crept into work at 4:30 a.m. Carlton had heard the night before that company officials were going to make a major announcement. She knew that Michael Potter, the company's chairman and CEO for some 20 years, had announced in June that he intended to retire as soon as the company found his successor. She figured this was the moment.
It was. At 8:30 that morning, the management of Cognos announced that company president and chief operations officer Renato (Ron) Zambonini was the new CEO.
Potter's retirement announcement had been a shock-for one, he's only 51. But the announcement of his successor was an even bigger shock. It was common knowledge around Cognos that top management had spoken to eight of 15 candidates shortlisted by headhunters Egon Zehnder International Inc., which has its Canadian offices in Toronto and Montreal. No one expected Zambonini to get the job-at least not so soon. Word was that management was looking for a senior executive to groom Zambonini for the post.
Industry insiders say Zambonini's appointment as CEO was the result of a long struggle between him and Potter. Look at Potter's departure plans, they say: While Potter originally had intended to make a leisurely exit, he got out almost as soon as Zambonini was named CEO. Asked on Sept. 29 about his departure plans, Potter said, "I'm just here to say a few last good-byes." He publicly backed management's appointment of Zambonini.
But a deeper question persists: Why would Potter, who toiled for 20 years to make Cognos a healthy concern, quit just when the sailing got smooth?
Over the past two decades, Potter has wheeled and dealed on Cognos' behalf, pushing the company through three distinct identities-from a small contract-programming shop, to a major developer of applications for proprietary minicomputer platforms, and now to a maker of software tools for enterprisewide client-server systems.
Potter has also changed his management style dramatically. He started as a typical hands-on manager. Kenneth Burke, a financial analyst at Hambrecht & Quist in San Francisco, says, "It was difficult for him to relinquish control." Donnie Moore, Cognos' chief financial officer, describes him as being "better at...