Marengi talks about Novell's future
Laura DiDio
09/11/96
Before two weeks ago, Joe Marengi wasn't exactly a high-profile networking executive. That all changed
when the 43-year-old Lynn, Mass., native and six- year Novell, Inc. veteran was suddenly thrust into the
limelight to replace Robert Frankenberg as president of the leading network operating system vendor.
While preparing for the new GroupWise product launch, slated for tomorrow in New York, Marengi
granted Computerworld an exclusive interview. He spoke frankly about Novell's marketing woes and
detailed his plans for repositioning the company and jump-starting sales. He also gave us a preview of
new product offerings -- specifically, when the Orem, Utah, firm will release the long-awaited Novell
Directory Services (NDS) for the Microsoft Windows NT Server platform.
CW: Who's running the show at Novell now that for the first time the jobs of president, CEO
and chairman have been split up?
Marengi: I'm running day-to-day operations. We do want to bring in a CEO who's an industry luminary,
someone who can look over the horizon and just let me drive and steer the course from the inside.
(Editor's note: John Young, the current chairman and CEO, has stated publicly that he only assumed
the post of CEO on an interim basis.)
CW: Will you throw your hat in the ring for the CEO spot, as well?
Marengi: Yes. My hat definitely will be in the ring for the CEO slot, but ultimately, it's the board's
decision. My main job is to respond to Novell's customers and motivate employees and to get the
company moving in the right direction. In the past, we've gotten into serious trouble because we've taken
too long to respond and there were no active marketing or PR efforts. The message we want to get out
now is that Novell and NetWare still have plenty of spaces in which to win -- we just have to know where
to pick our spots.
CW: One of the biggest criticisms leveled at Novell's strategy over the past two years is that
Novell has been on the defensive with respect to Microsoft. How do you feel about the
much-hyped rivalry?
Marengi: Bill Gates and Microsoft aren't my or Novell's archrival. Novell competes with many vendors.
But truthfully, our biggest rival in the last few years has been ourselves. The bottom line is we failed to
clearly articulate a strategy, and that's something that will change very quickly now.
CW: How can Novell restore a feeling of excitement to its marketing efforts when Microsoft has
so clearly captured the high ground in that area for the past two years?
Marengi: We're going to be more aggressive. I'm different from Bob [Frankenberg] in a lot of ways. As
far as I'm concerned, winning is the only viable option in life. I believe Novell has been way too passive --
I'm not going to engage in reactionary marketing. Going forward, I and other Novell executives will focus
on Novell's technology strengths and our wins in the marketplace. This is not the same Novell.
CW: What immediate changes will you make in marketing and development plans?
Marengi: You will see a new, unified Novell: `The company with an attitude.' We have tremendous
technology, and we've always said that, but we've never told people why they should use NetWare,
GroupWise, etc. We've been marketing like we're the only game in town when the world is rife with
competition. Going forward, we have to have bulletproof software and make ourselves more open from a
technology standpoint. Technical service and support have also been revamped to more quickly respond
to customers. With 60% market share, we can't afford a lapse. So last year, we brought in Rich Nortz to
head up Novell's technical service. We definitely went astray -- tech support became applications and
consumer support. That's not exactly the best thing for an enterprise services company and NOS
environment. Now, though, our Internet tech support is the best in the industry.
CW: Can you explain how you'll differentiate Novell's Internet strategy?
Marengi: There are things that haven't been talked about. The end point to the Internet is commodity;
from a browser standpoint, we'll continue to partner, and from a server standpoint, the NetWare Web will
compete with Microsoft, Netscape and whoever. NetWare is built in such a way that it gives us
advantage in terms of speed and built-in intranet functionality. In a commodity marketplace where
everything is free, you rely on your brand name and giving users enhancements and inducements to
stay with what they've had.
CW: What about the intranet?
Marengi: There are so many attributes to an intranet server -- file, print, security, management, Web
services -- and these are areas Novell has always historically addressed [as a network operating
system vendor]. As the largest network operating system vendor, we also have the most experience as
a corporate backbone. Plus we're adding additional functionality, and we are building things to
differentiate ourselves in that space. Electronic commerce is so young that there's no winner yet.
A recent survey from IDC [International Data Corp.] says that 60% of users aren't yet committed to any
intranet or electronic commerce vendor. In fact, 7% is the highest number committed to any one vendor.
Netscape, of course, has a significant mind share because they were first to market, but the field is still
wide open, and we intend to be a serious player. This is a brand new opportunity for Novell and probably
the largest market space that's opened in the last 15 to 20 years. We're talking about a $10 billion to
$20 billion market. That's equivalent to the economy of some entire countries. Novell will be in this horse
race. And I promise we won't fall into the pit of chasing after any one vendor.
CW: Users are clamoring for Tabasco, also know as NDS, on NT Server. Can you give us some
specifics of when we might expect to see that ship?
Marengi: It's slated for delivery in Q1 1997. It's the most cogent strategy for NDS that we have. The
NDS directory is the crown jewel of NetWare, and it's a hand we absolutely must play. Going forward,
it's necessary to make it ubiquitous -- directories are the most misunderstood technology on the planet.
We also have a migration utility from Banyan to NetWare.
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Joe.... |
