Meetings at QLogic Corp. are a lot like a rowdy Thanksgiving dinner, said newcomer Jeff Benck, the company’s president and chief operating officer.
There are lots of spirited debates, big gestures and friendly arguments, he said.
“You have to speak louder than everyone else or you are not heard at the dinner table,” Benck joked. “But I believe the best decisions come out of that type of conflict.”
QLogic, which makes chips, circuit boards and switches that speed the flow of data on storage networks, is undergoing a transition.
Longtime Chief Executive H.K. Desai has set the tone at the company since its earliest days as a spinoff of Costa Mesa’s Emulex Corp. more than a dozen years ago.
Desai’s style: decidedly techie, egalitarian, no frills, occasionally raucous.
Now he’s handing over the reins to eventual successor Benck, who came onboard earlier this year to take over the day-to-day running of the business.
Benck’s style: chatty, marketing savvy, Corporate America.
He was a QLogic customer for nearly a decade at IBM Corp. Benck brings with him “large company” experience and knowledge of QLogic’s culture after working closely with Desai for many years, he said.
He’s looking to steer the company toward being a provider of entire systems for computer makers and corporate clients, instead of just parts.
QLogic, which has yearly sales of about $590 million, is looking to tap Benck’s marketing background to raise the company’s profile in a bid to reach $1 billion in annual revenue.
“H.K.’s approach has been more to be a quiet company,” Benck said. “I see the need to be much bolder and much more outbound and to build the QLogic brand into something more recognizable.”
Benck said he’s adjusted to QLogic’s boisterous “dinner table” meetings, which stem from Desai’s egalitarian style.
“Meetings at QLogic are very direct, very open and sometimes very loud,” spokesman Frank Berry said. “It’s not socially acceptable here to suppress someone else’s say.”
It takes a while for some to adapt, especially those who come from massive, multilayered companies such as Western Digital Corp., Intel Corp. and Big Blue.
“We’ve had people come to QLogic in middle management roles who have come from very hierarchical companies,” said Roger Klein, general manager of the host solutions group. “They have a very difficult time adjusting to it. It’s not typical for a tech company. You don’t always like the questions you get, but it’s so refreshing to have that openness and directness.”
Staff meetings are held on Mondays. Strategy meetings are on Fridays.
But QLogic doesn’t “schedule meetings just to schedule meetings,I did enough of that at Intel,” said Jesse Parker, general manager of the network solutions group, who works from Minnesota and spent many years at Intel.
QLogic uses a system of color codes to help speed things along, said Tony Massetti, chief financial officer.
Green agenda items are going fine. Yellow items are falling behind schedule or bumping up against some kind of obstacle. Red items are in urgent need of attention or need to be overhauled altogether.
“It’s a fantastic tool for us,” Massetti said.
Meetings don’t end until the red and yellow items are resolved, he said.
Around the office, Desai and Benck often are found together.
One assistant even called them “the two-headed creature.”
Desai and Benck have identical corner offices next door to each other. The two have open doors so one can wander in to chat at any time. When apart, they communicate via BlackBerry,as do all of the executives.
They back each other up on decisions.
“H.K. established my role here: ‘This is Jeff’s business to lead and I’m here to make sure he is successful,'” Benck said, quoting Desai.
Sometimes they butt heads.
“You could argue that we are almost a generation apart in age,” Benck said. “Our philosophy is the same, but our individual approaches are very different.”
Desai runs the company as if it were just starting out, according to Denis Maynard, vice president of worldwide sales and marketing.
“We are kind of like a half a billion dollar startup,” Maynard said. “When you are in startup mode, you have an intense focus on customer success.”
Benck and Desai share a lot of common bonds.
Both have engineering degrees. Both are intensely focused on serving customers. Both are cost conscious to the point of being frugal.
Case in point: The company’s garden courtyard is sowed with artificial grass to save on watering.
“H.K. is very cost conscious, which is great for a CFO,” Massetti said.
Board members hold their meetings at the company’s headquarters, not at a hotel or other spot. QLogic doesn’t do fancy corporate retreats for managers.
“You won’t find any senior executive parking spots here,” Benck said. “We don’t just throw money away. We are not into flash. We are more into the substance of the business.”
The feel around QLogic is casual. Most employees wear jeans and tennis shoes.
There’s about 600 workers at the company’s two buildings in Aliso Viejo. About half are engineers, according to Berry.
About 10% of them worked for former parent turned rival Emulex at some point. Some maintain friendly ties with former coworkers at Emulex.
“It’s not uncommon for someone from Emulex to call here and ask something,” Berry said. “But when it comes down to moving in on a deal with a customer, the gloves are off.”
Benck echoes the sentiment.
“I know H.K. and (Emulex executive chairman) Paul Folino are very cordial as business leaders in Orange County,” he said. “But we don’t work together in the marketplace. In fact, we try to beat the hell out of each other.”
Interestingly, none of QLogic’s top executives have done time at Emulex, except for Desai.
Almost all of the senior executives have backgrounds or degrees in engineering, even the marketing people.
Parker is the baby of the group at 36.
When asked how he’s different than his older colleagues, he said, “I don’t know, maybe I’m more fashionable.”
THE TEAM
– H.K. Desai:
61, chairman, chief executive. Joined what would become QLogic in 1990 as engineering director. Left in 1995, a year after spinoff from Emulex, to become a vice president at Western Digital. Rejoined later in 1995 as president, chief technology officer and interim chief executive. QLogic’s board is said to have come around to his way of thinking. Appointed permanent CEO in 1996. Named chairman in 1999. Worked at Unisys, NCR, Sperry Univac earlier in his career.
– Jeff Benck:
42, president, chief operating officer. Handpicked in May by Desai to be his eventual successor. Training with Desai to learn ins and outs of running the business. Set to oversee all business units, sales, marketing, supply chains, information technology, long-term strategy. Logged nearly 20 years at IBM. Most recently oversaw marketing and development for IBM’s server and storage products group.
– Denis Maynard:
48, senior vice president of worldwide sales, marketing. Joined in 2001 as vice president of worldwide sales. Responsible for sales, systems engineering, outbound marketing, customer care and service. Previously held a number of senior sales and management spots at Cisco Systems. Joined Cisco in 1993 and most recently was director of worldwide field operations.
– Anthony “Tony” Massetti:
45, senior vice president, chief financial officer. Joined in 2002 as vice president of finance, then took over CFO position from Frank Calderoni in 2004. Spent time in Paris and Hong Kong for IBM. Reports to Desai.
– Michael Hawkins:
53, vice president, general counsel, secretary. Joined in 2004. Spent 11 years at Newport Beach office of O’Melveny & Myers, part of the time as partner. Has undergraduate degree in biochemistry at Ohio State University.
– Roger Klein:
56, vice president, general manager, host solutions group. Joined in 2001. Responsible for adapter product lines, including host bus adapters and Infiniband host channel adapters. Like Hawkins, also a graduate of Ohio State.
– Jesse Parker:
36, vice president, general manager, network solutions group. Based out of QLogic’s office in Eden Prairie, Minn. Youngest executive at QLogic, joined in 2004. Spent nine years at Intel with roles in engineering, marketing, investment strategies and business development. Most recent position was director of marketing for Intel’s server group.
– Shishir Shah:
46, vice president, general manager, storage solutions group. Been at QLogic for about 11 years, first working on software and strategy for the host bus adapter business. Joined QLogic after about eight years at Western Digital, where he developed the patent for stackable storage units that work with Microsoft’s Windows. Before Western Digital, spent three years at Unisys.
– Kathryn Flattum Brandt:
46, vice president of corporate services. Responsible for corporate marketing, information technology. Previous posts include jobs at Amtrex Global Logistics and some 16 years at Advanced Micro Devices. Has a degree in electrical and biomedical engineering from the University of Southern California.
