Citrix for Sale? Company Names New Channel Chief Amid Speculation

Mark Palomba will become Citrix channel chief next month, replacing Bronwyn Hastings, who jumped to Google Cloud earlier this year. Chief customer officer Hector Lima announced the move Monday, amid reports that Citrix is again putting itself up for sale.

Citrix’s Mark Palomba

Citrix is not commenting on a report last week by Bloomberg that the company is evaluating whether to sell itself. Citrix has considered its options in the past. The report also noted that Elliott Management has increased its stake in the company. Elliott Management, the large fund investor, now owns 10% of Citrix shares.

During an interview Monday with Channel Futures, Lima declined to comment on the reports.

“We can’t comment on any rumors or speculations that are out there,” he said. “But what I would say is we continue to make the right moves, both from a leadership standpoint, from an engagement standpoint, to make sure that we make our business the best line of business for our partners in the marketplace.”

Among those priorities is improving opportunities with its partners, hoping to boost revenues, after missing sales targets in recent quarters. After Hastings left Citrix for Google Cloud in May, Lima said the company decided not to replace her then; instead, the company tapped Palomba to oversee the Citrix partner organization in his role as COO for sales and services.

Lima, promoted to his role in July, said he has decided to have Palomba dedicate himself to the channel.

Citrix’s Hector Lima

“I just think we needed to give it much more focus,” Lima said. “So we decided to give him that that channel challenge and have him run that exclusively.”

Palomba joined Citrix last year after five years as a managing director for SAP’s financial services market unit. Palomba is also a former CEO of Critical Path, where he was previously executive VP of worldwide sales and field operations.

Improving Channel Operations

Palomba will report to Lima. In a letter to partners, Lima said Palomba has already focused on improving channel operations.

“For the past year-and-a-half under Mark’s leadership as chief operating officer, sales and services, we have been able to drive strategic sales aligned for growth and operational effectiveness and consistency, including selling with many of you, our partners, while driving excellence in operations,” Lima’s letter states. “Mark understands that Citrix partners are critical to our success, and with his decades of global sales experience, including selling with partners, he is uniquely positioned to take our partner organization to the next level.”

The naming of Palomba to lead the global Citrix channel, is one of three leadership changes Lima announced on Monday. Also, Kurt Heusner, global VP for commercial and public sector services, will lead global emerging sales. Sherif Seddik, now VP of sales and services covering EMEA, will lead commercial strategy and go-to-market.

Lima said all three leadership changes take effect Oct. 1.