Barrenechea Departs as CEO at SGI

Mark Barrenechea has resigned as president and CEO of high performance computing specialist SGI, taking a position as president and CEO of enterprise software company Open Text.

Barrenechea's resignation is effective January 1. Ronald Verdoorn, the chairman of the Board of Directors, will serve as interim CEO while the board conducts a search for new leadership.

"We are thankful for Mark's leadership over the past five years as the company has undergone a successful transformation and achieved profitability," said Verdoorn. "We wish Mark the best in the next phase of his career."

"SGI will continue its strategic focus on growing revenues and maintaining profitability," Verdoorn added, noting that the company has made no changes to its fiscal year 2012 guidance.

Shares of SGI dropped sharply following the announcement of Barrenechea's departure. After closing Tuesday at #14 a share, SGI stock fell to $11.48 in Wednesday's session, and closed today at $11.29.

Under Barrenchea's leadership, the company once known as Rackable Systems, has made progress since acquiring Silicon Graphics in May 2009 and repositioning the company and its brand. In the wake of the acquisition, SGI has focused on the market for technical computing, targeting customers in high-performance computing and supercomputing markets.

"I am proud of our accomplishments over the past five years as we have transformed SGI and taken the lead in Technical Computing," said Barrenechea. "I am sincerely grateful for the support I've received from the Board of Directors, our customers and our employees. SGI is well positioned and on a clear path to $1B in revenue. While I am transitioning as CEO, I will remain a fan and shareholder of SGI."