Once the acquisition closes -- which EMC expects to happen in the fourth quarter of 2003 -- EMC said it plans to operate Legato as a software division of EMC. It will keep the Legato brand name, and the group will continue to be headed by David Wright, Legato's current chairman and CEO. EMC will integrate Legato's engineering and development functions into EMC's existing Open Software group, but its sales force will remain separate. Mark Lewis, previously EMC's CTO, was recently named executive VP, replacing Erez Ofer (see EMC Sics Lewis on Software).
Tucci said that in integrating Legato, EMC will borrow the IBM Corp. (NYSE: IBM) business model for its independent Tivoli management software division. "We'll use a little bit of the Tivoli model... We'll certainly spiff [provide incentives to] our own sales force to take advantage of the EMC sales organization already in place," he said. "Over time, the independent selling capability of Legato will be leveraged to take advantage of the broader EMC portfolio."
Wright, asserting that the acquisition by EMC will remove any lingering doubts by customers about the long-term viability of Legato, said there's tremendous opportunity for EMC and Legato to jointly address customers. "My challenge has always been: How can I propagate this technology in the industry?" he said. "We've suffered from a lack of resources in getting to all the opportunities."
In terms of corporate culture, Wright said, the two companies -- and its management teams -- are a good fit: "There are hundreds of zookeepers, and Joe and I are both hunters."
EMC and Legato executives did not say how many employees from Legato might be expected to be laid off, but it's worth noting that Legato recently cut between 5 and 6 percent of its work force -- in hindsight, it would appear that Legato was preparing to be acquired by EMC. EMC ended the first quarter with 17,200 employees; Legato has around 1,500 (see Legato Gets Leaner).
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