VMware CEO Maritz Charts Virtualization's Future - Page 2

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Under pressure

VMware, however, is under severe pressure, both from internal developments and from Microsoft, and Bakman said this pressure forced Maritz to lay out his vision. "They feel very compelled to tell the world how they'll continue to innovate," Bakman said. "There's nothing more difficult than competing against someone who has billions of dollars of revenue coming in from other sources."

Trouble arising from internal developments also shaped Maritz's speech, Bakman said. Maritz gave former CEO Diane Greene and her husband, former VMware chief scientist Mendel Rosenblum, "credit for VMware's progress" because he had to, Bakman said, adding that "there's a lot of uneasiness in the ecosystem, and among customers" over their departure.

Greene was ousted unexpectedly in July, and Rosenblum followed her nine weeks later to the day. Speculation that there would be a mass exodus of engineers after Greene's departure was serious enough that Maritz addressed this issue during VMware's second quarter earnings call.