The Co-CEO of enterprise application software giant SAP AG has stepped down from his role.
Jim Hagemann Snabe will no longer share the helm with Bill McDermott, who will run the ERP firm by himself.
Snabe, who has been proposed for election to the SAP supervisory board, has worked for the company for 20 years, and was appointed Co-CEO in February 2010.
He said in a statement: "After more than 20 years with SAP, I have decided that it is time for me to begin the next phase of my career, closer to my family.
"What the entire SAP team has achieved since 2010 is remarkable, and the momentum we have built is now driving the transformation of the industry.
"I would be honoured to continue my commitment to SAP in serving as a member of the supervisory board, building on the partnership and friendship with Bill McDermott and the entire global managing board, to further accelerate SAP’s success."
Shares fell up to 1.5% and traded 1.2% lower at 55.08 Euros this morning in Frankfurt, bringing the company’s annual losses to 9.3%.
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SAP, along with Oracle Group, has dominated the software-for-businesses market for years, selling products helping customers manage payroll and much more, but has seen more competition recently with the rise of cloud computing providing services that can be rented online.
Accordingly, the co-CEOs spent $14bn acquiring mobile and cloud-computing technologies during their tenure.
However, SAP cited a decrease in Asian demand for the second consecutive quarter last week, missing analysts’ estimates for license sales, a key indicator of future income.
Philip Adams, chairman of the UK and Ireland SAP User Group, said Snabe’s skills with customers and knowledge of SAP’s products would be useful on the advisory board, but questioned how his departure would be handled so as not to affect SAP’s product quality.
He said: "Although it’s a shame to see Jim will be leaving the role of Co-CEO, we are pleased he’ll be moving onto the supervisory board as he’s been a great customer advocate and has had huge passion for making sure SAP delivers the best possible products to us.
"During their joint tenure Jim has been seen as the product guy and Bill as the sales guy, so it will be interesting to see if further changes are made to ensure there continues to be the same level of focus on product and customer value."
An SAP spokesman said Snabe’s duties have not yet been redistributed.
