Siebel Names New CEOSiebel Names New CEO

Siebel Systems Inc., where everything from the name on its door to employees' buttoned-down dress code reflects its founder, got a new boss last week. Tom Siebel, who founded the once fast-growing software company 11 years ago after a career at Oracle, handed his CEO title to Michael Lawrie, who left IBM after 27 years to take the top Siebel job. The change could benefit both men.

Lawrie, an IBM senior VP of sales who oversaw 90,000 employees, gets his chance to be CEO after his path to the top was blocked at IBM. Siebel, who has watched his company record a revenue decline of 35% over the past two years and deal with a shareholders' lawsuit and Securities and Exchange Commission fine, steps out of the line of fire and brings in an experienced manager to try to right the company. Siebel remains chairman.

"IBM is one of the best-managed companies in the world," says Richard Petersen, an analyst at Pacific Crest Securities. "Bringing that type of discipline to Siebel will be good."

Siebel says he made the move to strengthen the company's management and had planned to hire a new CEO for more than a year. Still, competitors question whether Siebel can cede daily management of his company. "He knew every dollar being spent, every line of code being developed, every sales call being made," says Craig Ramsey, a former Siebel executive who sits on the board of competitor Salesforce.com Inc. "Tom was a micromanager."