Charles Phillips is Getting Infor Ready to Take the Lead
View PDF | Print View
by: LelouchLambourne
Total views: 24
Word Count: 505
Date: Mon, 24 Oct 2011 Time: 7:43 PM
Charles Phillips is eloquent but tends to be picky about the moments he speaks. When he does, however, people really do listen – and enjoying doing so. Unfortunately, the longer he spent with Oracle, the less interaction he had with the public. Admittedly, that was all part of the company’s master plan for PR. It may or may not have worked, but one thing’s for sure. The public didn’t like it. They missed the old soft-spoken, charming and infinitely approachable Charles. Now that he is with Infor, many are hoping that they will see the old Charles return. In fact, analysts more than customers are eager to have all the previous barriers preventing them from talking to Charles freely would be gone every time he holds a press conference as Infor’s new CEO. Thankfully, the people’s dreams of a more welcoming Charles are proving to be true. In the previous conferences that he held on behalf of Infor, he more than welcomed any questions that came his way. He didn’t even mind volunteering precious information that no one had yet thought of saying, leading many to think that Phillips may just be a better fit with Infor than he was with Oracle.
Although Charles Phillips had accomplished much in his career, there’s no denying that he’s relatively younger than most CEOs in the business. This may be an advantage with an equally young and dynamic company like Infor, which is still in the process of building and shaping its identity, but his zeal, enthusiasm and willingness to take risks may not sit well with the traditional board directors of Oracle. There is also the possibility that in many instances, his hands were tied by the fact that he still reported to Oracle’s CEO Larry Ellison. Everyone in the industry knows how controlling Ellison can be. Without a doubt, if he did not approve of something Phillips said, he only had to put his foot down and nothing would happen – even if it would prove to put Oracle at a disadvantage.
Thankfully, nothing similar is expected to happen in Infor. First of all, the previous CEO – Jim Schaper – is a very lax guy. He may be old enough to serve as Phillips’ mentor, but he is also known to be flexible – enough to allow Phillips find his own rhythm at his own pace. Schaper, in fact, handpicked Phillips to be his successor and doing so meant that he had absolute trust in Infor’s newly appointed CEO. Even if he did have qualms about any risk that Phillips took or is taking, Schaper is smart enough to keep his doubts to himself. Phillips has all the potential needed to make Infor #1 in the industry, and Schaper is more than willing to step out of the way so that Phillips could do what he thought best to make that goal happen.
About the Author
Charles Phillips greatly motivated the people under the company’s organization and the Oracle Corporation as a whole to improve greatly in their acquisitions. Under Charles Phillips’ leadership, Oracle acquired and signed in over 60 acquisitions in a little over 2 years.
