CEO departures: dropping out to start up

In the innovative world of IT, more and more senior executives are finding it hard to stay the pace.

Recent top level movements suggest some need time to focus solely on what lies ahead - call it the vision thing - while leaving day-to-day handling to somebody else.

In the past fortnight, the IT industry has seen several examples of this.

Charles Wang, founder and chairman of Computer Associates (CA), has stepped down from his CEO post to focus on what he described as new ventures to improve shareholder value.

Subsequently, ailing Canadian software house Corel has lost its founder and CEO, Mike Cowpland. He will now dedicate his time to the development of start-ups in the Linux arena.

And Keith Todd, until recently ICL's chief executive, also had a well-publicised split from his long-time employer. What he's doing next is anyone's guess right now.

Why are we seeing such changes?

Some would say Wang's number two - now CEO at CA, Sanjay Kumar - had long been holding the reins.

Corel pinned its hopes to the Linux mast, witnessed a sharp up-turn in its share price but then a reversal of fortune as its marriage to Inprise/Borland was called off. A poor overall financial state of health didn't help Corel or Cowpland.

ICL tried to innovate with ebusiness and cosy up to Microsoft, but ended up scrapping its flotation plans after poor performance. Exit Todd.

Does this all mean it's time for one-time innovators to step out of the boardroom and back into the laboratories and R&D departments?

People like Cowpland and Wang got where they are today by taking risks on what we'll need in the future. Their latest moves could ultimately benefit them and their users.

We could even say it's time for many high-profile CEOs to follow Bill Gates' lead - spend less time in the boardroom and get back to the shop floor.