Messman replaces Schmidt as Novell's chairman

Novell President and CEO Jack Messman on Wednesday became the company's chairman following the resignation of Eric Schmidt.

Messman, formerly chairman and CEO of consulting company Cambridge Technology Partners, replaced Schmidt as Novell CEO in July following Novell's acquisition of Cambridge. Novell said at the time it planned to combine its software with Cambridge's services to offer product-and-service packages to help companies make better use of the Internet.

Schmidt, the former chief technology officer at Sun Microsystems, in March became chairman of search engine vendor Google and in August took over the CEO post at that company.

Novell, once the dominant provider of network operating system and directory software, in August reported sagging sales and said it did not expect a turnaround until the middle of next year. It released its latest network operating system, NetWare 6, in October, but faces stiff competition from Microsoft and other rivals.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.