PC DOCS sees management shakeup

For the second time in less than five months, PC DOCS Group International has announced a new president of PC DOCS Inc. May-appointed Brian Zanghi has left the company due to operational differences with the board of directors; in his place PC DOCS has appointed Craig Wallace as president and COO. Wallace, previously the President of PC DOCS Group's one-man operation PC DOCS Internet Software Division, will lead a combined company incorporating the DOCS Open related business, Fulcrum and Internet software.

The executive instability -- the recent Zanghi-appointed senior VP of worldwide marketing Ellen Taylor has also resigned -- has some industry analysts concerned.

Fastwater Consultant Bill Zoellick thinks the personnel changes have been the cause of other business problems. "A year and a half ago, when Larry Bohn was skipper, PC DOCS was one of the bigger ships in the document management pond." With Bohn's departure and an exodus from the company's marketing organization, PC DOCS has "wandered without direction...and paid the price as smaller, more focused companies like NetRight played the role of pirate and ran off with key customers." Zoellick said the company's insistence on hiring from within rather than finding an experienced skipper elsewhere may hinder its efforts to gain back marketshare.

Both Zoellick and Lighthouse Consulting Group president Albert Ray Edwards said that PC DOCS' personnel difficulties may eventually rattle customer confidence. "Clearly there was, is and shall be confusion in the PC DOCS camp and if I were a potential new customer I'd be concerned," said Edwards. "More importantly, if I were an existing customer, I'd be considering my long-term options." Added Zoellick: "It is hard to see what would make customers want to sign on for the trip." Edwards said PC DOCS may continue to gradually lose additional marketshare and software partners, and will have difficulty breaking out of its legal market pigeonhole.

PC DOCS Group VP of Corporate Marketing Michael O'Connor Clarke acknowledged the analyst's concerns but downplayed the announcement's negative impact. "The market is holding its breath and the analysts are holding their breath," said Clarke. "There have been changes. What we are doing here is staying externally focused." Clarke cited external improvements in areas such as product delivery, accounts receivable and customer service as well as a the recent announcement of the Canadian government as a customer-facing improvements. "The good news is the business plan, the vision is in place. They all continue uninterrupted," he added.

Clarke mentioned that the vertical push will continue but going forward look for more out of PC DOCS. Clarke would not give details yet, but said, "At KMExpo, we'll tell the world about an integrated knowledge management product" and PC DOCS go-forward plan.

<>