RingCentral has announced the departure of Tarek Robbiati, who will leave the CEO role and Board of Directors with immediate effect.
The departure comes by mutual agreement, and RingCentral stressed that the change is unrelated to internal disagreements.
However, it has paved the way for Vlad Shmunis, Co-Founder & Executive Chairman of RingCentral, to resume his full-time role as CEO – a spot he handed over to Robbiati in September.
Indeed, RingCentral made that original announcement while citing Robbiati’s financial nous, as the former Chief Financial Officer of Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Sprint.
As such, the provider’s probable plan was for Robbiati to keep the RingCentral ship running smoothly, freeing up Shumnis to move into a more visionary role.
There, he could dream up the next best enterprise innovations and re-establish his reputation as the "Godfather of UCaaS".
Yet, despite a seemingly strong earnings update in November – where RingCentral edged closer towards profitability while maintaining double-digit revenue growth – that plan soon bit the dust.
For his part, however, Robbiati bid RingCentral a fond farewell. "I have the utmost respect for the RingCentral team," he said. "I wish the company and its people the very best.
RingCentral has tremendous products, and I believe the company will continue to deliver for its customers and shareholders.
While Robbiati’s exit after only three months comes as a surprise, so did his entrance.
Indeed, RingCentral’s stock plummeted ten percent on the news, and – after this latest announcement –history repeated itself.
Thankfully, though, it fell by a smaller 6.5 percent this time around.
Shumnis: I’m Fully Committed to RingCentral
Despite the drop in RingCentral’s share price, Shumnis moved quickly to reassure investors of the opportunity that awaits the business.
"We are at a tremendous inflection point in our industry," he said. "It is critical that our product and innovation strategy drives all that we do and is closely aligned with how we go to market.