Violin CEO tunes out investor pressure to sell

Kevin DeNuccio defends company in face of investor pressure

Violin Memory's chief executive Kevin DeNuccio has talked up the company's progress as he bats off calls from investors to sell up.

At the end of last week, Violin stakeholder Clinton Group issued the all-flash firm with a letter urging that the company be sold. The group announced its intention to nominate three IT veterans - Ralph Schmitt, Michael Wall and Alex Spiro - to the Violin board at its next annual meeting.

"To be explicitly clear, the Clinton Group and Imation [also a Violin investor] believe that Violin Memory should be sold to a strategic buyer well in advance of the 2016 annual meeting, and we will not impede the ongoing sale process in any way," the letter read.

"At this point, we trust that the strategic sale process is moving towards a conclusion with the full support of the board and the executive team."

The letter was published in a document filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission at the end of last week. Violin's CEO DeNuccio issued a statement rebuffing Clinton Group's claims.

"Violin's management team and board collectively own six per cent of the company and are aligned with our shareholders in our desire to create value for the company," he said. "We are focused on improving our execution and completing our product transition to the Flash Storage Platform, while also pursuing strategic alternatives to accelerate our opportunity.

"Our board of directors currently consists of six current or former chief executives or chief operating officers and senior executives from storage industry legacy leaders from IBM, NetApp, and 3PAR, who provide critical leadership to create value for all of our stakeholders."