Netgear UK boss Hannah leaving amid restructure - sources

Departure of handful of staff thought to be linked to decision to fuse commercial and consumer teams

A handful of Netgear's UK staff, including commercial director Peter Hannah, are leaving amid a restructure at the networking vendor, according to multiple sources.

Hannah (pictured), who joined Netgear from Avnet in 2013, is the most high-profile casualty but at least six other UK staff are known to be on their way.

One source said their departure could be linked to Netgear's recent decision to bring together its commercial and consumer teams.

NASDAQ-listed Netgear saw 2015 revenues fall 6.7 per cent to $1.3bn, but CEO Patrick Lo said its Q4 results "exceeded expectations".

Sources CRN spoke to said Netgear's UK business is performing well.

"It's not like our numbers are in the tank with them; business is fine," said one onlooker.

Another added: "They are doing quite well, so I'm surprised. They've got into the smarthome space with gusto."

Netgear recently "beefed up" its partner programme by gearing rewards more towards resellers who sell its "advanced" products such as stacking switches and high-performance storage. It also added a new Platinum Plus tier.

CRN was awaiting official comment from Netgear as the story went to press, while Hannah could not be reached.

Updated

Since this story was published, Netgear has provided us with the following statement:

NETGEAR will not be able to comment on any rumored changes to our staffing due to legal reasons and the desire to protect the privacy of our employee base. NETGEAR can confidently state that our UK business is doing well. NETGEAR product categories, particularly Arlo Smart Home Security cameras, Nighthawk routers and our Web managed/PoE/10Gig switches are all doing well, and NETGEAR's retail, eCommerce and distribution channels continue to be company strengths.