By Benjamin Pimentel
A DOW JONES COLUMN
A year after he joined Hewlett-Packard Co.'s (HPQ) board of
directors, Marc Andreessen finds himself playing a critical role in
mapping the future of the Silicon Valley icon.
Andreessen, who joined the H-P board in September 2009, is one
of four company directors tasked with looking for a new chief
executive after the fall of Mark Hurd, who resigned from the
company last month over allegations of sexual harassment and
improper conduct.
The Palo Alto, Calif., company named director John Hammergren as
chairman of the search committee, which also includes Lawrence
Babbio and Joel Hyatt.
It is a strikingly unusual role for the 39-year-old Andreessen.
He is best known for introducing the first popular Internet
browser, who then faded away after losing a battle with Microsoft
Corp. (MSFT). He later reemerged as tech visionary, and a pioneer
of cloud computing.
Andreessen is not considered a contender for the H-P post, but
as the highest profile technology industry figure on the company's
board and its search committee, he is expected to exert some
influence.
"He really understands H-P's culture and I think he personally
has a vision for H-Ps direction and what they need in a leader to
drive them forward," said analyst Tim Bajarin of Creative
Strategies Inc. "He himself is a very strong leader and will be
quite influential in helping the board decide who should lead
H-P."
In fact, Andreessen emerged as a de facto spokesman for the H-P
board as the company explained Hurd's abrupt departure last month.
"This was a painful decision," he said in a call with analysts
shortly after Hurd's resignation was announced. "But this was a
necessary decision."
Analysts say Andreessen, a general partner of the venture
capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, also could help H-P strike a
balance as it looks for a leader focused on operational discipline,
but also one with a bold, strategic vision. H-P under Hurd won
praise for efficient execution, but critics say the company focused
too much on cost-cutting, while veering away from its tradition as
an innovator.
"They can go an execution way, which was Hurd," said Gartner
analyst Martin Reynolds. "They can go a vision way, which is more
of Andreessen."
A Diverse Background
Andreessen was in his early 20s when he co-developed Mosaic,
which later became Netscape Navigator, the first popular Web
browser. He was also co-founder of Netscape Communications, whose
highly-successful initial public offering in 1995 set the stage for
the dot-com boom. He was popular then, Time magazine even featured
a smiling and barefoot Andreessen on its cover with the title, "The
Golden Geeks."
However, Netscape later got embroiled in a bitter showdown with
software giant Microsoft in what became the first browser war.
Microsoft's Internet Explorer prevailed, and Andreessen faded from
the public eye.
He has since emerged "as one of Silicon Valley's more visionary
CEOs," Bajarin said.
Andreessen staged a quiet comeback. In 1999, Andreessen
co-founded Loudcloud, a software company that enabled businesses to
automate their data centers. Michael Dortch, research director at
Focus.com, a technology research group, said Andreessen, through
Loudcloud, was "one of the first to talk out loud about cloud
computing and software as a service."
Cloud computing allows companies to access computing power
through a network instead of in-house data centers. More companies
also offer business software as a Web-based service.
Loudcloud was later renamed Opsware, which was acquired by H-P
in 2007 in a deal valued at $1.6 billion.
In 2005, Andreessen co-founded Ning, which allows users to set
up their own social networks. That company has struggled to compete
in the space that is dominated by iconic names such as Facebook.
Ning reportedly laid off 40% of its staff earlier this year in a
downsizing move, but still operates out of its Palo Alto
offices.
"He's tried all these things," Reynolds of Gartner said. "So he
has a good idea of what works and what doesn't."
Trial And Error
In fact, Andreessen's experiences appear to have made him
valuable to companies trying to map out their cloud computing and
social networking strategies. Aside from H-P, Andreessen also
serves on the boards of Facebook, eBay Inc. (EBAY) and Skype.
"I've heard he has been highly valued at Facebook, which avoided
a number of early Netscape mistakes; eBay, which is doing
reasonably well in the face of significant competition; and Skype,
which has held off Vonage and Google successfully," said analyst
Rob Enderle of the Enderle Group.
Steadily, Andreessen's public persona also has dramatically
evolved from his Netscape days, Enderle added. Back then,
Andreessen was at times portrayed as "the next Bill Gates," but
also became known for coming across as an arrogant
entrepreneur.
"He was at that stage when he was convinced that he could do no
wrong," Enderle said. "He had done very well, very quickly, and
clearly thought that he had reached a stage of genius that was
unmatched."
Enderle added, "Netscape's failure matured him a lot and, while
he hasn't been anywhere near as visible, he has become far more
capable. ... From a very bad start, he has become a surprisingly
effective executive."
Reynolds of Gartner said Andreessen's insights into cloud
computing would be particularly helpful in the search for a new H-P
chief at a time when that trend is catching fire.
H-P's embrace of this trend became more pronounced recently when
the company prevailed in a bidding war with rival Dell Inc. (DELL)
to buy data storage company 3Par Inc. (PAR) for more than $2.3
billion.
"You want someone with the balance of vision and execution to
take H-P to that cloud concept," Reynolds said. "At the moment, H-P
still feels like a bunch of portfolio companies all trying to
figure out how to fit together. A unifying cloud strategy could
clean all that up."
A Shift In Strategy?
Meanwhile, the search for a new CEO has sparked worries that it
could mean a shift in strategy for H-P.
This was highlighted in a recent earnings call, when an analyst
noted that "quite a few investors believe the next CEO might decide
to noticeably step up the pace of investment as they assume the
company has systematically underinvested" in research and
development.
Cathie Lesjak, H-P's chief financial officer and interim CEO,
denied that the company had underinvested in R&D. In a call
with reporters, she also affirmed what she called "a winning
strategy," saying, "I don't see the motivation to change it."
Andreessen and H-P declined to comment for this story.
When Andreessen was named to the H-P board last year, Hurd
praised him in a statement, as "a software pioneer whose leadership
has helped shape the Internet" and "whose entrepreneurial
background and industry expertise will be a welcome addition" to
the H-P board.
That background will become even more critical, analysts say, as
Andreessen joins the search for Hurd's replacement.
"There are already people using Web browsers every day who have
no knowledge of how Netscape totally blew by Microsoft," Dortch
said. "There are also probably cloud computing vendors who are
young and clueless enough never to have heard of Loudcloud."
"Pioneers are known ... for doing things that are often
superseded and overshadowed by later efforts to build upon what the
pioneers did first. And so it is likely to be with Marc
Andreessen."
(Benjamin Pimentel writes for Marketwatch. He can be reached at
415-439-6400 or by email at AskNewswires@dowjones.com.)