Dell Loses Fifth Executive In Two Months

Senior VP Paul McKinnon, who heads the Round Rock, Texas, company's global human resources operations, is the latest executive to call it quits. He plans to leave in March, the Austin American-Statesman reported on its Web site Tuesday. The newspaper attributed McKinnon's leaving to an internal e-mail sent by CFO Donald Carty.

News of McKinnon's leaving followed on the heels of the resignation of John Hamlin, the head of Dell's global online and marketing operations last week. Hamlin left after refusing an offer to lead Dell's new consumer group, the newspaper also reported Tuesday. According to an e-mail sent to several employees Friday, Hamlin said he was leaving to focus on family and his private equity firm, Bozeman Limited Partnership.

"The real swing vote was my family," Hamlin wrote in the e-mail. "I have put Dell first in almost every situation for 11 years, and now it is time to pay my family back." Hamlin said he and his wife have three sons, ages 5, 4, and 2.

McKinnon is the sixth executive to leave Dell since mid-December. The report of McKinnon's departure and Hamlin's resignation came less than two weeks after chief executive Kevin Rollins resigned and was replaced by founder Michael Dell. Other departures include CFO James Schneider and senior VPs Joe Marengi and John Medica.

A Dell spokesman on Tuesday declined to comment on any of the recent executive departures, saying it was against company policy.

Dell is in the midst of a major shake-up as its founder tries to reverse the company's 18-month stretch of slowing sales and profits, which have led Dell to lose market share to Hewlett-Packard in the worldwide computer market.

Earlier this month, CEO Dell sent a memo to employees, saying he would form a new consumer group. The memo also said the company was forming a new Global Operations unit responsible for manufacturing and procurement worldwide, and was searching for a person to lead the division.

This story was updated on Feb. 13 to reflect the latest executive departure from Dell.