Rambus, a developer of high-speed interfaces and a technology licensor, on Thursday announced a restructuring of the company. With this restructuring and firing off 15 of the staff, Rambus expects an overall net cash savings of $30-$35 million annually. The majority of the reduction in expenses are made in general and administrative (G&A), while the company continues to invest in strategic businesses. Interestingly, Rambus decided to fire its tech licensing specialists.

“After reviewing our expenses in detail, we have concluded that the support infrastructure can be reduced to improve profitability. While we have refined some of our R&D investments, we are preserving all of our strategic initiatives as we believe they will drive significant growth in the future,” said Ronald Black, Rambus chief executive officer.

The reductions in expense and associated workforce will begin in the coming weeks and are expected to be completed during the fourth quarter of 2012. As a result of this action, the company will reduce its workforce by approximately 15%. It is noteworthy that two people who will be laid off - Sharon Holt and Christopher Pickett - are responsible for the bulk of the company's revenue, which comes from licensing of technologies that Rambus owns patents for to various manufacturers.

As part of the restructuring, Rambus has created a new organizational structure. The company is now organized into three business units reporting to the chief executive officer:

• Memory and Interfaces, led by Kevin Donnelly;
• Cryptography Research led by Paul Kocher;
• Lighting and Display Technologies, led by Jeffery Parker.

The engineering design teams, Rambus Labs, and other strategic initiatives will be consolidated under Dr. Martin Scott, who will take the new role of chief technology officer. In addition, the company is pleased to introduce Jerome Nadel, who will be joining as chief marketing officer. Also reporting to Dr. Black are: Satish Rishi, chief financial officer; Laura Stark, head of corporate strategy; Michael Schroeder, head of human resources; and Thomas Lavelle, general counsel.

“This new organization positions us well for future growth. The addition of Jerome in the newly-created role of chief marketing officer, with his vast international experience, will be instrumental in repositioning the company and creating closer relationships with our customers. We would like to thank both Sharon Holt and Christopher Pickett for their valuable contributions as they have each announced their decision to pursue non-competing opportunities outside of Rambus,” said Dr. Black.

Rambus expects to take a charge for severance, on a cash basis, of approximately $6 million over the next two quarters. Rambus is also reviewing its assets, businesses, and other contractual obligations and may take additional charges by the end of the year.

Tags: Rambus, Business