One of the biggest news ever to hit this side of tech town is the sudden move of Mr. Ryan C. Guadalquiver from being the managing director of Oracle Philippines to become the new managing director of HP Philippines.

The search for David Tan's replacement started October 24, when this writer found out that David is leaving HP Philippines to assume a new role in the AP region. October 27, the name of Guadalquiver as the possible candidate has surfaced, and by October 28, this writer was able to confirm that indeed Guadalquiver will be heading HP Philippines. The formal announcement was made on November 3, 2009 held at The Establishment in Taguig.

Before Tan left the Philippines last November 4, this writer got the chance to ask him what he considers the best lesson he learned during his brief stint here in the Philippines. This is what David has to say "It should be the people. The humility, the warmth and the friendliness of the Filipino people taught me to laugh at myself".

So who is Ryan Guadalquiver? This was the first question the industry is asking me after I made the revelation. Except for being the MD of Oracle, little is known about Gualdalquiver except he used to be with Unilab, Globe Telecom, Oracle Philippines and now HP Philippines. The people who knew Gualdalquiver describe him as a quiet and private person but a very focused worker. A man of few words is what they say but he is a man that delivers what he is asked to do.

Now that Guadalquiver is with HP, what challenges awaits this guy? BIG CHALLENGES. For one, the culture of Oracle is much different with the culture of HP. Second is the product offering. Oracle offers database applications, more on the software side. HP offers a huge portfolio - PC, notebook, netbook, printers, servers, storage and services. The business operation is also a challenge, Oracle is geared towards more on the enterprise, HP has both enterprise and consumer.

Oracle as a company deals with solutions providers and integrators, HP also deals with both but also deals with its partners - distributors, dealers and retailers. The workforce of HP is much bigger than the workforce of Oracle, so in terms of managing people and making them all work together will be a big challenge for the new MD.

So can Guadalquiver do it? He should do it. That is non-negotiable. From former HP MDs like Vincent Vanderpole, Raymund Del Val, Nilo Crus and David Tan - Ryan Guadalquiver should make a mark as a managing director. He should do it for HP, for the industry and for himself.

How? I don't know. But I am sure of one thing - Mr. Gualdalquiver should be more visible from now on. People are watching and I am sure Guadalquiver is fully aware of what the industry and the people of HP is expecting of him - become more visible and yet still a performer.

Guadalquiver should prove to HP that they made the right choice. Guadalquiver should prove to HP partners that he is here to work with them grow their business.

Gualdalquiver should prove to himself that he is ready for primetime. This is your moment Ryan - make sure to shine.

Goodbye to David Tan and Hello to Ryan Guadalquiver. Congratulations to both of you and may both of you do good in your new role in the corporate world. I will see you both towards the end of November 2009.

God Bless us all!

Note: Oracle recently appointed Mr. Deon Del Mundo as their new country manager for technology and Mr. Edler Panlilio as their new country manager for applications. Oracle Chief Finance Officer Ms. Mina Lim will act as managing director of Oracle Philippines. Del Mundo used to be the country manager of Schlumberger while Panlilio is the enterprise sales manager of Symantec Philippines.