Zingale

There's some big news coming out of Portland's startup community as Jive Software today announced that CEO Dave Hersh is leaving the top post at the maker online collaboration tools. Hersh is taking on the chairman role after guiding the company for the past nine years, while board member and former Mercury Interactive CEO Tony Zingale is stepping in as interim CEO. Mike Rogoway of The Oregonian and Rick Turoczy of Silicon Florist have more details on what it means for one of Portland's most promising startups.

But what's interesting to me is that Hersh is stepping down after all of this time without an immediate replacement lined up. However, the executive addressed that in a blog post today, noting that word would have leaked out had they started a confidential search.

Hersh writes:

Hersh

The opportunity is massive and the growth is fast and furious. While I know I could reinvent myself for this next phase and continue to act as the CEO, it would be like trying to change a tire on a car going 120 mph. I would rather support someone else who has "seen the movie" and can ensure that we're doing everything we can to be a great company. We have a lot of big investments to make across the board and it's incredibly important that we find someone who can crank up the volume and lead us through this period.

Rogoway reports that Jive's revenue increased from $16 million in 2008 to $30 million in 2009 and that the company is looking to expand even more as it prepares for a possible IPO next year. He also notes that the headquarters will remain in Portland even though Zingale and Hersh are based in the Bay Area where Jive has been growing its presence in recent months. Meanwhile, Turoczy notes that the company has been bringing on outside talent for some time, and the transition was to be expected.

Backed by Silicon Valley powerhouse Sequoia Capital, Jive raised $12 million last year.