Was Qlik’s CEO pushed out by Thoma Bravo?

If business intelligence and analytics software provider Qlik is supposed to make complex and complicated things easier to understand, then the company gets an “F” in explaining how and why their CEO of ten years no longer works for the company.

A statement Qlik released to the public last week reads: Lars Björk, CEO, has transitioned his responsibilities to David Murphy as interim CEO.

Qlik has not updated its website to reflect the change.

The press release goes on to highlight Murphy’s many accomplishments working for companies that many Qlik users have probably never even heard of. The two factoids in the statement that analytics shoppers and industry watchers should make note of are that Murphy sits on Qlik’s board of directors and is an operating partner at Thoma Bravo, the private equity firm that acquired Qlik for $3 billion dollars around this time last year.

It’s also worth noting that in July, Björk told IDG Connect that before he leaves Qlik he wants to see the company “predominantly making money from annual recurring revenue rather than the old upfront software licence model.”

That, according to our sources, hasn’t happened yet.

In the press release announcing his departure, Bjork’s obligatory statement is boiler plate: “I have had the great privilege of serving Qlik for over 17 years, and I am proud of the innovative offerings and exponential growth we’ve achieved during my time with the business. Qlik is a company with a great legacy, mission and culture, and I look forward to watching Qlik continue to evolve as one of the premier software companies in the world.”

There is not even a clichéd mention of “I want to spend more time with my family” or “ I am leaving to pursue new opportunities.”

So it is probably safe to assume that something happened rather abruptly to cause Björk to walk out, or be pushed out the door, before his goal was complete. We’ll report on it when, and if, we find out what it is.

It is probably coincidental, but interesting to note that all of this was happening while Qlik’s closest competitor ,Tableau, unveiled new features and capabilities at its user conference in Las Vegas and its share price rose to a one year high.