Fast-Rising Agassi Quits Germany’s SAP

Germany-based SAP AG said CEO candidate Shai Agassi was leaving the European software firm after two quarterly earnings misses and a suit from rival Oracle.

Agassi, 37, in charge of product development in Palo Alto, Calif., will leave April 1 by mutual agreement, the company said.

While we regret Shai’s decision to leave, we congratulate him on his record of achievement at SAP, SAP Chairman Hasso Plattner said in a statement.

Agassi, who joined the company in 2001 when SAP acquired his company, TopTier, recently extended his contract through 2009.

He was the first non-German member of the company’s board.

SAP also named customer solutions and operations President Leo Apotheker to a new role as deputy chief executive, effective immediately, and said the company’s development organizations would now report directly to Chief Executive Henning Kagermann.

Kagermann’s contract expires in 2009.

Oracle sued SAP last week for allegedly engaging in a massive theft of internal Oracle information.