Sun Micro’s Software Chief Resigns

Sun Microsystems Inc. said Alan Baratz, who headed the computer company’s effort to make its Java software an industry standard, is leaving to join New York-based investment firm Warburg, Pincus & Co. Jon Kannegaard, general manager of Sun’s Java software business, will become acting president of the Software Products & Platforms division, which Baratz ran. Baratz will become a managing director at Warburg, helping to find new investments in technology, after he leaves Sun later this month. Baratz, 44, led Sun’s strategy for proliferating Java throughout the computer industry. The programming language is used to write software that can run on any computer and is one of the biggest threats to Sun archrival Microsoft Corp. “I’ve thought for a while that it would be fun to be a member of the venture community,” he said. Baratz, who joined Sun in 1996, is one of the highest-ranking executives to leave the company in recent years, though analysts said others will be able to fill the gap. Sun shares gained $1.94 to close at $71.38 on Nasdaq.