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Another Dell executive departs

Candace Lombardi
In a software-driven world, it's easy to forget about the nuts and bolts. Whether it's cars, robots, personal gadgetry or industrial machines, Candace Lombardi examines the moving parts that keep our world rotating. A journalist who divides her time between the United States and the United Kingdom, Lombardi has written about technology for the sites of The New York Times, CNET, USA Today, MSN, ZDNet, Silicon.com, and GameSpot. She is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not a current employee of CNET.
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Candace Lombardi

John Hamlin, Dell's head of global online and brand marketing, has turned down a promotion to run Dell's consumer group and plans to leave the company, according to newspaper reports.

Hamlin sent an e-mail to Dell employees on Friday detailing news of his departure and his plans to run a private equity firm that he started, according to reports from the Austin American-Statesman.

Dell declined to comment on Hamlin's status at the company.

Hamlin leaves Dell amidst a sea of shake-ups.

In late January, after Kevin Rollins resigned as chief executive officer and board chairman, Michael Dell returned to the company he founded. Following his return as chief executive officer, he announced to employees that Dell would be making cuts at the management level and restructuring its bonus plan.

Dell is under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission for accounting issues. Dell's massive battery recalls for its laptops have also added to a bad fiscal year in which Dell lost its PC market share lead to Hewlett-Packard.

Hamlin has been with Dell since 1996. From 2000 through 2005 he served as senior vice president of Dell's U.S. consumer business, according to his Dell bio. Prior to joining Dell, Hamlin worked in venture capital and was a consultant at Bain and Company.