Symantec 2012 Annual Report Download - page 3

Dear Fellow Shareholders:
It’s very exciting for me to have the opportunity to lead Symantec
and our talented employees as we enter a world where security and
information management have never been more important to our
customers. I believe our company has very strong assets; however, we’ve
been underperforming against our opportunities and expectations. Our top
priority is to improve our performance and create significant increases in
long-term value for our shareholders.
During my first 120 days as CEO, the leadership team and I will be
working a two-pronged approach: 1) determining the right strategy to
leverage Symantec’s technology capabilities in order to accelerate our rate
of value creation; and 2) executing on decisions quickly to improve our company’s
performance. We will pursue these actions using a business philosophy that I’ve used and
refined over the past 30 years which includes: being in good businesses with strategies to win;
engaging talented employees; delighting customers with innovative solutions; and driving
revenue and profit growth.
After the initial 120-day period, we will share with you our go-forward strategy to win in the
marketplace and our action plan to return Symantec to sustainable organic growth, higher
margins, and return of excess cash to shareholders. We believe a strategy that generates a
sustained organic growth rate of at least 5% and 30% in operating margins, coupled with
returning excess cash to shareholders, is the best way to create long-term value for our
shareholders.
We are starting with a blank sheet of paper and considering all options and opportunities in
our commitment to delight customers, engage employees, and create long-term shareholder
value. As with my prior CEO tenure, the appropriate structural changes will be made to align
our company with our strategy and we are examining each of our businesses as to their future
potential and fit. However, our eventual company structure will reflect our announced strategy,
as we view operational improvements and structural adjustments as mutually reinforcing, not
mutually exclusive. We believe that portfolio moves, either through acquisitions or divestitures,
are tactics that complement a strategy; not a strategy in themselves.
Our strategy will accomplish our long-term objectives without losing sight of immediate
opportunities for improvement. With that in mind, we plan to leverage savings from the
elimination of existing redundancies to fund our growth initiatives. Finally, a commitment to
returning cash to shareholders will be a central tenant of our announced objectives.
FISCAL 2012 REVIEW
In fiscal 2012, we reported record results for each of our key financial metrics and across all
of our geographic territories. However, our financial performance was neither at our peak
potential nor on our strongest path to create significant improvements in shareholder value.
• GAAP revenue totaled $6.73 billion up 6% year-over-year in constant currency
• Non-GAAP1earnings per share were $1.61, up 13% year-over-year as reported
• Enterprise subscription sales grew 40% as customers increasingly choose
Software-as-a-Service solutions over traditional on-premise licenses
• GAAP deferred revenue was a record $3.97 billion, up 5% year-over-year in constant
currency, driven by the sales mix shift to subscriptions
1Non-GAAP results are reconciled to GAAP on page 4
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