Hewlett-Packard acquired Palm in hopes of developing a successful mobile portfolio, but that didn’t go as well as expected. There were several reasons for the failure, most importantly bad timing: HP started offering up webOS-powered handsets long after Android and iOS already gobbled up most of the mobile market.

The hardware giant eventually ended up pulling the plug on its plans to become the next Apple, even though webOS is still around in the form of an open-source project. Inevitably a few hundred workers were laid off, and now unit CTO Sam Greenblatt is also resigning. The senior executive will no longer be in the forefront of webOS development and will assume an undisclosed new role within the company.

“Naturally, when a senior executive leaves a position for an undefined ‘new role,’ it’s often seen as a signal that he or she is on the way out, and simply remains on the payroll to handle the details of a smooth transition. I’m told that this is not one of those cases, and we’ll see what Greenblatt’s role is soon enough,”reads a report on AllThingsD.

It can be said that Meg Whiteman, the former head of eBay, is somewhat closer to the consumer than the company’s previous two chief execs. But the former CEOs left a lot of dirty laundry behind, which eventually led to the merger of HP’s printer and PC units earlier this month. Both of the multi-billion businesses have declined in recent years and consolidation seemed like the most appropriate step.

At the same time, competitor Dell is facing similar issues adjusting to the connected mobile market. The Hewlett-Packard rival was forced to stop shipping two of its handsets in the U.S after weak sales, amidst a serious push on behalf of the company to become a fully-committed enterprise IT firm.