"Marc would be a great addition just in terms of vision and morale and the ability to attract talent in the Valley," Wang said. And money may not be a motivator for Benioff.

"This is about the challenge, making the transformation," he said. "I don't know if he would want that challenge, but an acquisition of Salesforce.com would bring him aboard."

Phillips is known for his cool, crisp demeanor and his role in architecting Oracle's vast array of acquisitions. And as a former financial analyst, he is "highly credible with the investment community," Scavo said. "HP could certainly use someone credible at the top."

He left Oracle last year under what are understood to be generally agreeable terms, despite a scandal involving billboards around the U.S. that bore romantic photos of Phillips and a woman to whom he was not married. Phillips that he and the woman had a "serious relationship," which he said had ended.