June 25 (Reuters) - Activist investor Starboard Value is

seeking operational and governance changes at Autodesk ( ADSK )

after losing a bid to appoint its nominees to the design

software firm's board ahead of its annual meeting next month.

In a letter to the Autodesk ( ADSK ) board on Tuesday, Starboard said

the company was maintaining a misleading "all is well" narrative

and had eroded investor trust with a "wholly inadequate

response" to the issue.

The letter comes in the wake of a months-long probe into

accounting and financial issues at a San Francisco,

California-based company, which delayed filing its annual

report, hitting its share price.

Autodesk ( ADSK ) disclosed in May that, to meet free cash flow

targets, it continued entering into multi-year, upfront

contracts with enterprise customers through 2023 despite

previously announcing a transition to annual billings a year

earlier.

The company did not reinstate its financial statements but

appointed board member Elizabeth Rafael as interim finance

chief, replacing Debbie Clifford, who was moved to the role of

strategy head.

The activist investor said in the letter that the management

at Autodesk ( ADSK ), which provides 3D design and engineering solutions

for several sectors, including construction, manufacturing and

media, "intentionally" misled investors.

Autodesk ( ADSK ) did not respond to a request for comment.

Starboard also accused Autodesk ( ADSK ) of "subpar operational and

financial performance" while identifying significant cost

reduction opportunities, particularly within the company's sales

and marketing organization.

Autodesk's ( ADSK ) sales grew at a six-year low of about 10% last

fiscal year, and its shares are down 30% since their peak in

August 2021.

Starboard, which revealed an over $500 million stake in

Autodesk ( ADSK ) earlier this month, has also managed activist campaigns

at Salesforce ( CRM ), Wix.com ( WIX ) and GoDaddy ( GDDY ).

The New York-based investment adviser had unsuccessfully

sued Autodesk ( ADSK ) to delay its annual general meeting, set for July

16, and reopen its director nomination window, which closed in

March.