Is Yahoo`s New CEO Up to the Challenge? - Something Missing
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Bartz's appointment as Yahoo CEO put her under the magnifying glass of every blog and media outlet that covers technology and the Internet. On the whole, the reaction has been a little mixed. Nobody disputes her chops, but almost everyone points to what she lacks. This has been described by various sources as “direct experience in the media industry,” “consumer Internet experience,” and so on. All of which is to say that Bartz doesn't have experience working at a company quite like Yahoo.
But how much does that matter? On the one hand, it might not slow her down at all. Though she is well-known for a forceful style of leadership – and offers energy enough to raise morale among Yahoo employees – she is quite capable of learning from others. When the “media vs. tech” issue was raised during the conference call that introduced her as Yahoo's new CEO, Bartz said “I think that's a lot of nonsense. I have a little brain power to learn what it takes to understand media. There are people here who can jump start my education.”
On the other hand, she's wary of taking too much advice, or advice from the wrong quarter. As she said during the same conference call, “There have been too many people on the outside giving Yahoo advice, what to do, what not to do. That's going to stop; let's give this company some friggin' breathing room.” I have to admire the sentiment, profanity and all. Whether she and Yahoo will get that breathing room is another question entirely.
It's certainly true that what Yahoo really seems to need right now is a good manager, and Bartz brings that skill in abundance. But after the transition, they will lose someone else thought to have good management skills: Susan Decker. Yahoo's former CFO and current president agreed to leave the company after a transition period. Jerry Yang took the option of staying on as “Chief Yahoo,” falling back into his former role; either Decker did not have that option, or did not want it. Whether this loss will help Yahoo in the long term remains to be seen.
Next: What about Microsoft? >>
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