Filed under: Management, Microsoft (MSFT), Yahoo! (YHOO)
With information emerging about Yahoo (NASDAQ: YHOO) CEO Jerry Yang’s allegedly highly irregular efforts to filibuster acquisition speaks with Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT). Many observers, including me, have said that if the allegations are true, Yang has no business serving as CEO of the company.
Now Carl Icahn, who has launched a proxy fight for control of the company’s board of directors, is joining the chorus of boos.
Icahn told The New York Times that “I don’t think anybody ever understood the magnitude of what Yahoo did to do avoid making a deal … In my opinion, you might have to get rid of Jerry and part of the board to bring back Microsoft.”
In a statement, Yahoo rebuked Icahn’s criticisms: “Yahoo’s board of directors including Jerry Yang has been crystal clear that it would think about any proposal by Microsoft that was in the best interests of its shareholders. … Mr. Icahn’s assertions ignore this clear factual record.”
Given the challenges facing the company, battling with Carl Icahn hardly seems like the most productive use of the management team’s time. The company’s recent performance should have put Yang on the hot seat anyway, and allegations of acting against the best interests of outside shareholders should have that seat boiling. I’d state it’s a matter of when and not if Jerry Yang loses power whether that be his CEO title, seat on the board, or both.
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