Jerry Yang to hand over?
Since Yahoo announced a search advertising partnership with rival Google last week, three executive VPs, two senior VPs and other key personnel have announced their intention to leave. The exodus appears to have been triggered by a major internal shake-up driven by President Sue Decker.
Yahoo’s network division has suffered the biggest hit, with network division EVP Jeff Weiner joined by two of his SVPs. Also leaving are search and advertising technology group EVP Qi Lu, and research and strategic data solutions EVP Usama Fayyad.
The founders of Flickr and Delicious, both acquired in 2005, are departing, as is Jeremy Zawodny, the developer who has been the driving force behind Yahoo Open, and social media GM Jason Zajac.
The exodus precedes an announcement, expected on Monday, which among other restructuring measures will create a new global products group under Ash Patel, currently EVP of the platforms and infrastructure division, to subsume the network division.
Speculation is rife about what else may be announced on Monday, but sufficient unto the day. The notable fact that the reorganisation has been run by President Sue Decker, with little overt input from company founder and CEO Jerry Yang, suggests he may intend to hand over the reins.
Yes, Icahn
Readers interested in the mind of Carl Icahn, the man behind a proxy fight to replace the current Yahoo! board and who has done more than any other individual to shake up under-performing US companies for the last thirty years, might enjoy reading his new blog, “The Icahn Report,” which came on-line yesterday.
