The news wires have been abuzz today with stories and reports of Carly Fiorina‘s abrupt departure from technology behemoth Hewlett-Packard. She has been a high-profile CEO since her arrival in 1999, and was the chief architect of HP’s merger with Compaq in 2002. However, since that merger, Fiorina has been revered as an ineffective CEO, and HP’s internal financial analysts contend that Compaq’s addition to the HP business model has dragged profits down and prevented the company from being as nimble as the board of directors believes it should be. Such an accusation is interesting unto itself, as Ms. Fiorina delivered the keynote address by invitation at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in early January, an event that is recognized around the world as the showcase for new and cutting-edge technology innovations. (And I’m not the only one who thinks HP is well respected.)
The press release this morning stated
“The board of directors of Hewlett-Packard Company today announced that Carleton S. Fiorina has stepped down as chairman and chief executive officer, effective immediately. Robert P. Wayman, HP’s chief financial officer, has been named chief executive officer on an interim basis and appointed to the board of directors. Patricia C. Dunn, an HP director since 1998, has been named non-executive chairman of the board, also effective immediately.”
But the truth is, she didn’t “step down” as the press release casually states. The word from Wall Street is that she was forced to resign after a series of disagreements over objectives and strategies for making HP a better competitor in its core technology markets. Fiorina said in a statement this morning, “while I regret the board and I have differences about how to execute HP’s strategy, I respect their decision.” What is even more interesting is who is replacing her on an interim basis — Robert Wayman. Mr. Wayman is someone who has never liked Ms. Fiorina, and actually stepped down from the board in 2002, shortly after the Compaq deal was approved. Lo and behold, he is now the interim CEO, enabling HP to return to its old ways, and Fiorina is sent home with a $21 million severance package.