In a statement, the company said it has completed its evaluation of strategic alternatives for its Personal Systems Group (PSG), and has decided that the unit will remain part of the company.

“HP objectively evaluated the strategic, financial and operational impact of spinning off PSG. It’s clear after our analysis that keeping PSG within HP is right for customers and partners, right for shareholders, and right for employees,” said President and CEO Meg Whitman. “HP is committed to PSG, and together we are stronger.”

Whitman was appointed to her position last month, replacing Leo Apotheker after just a year in the role.

The company says the strategic review involved “subject matter experts from across the businesses and functions,” and that “data-driven evaluation revealed the depth of the integration that has occurred across key operations such as supply chain, IT and procurement.”

The evaluation, HP says, also detailed the significant extent to which the PSG unit contributes to the company’s portfolio and overall brand value.

Yeah, I can see that.

HP added that the cost of recreating these things in a standalone company outweighed the benefits of separation.

“As part of HP, PSG will continue to give customers and partners the advantages of product innovation and global scale across the industry’s broadest portfolio of PCs, workstations and more,” said Todd Bradley, EVP of HP’s Personal Systems Group. “We intend to make the leading PC business in the world even better.”

Last year’s revenues for PSG totaled $40.7 billion.

“Conceived and built from the ground up in less than three months, with funding from Ashton Kutcher and LightBank (Groupon’s founders), Zaarly has taken the country by storm with more than $6.8 million in service and product listings in cities such as New York, San Francisco and Chicago,” a Zaarly representative tells WebProNews.

Zaarly lets consumers buy and sell with people near them. A buyer tells Zaarly what they want, naming a price and a need, then others in the vicinity resound with offers – an interesting mix of location and e-commerce.

“Just as consumers once left off-line marketplaces to join online marketplaces such as eBay, Craigslist and Amazon, they’re now migrating to mobile marketplaces, like Zaarly,” says Whitman. “Mobile, local marketplaces will shift how people buy and sell goods, services, and experiences. This is the next generation of ecommerce.”

“No one understands the process of creating and growing marketplaces better than Meg Whitman and we’re thrilled to have her on the team,” said Zaarly CEO and co-founder Bo Fishback. “As we expand our local marketplaces across the globe, we’re fortunate to have Meg share with us her in-depth understanding of eCommerce and wisdom around company-building.”

Zaarly says that in its first five months, nearly $6.5 million in requests have been posted on the service, and that New York, San Francisco, and Kansas City each topped half a million dollars in listings.

Zaarly is available as an iPhone or Android app, but it’s also available as a mobile site.

What do you think? Does this service have the potential to be the next eBay?

Apotheker was tapped in September of last year to replace CEO Mark Hurd, after Hurd resigned his position amid a sexual harassment investigation. HP said that they found no sexual harassment violations as a result of the investigation, but did unearth violations of their “standards of business conduct.”

Of course, Meg Whitman had another high-profile CEO gig in past, as CEO of eBay. She also was a candidate for governor of California. Whitman is already a current HP board member, but now she is taking the reins as full-time President and CEO. This move had been expected.

Ray Lane has been appointed Executive Chairman, as he had this to say about Whitman in a release –

We are fortunate to have someone of Meg Whitman’s caliber and experience step up to lead HP. We are at a critical moment and we need renewed leadership to successfully implement our strategy and take advantage of the market opportunities ahead. Meg is a technology visionary with a proven track record of execution. She is a strong communicator who is customer focused with deep leadership capabilities. Furthermore, as a member of HP’s board of directors for the past eight months, Meg has a solid understanding of our products and markets.

Whitman inherits a company going through some tough times. Apotheker was ousted after HP stock fell over 40% this year. Last month, HP announced that they were spinning ff their PC business. And just seven weeks after the promising HP TouchPad tablet hit the shelves, they discontinued all webOS devices, which resulted in a $99 firesale of the TouchPad.

Whitman said that she is “honored and excited to lead HP. I believe HP matters – it matters to Silicon Valley, California, the country and the world.”

Gizmodo points to a tweet from Sarah Pompei (the spokesperson), which was supposed to be a link to an endorsement for Whitman from The San Diego County Deputy Sherriffs’ Association:

Instead, the link went to this YouTube video:

Buzzfeed shows the announcement from Whitman of the endorsement, which says:

"Meg Whiman today announced the endorsement of the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association of San Diego County. The association represents more than 3,000 member of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department."

"’Frontline law enforcement professionals agree that California needs strong laws and leaders who enforce them, and I am honored to have the support of the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association of San Diego County," Meg Whitman said…

And so on.

The story, as it’s being reported from several sources is that Pompei simply left a character off of the shortened bit.ly link that goes to the video. And herein lies the lesson. I wonder how many other shortened links out there are going to unintended destinations.

Now that could be an issue for your online reputation. 

Here are a few of the most visible reactions to the tweet as of the time of this writing:

Pompei has not removed the tweet with the faulty link thus far.
 

Jackson, who is the founder and president of Ironfire Capital, wrote, "I believe Whitman deserves every nickel of compensation and stock sale proceeds she got between her joining the company in 1998 and Jan. 1, 2005.  Since then, however, eBay has been in a tailspin with the stock down 59% vs. a Nasdaq decline of 3% over the same period."

During that same timespan, Whitman’s total annual compensation headed in the opposite direction, increasing by about 379 percent and reaching $13.9 million.  Also, eBay shareholders had to pay about $1.8 million for Whitman’s personal aircraft costs in 2006 and 2007.

eBay shareholders can’t exactly breathe a sigh of relief now that Whitman’s gone, either.  Jackson wrote, "Donahoe racked up almost $280,000 worth of personal aircraft expenses in his first nine months on the job in 2008," and later added, "Donahoe made $13.1 million last year for his nine months as CEO, while eBay’s stock dropped 55%, far wider than Nasdaq’s 30% loss in that same period."

Meanwhile, eBay’s stock is down a tiny bit this morning, and a fresh report indicates that a number of Microsoft executives have actually taken pay cuts based on their company’s performance.

“California faces challenges unlike any other time in its history — a weak and faltering economy, massive job losses, and an exploding state budget deficit,” Ms. Whitman said in a statement. “California is better than this, and I refuse to stand by and watch it.”

Whitman uses a YouTube video to get her message out and tells Californians that she wants to "hear from you." These are certainly familiar tactics for political campaigning.

Whitman served as President and CEO of eBay from March 1998 until March 2008 when the reigns were handed over to John Donahoe. Since then, eBayers have had, we’ll say mixed emotions about the company.

Whitman named Pete Wilson as campaign chairman with co-chairs Kevin McCarthy and Mary Bono Mack. According to the New York Times, the most likely competitors Whitman will face for the Republican nomination include Steve Poizner and Tom Campbell. Arnold will not be up for re-election.

So much for Proctor & Gamble.  Sayonara, Dreamworks.  And yes, goodbye, eBay.  All of these ties have been cut, according to what Whitman’s spokesman told Ellen Byron.  The only reason he gave was the ever-popular excuse of "personal reasons."

 Meg Whitman

Which brings us to the interesting political rumor.  Byron writes, "The move is another signal that Whitman is seriously considering a run for governor of California, a person familiar with the matter said, adding that an announcement could come in the next four to six weeks."

Whitman’s name was often tossed around in connection with the McCain campaign, and since Arnold Schwarzenegger’s second term as governor of California will only run through January 3rd, 2011, it’s really quite conceivable that she could serve as a Republican candidate.  (California governors can serve just two terms.)

We’ll be sure to report more details as they surface.

Shortly after Whitman left eBay in March of this year, she made the short list of possible McCain running mates. Perhaps she wasn’t “folksy” enough. McCain clearly hasn’t forgotten Whitman, mentioning her alongside Warren Buffett as possible Treasury Secretary to replace Henry “Fight Credit With Credit” Paulson. McCain also mentioned Whitman was CEO “of a company which started with 12 people.”

A real time reaction from Omidyar on Twitter shows Omidyar’s apparent objection. “Ahem. Started with 12 people?” he tweeted. A quick check of eBay’s own account of its beginning includes only Omidyar from his home computer in 1995. (Other accounts include a couple of others, though, including his PEZ dispenser collector of a girlfriend.) Whitman didn’t join eBay until 1998, after the company went public.

Omidyar’s clear dislike for McCain was evident in posts afterward, twice sarcastically referring to tax cuts McCain would allow him to keep instead of using that money to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Omidyar is worth about $10 billion, and clearly, like Buffett, feels he can spare a little.

One wonders if Whitman would also think so, also taking her place among the world’s richest. If so, it would be another way Whitman would find herself fairly alone among major Internet billionaires, who seem to lean Democrat. But when it comes to technology issues, Whitman has historically sided against Republicans. In the past, she’s been vocal about her support of Net Neutrality, and for consumer privacy protections, both issues McCain has erred on the side of deregulation and acquiescence to market forces.

Whitman’s replacement, John Donahoe, has been welcomed by some spectators – see an article about Bear Sterns upgrading its outlook on the company’s stock.  But others view Donahoe as not different enough, with Owen Thomas writing, "[P]ower will be ceremoniously transferred one ex-management consultant to another.  Is it any wonder eBay is bleeding risktakers and creative talent?"

Some mild innovation may occur in the form of lowered fees.  Also, Donahoe seems interested in heading off potential problems (such as a flood of crappy auctions) by improving eBay’s search.  Still, on this issue, Valleywag’s Nicholas Carlson steps in to point out, "eBay has been talking about improving its search for years."

So it would appear that no one can agree on anything.  Well, at least we know.  To further complicate matters, Henry Blodget is discussing possible layoffs at eBay; whether dead weight, good people, or extraordinary employees are about to get fired is another concern.

At least, regardless of how quickly it changes, eBay’s stock price is a solid number.  At this moment, that price is $26.69, or about $0.94 above its 52-week low.

As expected, John Donahoe received approval from the eBay board, unanimously, to take over Whitman’s duties. The company made the anticipated announcement when disclosing financial results for its fourth quarter and the 2007 fiscal year.

“I’m extremely confident in John