Yahoo’s Board To Walk The Plank?

Terry Semel has stepped down, but Semel wasn’t Yahoo’s one and only problem.  It stands to reason, then, that more “corrective actions” may take place, and that some of those actions may affect people, not software.

Mind you, this is largely speculation – there is no proof that heads will roll, and not even any really convincing evidence.  But CNET’s Stefanie Olsen and Dawn Kawamoto pose an interesting question: “will the board of directors that recently gave Semel a $71 million yearly compensation package answer for its mistakes as well?”

The idea certainly seems plausible.  Beyond that, it’s supported by several interviews Olsen and Kawamoto conducted with experienced businesspeople.

Marketing Pilgrim’s Andy Beal also seems to feel a changeup might be in order.  “If it’s going to happen, better sooner than later,” he writes.  “Changing the BOD now would be something the markets could accept and justify – based on the current makeover.  Waiting a few months would potentially send a wrong message to the market – that perhaps the current changes hadn’t worked and that Yahoo was still in trouble.”

Yet, as an article from our own David Utter proves, businesses can, and do, send very wrong messages.  And a post on the Tech Confidential Blog argues that many of Yahoo’s biggest investors may feel just fine about the way things are being run.  I’ll say this, though – as a small investor, I’m glad I don’t have any money tied up in Yahoo’s stock.