The director responsible for hiring Yahoo’s contrite CEO Scott Thompson has been forced to give up her seat at the company, reports Reuters.
Patti Hart, who led the search for the executive said that she would not stand for re-election to the Yahoo board. The move has been seen as an attempt to resolve the controversy surrounding Thompson’s alleged degree in computer sciences.
Yahoo has also launched an official investigation into the matter, headed by a three director special committee.
Thompson was appointed as CEO of Yahoo in January, in an effort to bring the ailing company back on track. His bio claims he studied computer science, but this degree wasn’t offered at Stone Hill College in Boston when he attended in 1979. According to documents, he studied business administration instead.
The qualification has apparently been present on documentation since Thompson’s days at PayPal.
Hart had led the committee that hired Thompson. In a statement released on Tuesday, she said that she was leaving Yahoo’s board in order to “eliminate activities” that could interfere with her primary responsibilities as CEO of International Game Technology, another company she is involved with.
Hart will be the latest of a string of directors to step down from Yahoo’s board, amid investor discontent and underwhelming financial performance. After Hart’s term is finished, the Yahoo board will comprise of nine directors.
Earlier this week, Thompson issued an apology to Yahoo employees in response to accusations. However, he did not apologise for providing false information, talking about “how this issue has affected the company” instead.
The Yahoo board has appointed a special committee consisting of three directors, helped by a law firm, to conduct a thorough independent review of Thompson’s educational credentials.
Meanwhile Dan Loeb, a Yahoo shareholder and CEO of hedge fund Third Point who discovered the discrepancy, has begun his own legal proceedings to obtain the books and records relating to Thompson’s appointment. He has also called for the CEO to be fired – not the first time this has happened at Yahoo as Thompson followed previous CEO Carol Bartz who was fired in September 2011
Yahoo has struggled in recent years, with Microsoft failing in a £28.2 billion takeover bid in 2009, although it was rumoured to be still interested late last year.
Test your CEO leadership knowledge! Take our quiz!
German foreign minister warns Russia will face consequences for “absolutely intolerable” cyberattack on ruling party,…
Google is reportedly laying off at least 200 staff from its “Core” organisation, including key…
Investor appeasement? Apple unveils huge $110 billion share buyback program, as sales of iPhone decline…
Tesla retreats from pioneering gigacasting manufacturing process, amid cost cutting and challenges at EV giant
No skynet please. After the US, UK and France pledge human only control of nuclear…
Microsoft's AI investments continue in south east Asia, after investments in Japan, Malaysia, Indonesia, as…