Sounding ever so much like shill advertising for or a regurgitated version of Jim Collins' Good to Great with strong warnings against charismatic corporate leaders, The Economist recently sounded off on Meg Whitman and the HP decision to bring her in as CEO [The Economist, October 1, 2011, p.74.]
Let us count the ways.
The Economist doesn't like what Meg did at eBay, doesn't like she lost the race for governor of California, just doesn't like her period.
Not once does The Economist recognize Meg Whitman's smart decision to review the decision to cancel the proposed sale or spin-off of its $40 billion PSG business. This decision was made, in haste, by the previous administration.
Not once does The Economist recognize the critical need for replacing the incompetent CEO, who had held the job for only 11 months, known as Leo Apotheker. Perhaps it is because Leo is a former European hero of the magazine, by way of as the CEO of SAP, the huge software company based in Germany. Sometimes software and hardware do not mix well.
Not once does The Economist recognize the need for sound business research.
The Think Billions blog wishes Meg Whitman well at HP.
