Yahoo vs. Hewlett Packard
Comparing these two examples is a perfect example. The differences couldn’t be starker. While their challenges are somewhat different, how they are responding to them shouldn’t be. Hewlett is facing a secular change in their business. The desktop is being eclipsed by a more mobile tablet. Yahoo on the other hand has had difficulty determining how to monetize their business. Yahoo is one of the most visited sites on the web.
Meg Whitman vs. Marissa Mayer
Whitman and Hewlett have responded to their challenges with no real vision or strategy. Cost cutting and layoffs often need to happen in a company that needs to reinvent itself but it can’t be the only plan. Whitman has really not laid forth any vision for the future of HPQ. Neither has she been overly optimistic about a quick turnaround leaving shareholders and analysts in the lurk. Mayer on the other hand has shown some real moxie. When most new CEO’s come into a new situation they try to set expectations low and buy themselves time for a turnaround. A honeymoon period so to speak. Mayer has not done this.
She has been aggressive in going after key talent in order to try to build a management team capable of reinvigorating Yahoo. The recent conference call was amazing in the fact that she did not back down from sharing a vision for Yahoo. Rather than punt and say they are evaluating alternatives, she grabbed the bull by the horns and laid out her vision. She wants to focus the company on the user experience. She talked about the daily habits of users with regards to news, finance, email, and search. The company must focus on these in order to grow the company.
Vision Matters
Whether or not Yahoo can take on Google for search or figure out how to better monetize their users remains to be seen. But after the conference call you have a lot better feeling about Yahoo than the day before. Mayer instilled confidence. Whitman has done nothing like this. A company in a turnaround must have a plan and a vision that is articulated to investors and analysts. Yahoo and Mayer have done this. Whitman and HPQ have not. You will continue to see this reflected in their share prices going forward.