Friday, March 21, 2014

HP's Board: Disregard for Shareholders

On Autonomy - "Yeah, I think the synergies are great, and I think it makes a lot of sense. It will make a lot of sense to customers if HP engages them in a dialogue of managing unstructured data." - AllThingsD Interview
Let's talk about the HP Board - and in particular, Ray Lane.

In 2013, 41% of shareholders voted against Lane's re-election as Chairman, yet he remained on the Board of Directors.

Ray Lane directly oversaw the Autonomy acquisition, a well-documented disaster. He stepped down as chairman when shareholders voiced their appropriate concerns.

Mr. Lane was involved in a lengthy, and finally settled $100M tax dispute with the IRS.

How is it possible that it is in HP's best interest to maintain him as a Board member? And another bit of food for thought: What does his role in Meg Whitman's run for Governor have to do with it?

The Autonomy acquisition was not accretive for shareholders and continues to create significant legal challenges for the company and its executives in its wake. This is costing HP time and money that should be spent on innovation and developing a winning plan for improving market share and shareholder trust.

For shareholders, employees, customers, suppliers, and the future of HP - something must be done about improving the caliber and presentation of HP's Board. Remove the personal politics and focus on the company's success.






2 comments:

  1. Meg Whitman and the HP Board have no business in software development around unstructured data. HP is an innovative hardware company...it's obvious the know one is managing the rudder on this ship...certain going to run aground. Just a matter of time. When companies loose their vision then disaster in inevitable.

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    Replies
    1. And here we go! Just as we both predicted, the ship's crew members are being thrown overboard with an unprecedented swiftness.

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