CEO Carol Bartz's forced departure from Yahoo was no big surprise -- the company had been visibly floundering all year. But even those who expected Bartz's firing were shocked by how the ax finally swung: Yahoo board chairman Roy Bostock dumped her unceremoniously by phone.
Bartz relayed the news -- and the manner of her firing -- to her former charges in an all-hands email soon after. "To all, I am very sad to tell you that I've just been fired," the short missive began. But the best bit was its ending line: "Sent from my iPad."
It's like Bartz hung up with Bostock and snatched up the nearest keyboard to bang out her final farewell.
She wasn't done. Two days after she was sacked, Bartz gave an exclusive interview to Fortune, saying of the Yahoo board that fired her: "These people f---ed me over."
Oh, Carol. The tech world will never be quite so colorful -- and full of four-letter words -- without you. -- Julianne Pepitone
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