It's really, really hard to change a company culture.
"And, it's even more difficult to change when the company has been struggling like Yahoo.
When you work at a company like this for a long time (Eleven years in my case, Thirteen years at Google in Mayer's case), you believe you can do just about anything. And you develop a strong belief that no matter what situation you are dropped into, you will come out victorious." — Brett Fox, Former CEO @ Touchstone Semiconductor, GM at Micrel, EIR at Crosslink Capital
You can't buy your way into growth.
"Yahoo had a chance, but it didn't lie with the dumb acquisitions Marissa made, nor her hirings (Henrique de Castro, anyone?), both staid, moribund plays that establishment companies make. Which is fine, but in and of itself, is not innovation, much less entrepreneurship." — JP Kaneshida
Know when to say "NO."
"I get it - Marissa is bright, determined, capable, and wanted to show that off in a spectacular way. Given the opportunity to 'turn around Yahoo,' it's almost an irresistible challenge.
Problem is, none of her prior experience prepared her for this. Like, at all." — Stan Hanks, Serial Entrepreneur since age 12
Know the company's strengths and weaknesses, before taking charge
"Marissa Mayer failed in her pursuit of making Yahoo predominantly a mobile company. That was her agenda for the turn around. Too bad, she did not have the right product teams in place and I am sure she knew that it was going to be an uphill task when she took charge.
Now, Yahoo's valuation has deterred even more. It would be cynical to point fingers on one of Google's best known former leaders - Marissa Mayer but in my opinion, she failed to understand that Yahoo has always been a media company rather than a technology company." — Deepak Selvan, CEO - VizConn
The CEO can't do it alone — it's the whole team.
"Marissa Mayer found a Yahoo with many issues and much legacy business in trouble. Turnarounds require a lot of cooperation, but clearly not everyone at Yahoo agreed on direction.
Despite brilliance of mind and character, it takes people, money and teamwork to get things done, and it seems she has had issues there. As well, the markets have no patience and this often clouds and affects the best efforts." — Robert Heiblim, Expert in consumer electronics, technology and markets
Business strategy is not a one-size fits all.
"You can't apply what worked at one company and apply the same rules to another and expect them to work. Having worked at both Google and Yahoo I could see how the same principles that worked at Google, sort of backfired at Yahoo.
Transplanting a culture does not work. A culture has to grow organically." — Anonymous
Old guards are always at-risk of getting replaced quickly.
"Some once-great industry leaders get obsoleted and have zero reason to exist. In today's world, Yahoo has no reason to exist, and this has been true for years. Yahoo used to be 'the front page of the internet.' Today, the internet doesn't need a front page like that, and if it does -- Facebook is that front page." — Marc Bodnick, Co-Founder, Elevation Partners
Shut out the noise and focus.
"I have complete respect for Marissa Mayer to have taken on such a herculean task in the first place, given that the level of dysfunction at Yahoo seems to have been pretty common knowledge.
I think the lessons here are to persevere on your path of reform, adjusting regularly as new data comes to be known, but to shut out the noise and focus on the core of the plan." — Patrick Hawley, 20+ Year Web Developer; Manager of Engineering, Revenue Operations, and Product
Innovation and management are different.
"Yahoo needed someone who could innovate entrepreneurially, and those go hand in hand (or glove). Marissa was an engineer by training, not an entrepreneur. First strike.
While she managed at Google, managing is not innovating, much less being entrepreneurial. Innovating (jumping curves) entails vision, yes, but it's so much more. It's being able to tie that vision to needs, wants and/or desires. Entrepreneurship is the qualities one brings to the table, the dogged determination to seek out avenues that gain traction, moving the ball toward the goal line." — JP Kaneshida
Focus relentlessly on the customer.
"'If you build it, they will come,' isn't true in the Internet era. Neither is 'If they come and like the experience they will stay.' First you have to get them to come, then you need to convince them to bring their friends, and then you need to keep pushing out the edge." — Virginia Backaitis
Absolutely nothing.
"Bottom line using prior CEO failures as lessons learned have to be used cautiously as predictors for the future CEO. Leaders of companies the likes of Facebook or Google are faced with unbelievably unique challenges...and cutting & pasting prior CEO mistakes certainly will not be the answer." — Andre' D. Harrell, 6 yrs Entrepreneur and CEO of boutique Management Consulting Company
