Social Media and Marketing

Yahoo Inc said Jerry Yang will step down as CEO as soon as the board finds a replacement.

Published: 18 Nov 2008

Yahoo Inc said Jerry Yang will step down as CEO as soon as the board finds a replacement.

Yang will return to his former role as Chief Yahoo, focusing on strategy and technology.

"Jerry and the Board have had an ongoing dialogue about succession timing, and we all agree that now is the right time to make the transition to a new CEO who can take the company to the next level," Yahoo chairman Roy Bostock said.

Yang, who took over as chief executive in June last year, has faced heavy criticism for various moves.

It is said that his rejection of Microsoft's takeover bid was met with disapproval by many of the company's shareholders. Plus, Google Inc pulled out of a deal to sell some ads on Yahoo.

Yahoo's discussions with Time Warner Inc about combining with its AOL unit -- as yet another way to boost Yahoo's earnings -- have also failed to produce a deal.

"The company is in desperate need of change and this is clearly one way to do it," reportedly said Ross Sandler, an analyst at RBC Capital Markets, adding that Microsoft could enter the picture again. "Jerry was the roadblock for the last deal getting done," he said.

Yahoo has hired the executive search firm of Heidrick & Struggles to look for both internal and external candidates.