By Jared A Levy
On CNBC Monday, I shared my slightly positive sentiment towards Hewlett-Packard (NYSE:HPQ) stock in the wake of CEO Mark Hurd’s resignation. Granted, HP’s stock nearly doubled while Hurd was at the helm, but I am a firm believer that it was not Hurd and Hurd alone who caused this. The hardworking men and women of the company and the creative minds of the developers, marketing staff, design teams, and management (among many others) most likely played a major role in the firm’s success.
While Hurd was instrumental in several tactical acquisitions and I am sure had a long-term vision for the company to follow, I am also confident this vision has been shared not only with the board, but with other levels of management within the company. Any such vision should now be carried out even in Hurd’s absence. One issue I see with his departure would be the potential for a “too many cooks in the kitchen” type scenario, where everyone’s ideas pull the company in different directions, creating possibly inefficient situations.
Of course the recent deals that HPQ has put together (PALM, 3Com and EDS) are going to require some guidance to make them work, but I have confidence that a brilliant CEO – at a much lower price tag, by the way – should be able to not only integrate, but improve the overall business. HPQ still has momentum and finds its most direct competition from IBM. HP and IBM have been in competition for some time, with HP eclipsing IBM in revenue in 2006 (by $0.3 billion) and growing ever since.