Is Mark Hurd Actually Qualified to Lead Oracle Corporation?
Some headlines over the years have caused people to ask, "is Mark Hurd actually qualified to lead?" First, Hurd took over as leader of Hewlett-Packard (HP), becoming the CEO after its Board of Directors fired future presidential candidate Carly Fiorina. Then, he ended his tenure under questionable circumstances in August 2010. One month later, Oracle hired him as President. Its board viewed his sudden free agency as a windfall, which leads to a simple question: Is Mark Hurd actually qualified to lead Oracle Corporation?
Facts About Hurd's Hewlett-Packard Tenure
Hurd's tenure as leader of Hewlett-Packard was a categorical success, according to many sources. During his five years with the company, HP enjoyed consistent growth. During the summer of 2005, HPQ stock was trading at a dismal adjusted closing of $12.61. When he exited the company in 2010, shares were at $17.46, and even that number is misleadingly low. During the spring of 2010, HPQ stock generally fell in the $23-$24 range, its highest level during the 21st century. The primary reason the stock trended down around the time of his departure was the uncertainty over Hurd's status within the company.
As you may have heard at the time, allegations dogged Hurd at the end of his tenure at HP. Noted civil rights attorney Gloria Allred engaged in what Hurd and his team described as a shakedown. While this garnered headlines on traffic-desperate technology blogs, the internal evaluations painted a different picture. HP officials performed an internal investigation that largely cleared Hurd of the accusations. Still, the salacious news created a public relations problem for HP, ultimately driving down the value of its stock.
Panicked over the decline in market cap, HP's board weighed its options. Its investigation had revealed that Hurd wasn't always open with the company. While analysts might consider such behavior a necessity in the business world, HP execs demanded transparency of their leader. They also questioned some of his decision-making. The company simply found the termination of Hurd expedient to end a negative news cycle.
Hurd by the Numbers
HP shareholders expressed outrage over Hurd's termination. From their perspective, he'd earned the title of Chairman of the Board of Directors after a different HP scandal, which Newsweek had revealed. He'd steadied the corporation in the face of public outrage. As a leader, Hurd demonstrated remarkable poise in many people's opinions. More importantly, he understood that the bottom line is everything to shareholders.
Even the harshest critics of Mark Hurd cannot deny his effectiveness as a leader in many areas. He started his career at NCR Corporation, a point-of-sale technology corporation. He worked there for 25 years, eventually earning the titles of President and CEO of NCR. During those two years when Hurd led the firm, the company's stock almost quadrupled in value.
Fortune 100 companies took note of Hurd's success. HP eventually poached him, and he continued his run of excellence there. HP stock value increased 86 percent during his five years. What's remarkable about this growth is that the company's stock price was roughly $17 when he exited the company, and it increased by less than a dollar in the six years that followed. Under Hurd, sustained growth was the rule. In his absence, the company has struggled against a stagnant stock price.
Hurd has shown the same financial savvy at Oracle. When he joined the company, the stock price of ORCL was $23.72. Under his leadership, it has ascended to $45, almost doubling its value in five years. With regards to stock prices, Hurd is one of the most proven leaders in the corporate world.
Qualities of a Great Leader
How does Hurd continue to increase stock prices when so many business leaders fail? Hurd is perceived as a visionary within the industry. He understands the fast pace of technology and isn't afraid to challenge conventional wisdom. To wit, most analysts believe Amazon has an insurmountable lead in the cloud services industry. Hurd disagrees. He views his competitor as using outdated architecture, aging technology that will eventually fail end-users.
Where others believe Amazon has a virtual monopoly, Hurd sees an opportunity for Oracle. He's guiding the corporation toward cloud dominance, understanding that every percentage point of market share that they steal from Amazon weakens the competition. For years, Oracle failed to capitalize on the nascent cloud industry. While the company still faces an uphill climb in gaining a foothold in a saturated marketplace, Hurd has directed his staff to prioritize infrastructure. He understands that a strong cloud foundation is integral to future-proofing a technology company.
The qualities of a great leader aren't idle talk for Hurd, either. He's actually crafted a list of the three traits he considers integral to quality leadership. The first is to get the strategy right. Since technology changes so rapidly, a single miscalculation can undo a lot of good work. The leader bears the onus in positioning his employees to succeed, which ties into another of Hurd's traits: He intuits which worker is best for each job, thereby maximizing the job performance for each mission-critical assignment.
Finally, great leadership requires the proper implementation of a good strategy. Countless business stories involve someone coming up with a great idea at the same time as someone else, only to watch the other person succeed. This demonstrates that having the idea isn't enough; you also have to execute it. Hurd believes the skill that has given him the most success is bringing his best ideas to fruition in a timely manner without compromising the strength of the concept. It would certainly explain his sustained stock price excellence.
While Hurd will always have detractors, as any prominent CEO undoubtedly does, his body of work is undeniable. Hurd has proven his prowess in corporate management at three different corporations. At each one, he's increased stock prices and market share in a way that neither predecessors nor successors have matched. That's why he's recognized as a CEO and many people argue he is unmistakably qualified to lead Oracle Corporation.
Facts About Hurd's Hewlett-Packard Tenure
Hurd's tenure as leader of Hewlett-Packard was a categorical success, according to many sources. During his five years with the company, HP enjoyed consistent growth. During the summer of 2005, HPQ stock was trading at a dismal adjusted closing of $12.61. When he exited the company in 2010, shares were at $17.46, and even that number is misleadingly low. During the spring of 2010, HPQ stock generally fell in the $23-$24 range, its highest level during the 21st century. The primary reason the stock trended down around the time of his departure was the uncertainty over Hurd's status within the company.
As you may have heard at the time, allegations dogged Hurd at the end of his tenure at HP. Noted civil rights attorney Gloria Allred engaged in what Hurd and his team described as a shakedown. While this garnered headlines on traffic-desperate technology blogs, the internal evaluations painted a different picture. HP officials performed an internal investigation that largely cleared Hurd of the accusations. Still, the salacious news created a public relations problem for HP, ultimately driving down the value of its stock.
Panicked over the decline in market cap, HP's board weighed its options. Its investigation had revealed that Hurd wasn't always open with the company. While analysts might consider such behavior a necessity in the business world, HP execs demanded transparency of their leader. They also questioned some of his decision-making. The company simply found the termination of Hurd expedient to end a negative news cycle.
Hurd by the Numbers
HP shareholders expressed outrage over Hurd's termination. From their perspective, he'd earned the title of Chairman of the Board of Directors after a different HP scandal, which Newsweek had revealed. He'd steadied the corporation in the face of public outrage. As a leader, Hurd demonstrated remarkable poise in many people's opinions. More importantly, he understood that the bottom line is everything to shareholders.
Even the harshest critics of Mark Hurd cannot deny his effectiveness as a leader in many areas. He started his career at NCR Corporation, a point-of-sale technology corporation. He worked there for 25 years, eventually earning the titles of President and CEO of NCR. During those two years when Hurd led the firm, the company's stock almost quadrupled in value.
Fortune 100 companies took note of Hurd's success. HP eventually poached him, and he continued his run of excellence there. HP stock value increased 86 percent during his five years. What's remarkable about this growth is that the company's stock price was roughly $17 when he exited the company, and it increased by less than a dollar in the six years that followed. Under Hurd, sustained growth was the rule. In his absence, the company has struggled against a stagnant stock price.
Hurd has shown the same financial savvy at Oracle. When he joined the company, the stock price of ORCL was $23.72. Under his leadership, it has ascended to $45, almost doubling its value in five years. With regards to stock prices, Hurd is one of the most proven leaders in the corporate world.
Qualities of a Great Leader
How does Hurd continue to increase stock prices when so many business leaders fail? Hurd is perceived as a visionary within the industry. He understands the fast pace of technology and isn't afraid to challenge conventional wisdom. To wit, most analysts believe Amazon has an insurmountable lead in the cloud services industry. Hurd disagrees. He views his competitor as using outdated architecture, aging technology that will eventually fail end-users.
Where others believe Amazon has a virtual monopoly, Hurd sees an opportunity for Oracle. He's guiding the corporation toward cloud dominance, understanding that every percentage point of market share that they steal from Amazon weakens the competition. For years, Oracle failed to capitalize on the nascent cloud industry. While the company still faces an uphill climb in gaining a foothold in a saturated marketplace, Hurd has directed his staff to prioritize infrastructure. He understands that a strong cloud foundation is integral to future-proofing a technology company.
The qualities of a great leader aren't idle talk for Hurd, either. He's actually crafted a list of the three traits he considers integral to quality leadership. The first is to get the strategy right. Since technology changes so rapidly, a single miscalculation can undo a lot of good work. The leader bears the onus in positioning his employees to succeed, which ties into another of Hurd's traits: He intuits which worker is best for each job, thereby maximizing the job performance for each mission-critical assignment.
Finally, great leadership requires the proper implementation of a good strategy. Countless business stories involve someone coming up with a great idea at the same time as someone else, only to watch the other person succeed. This demonstrates that having the idea isn't enough; you also have to execute it. Hurd believes the skill that has given him the most success is bringing his best ideas to fruition in a timely manner without compromising the strength of the concept. It would certainly explain his sustained stock price excellence.
While Hurd will always have detractors, as any prominent CEO undoubtedly does, his body of work is undeniable. Hurd has proven his prowess in corporate management at three different corporations. At each one, he's increased stock prices and market share in a way that neither predecessors nor successors have matched. That's why he's recognized as a CEO and many people argue he is unmistakably qualified to lead Oracle Corporation.
