Yahoo! Loses Its CTO, Unfortunately Not Its CEO

Yahoo!’s (YHOO-NASDAQ) Head of Technology and Chief Technology Officer, Farzad Nazem, is leaving the company effective June 8, 2007.  The filing says he will "continue to provide services including transition services between the Agreement Date and the Separation Date."  In short, he’s out of there and they can catch him on his cell phone (assuming he’ll even grab the phone).  He will still have shares locked up over the coming thirty months as certain options vest at intervals between now and then.

No reason is given for his resignation.  Shares are down 1% at $28.09 so far in after-hours trading.  All we want to know is why he couldn’t take Mr. Semel with him.  We have had Semel on a list of CEO’s That Need To Go since December 15, 2006, so today’s news is "the right move, but from teh wrong officer."

Jon C. Ogg
May 30, 2007

Jon Ogg can be reached at [email protected]; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.