The American economy continued to recover in 2010, helping businesses generate record profits and create $1.9 trillion in untapped cash on their collective balance sheets.
Of course, some companies did better than others. In this interview with Sydney Finkelstein, professor at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and author of Why Smart Executives Fail, we discuss the biggest CEO mistakes of 2010.
As you'd expect, former BP CEO Tony Hayward made some of the biggest blunders of the year. Especially memorable was Hayward's decision to watch yacht races while oil was still gushing into the gulf. And his "I would like my life back" comment during the crisis is likely to go down as one of the dumbest things ever uttered by a CEO.
President Obama also makes Finkelstein's list of blundering leaders, though he does admit Obama has had a very strong run during the lame-duck session of Congress (successfully passing the tax extension; repealing don't ask, don't tell; passing the START treaty; and passing the 9/11 worker's healthcare bill).
HP's former CEO Mark Hurd makes Finkelstein's list for his behavior involving contract worker Jodie Fisher. Fisher had accused Hurd of sexual harassment, though an investigation by HP's board of directors found no violations. However, they did conclude Hurd had violated the company's code of conduct. He proves that it's not always what you do, but how you do it.
A lesser-known executive with a well-known business also makes the list. Andrew Mason, CEO of daily deals website Groupon, made a huge mistake, Finkelstein says, by turning down Google's $6 billion buyout offer. Unlike Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg, who rightly turned down billions, Mason would have been wise to take the money and run. It may be too soon to criticize Mason's decision. Time will tell if Groupon can sustain market dominance.
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