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From The Times
February 9, 2010

Beware the kiss of Davos

David Wighton: Business Editor’s commentary

If you are the boss of a technology company feeling ever so slightly nervous about your position, I have a bit of advice. Don’t go to Davos.

The sight of the chief executive swanning about among the global elite while the business is struggling can cause irritation back home. It also gives enemies the opportunity to sharpen their knives.

Carly Fiorina, the former boss of Hewlett-Packard, is perhaps the most famous victim of the curse of Davos. She was the toast of the conference back in 2005. But she had barely unpacked her bags back in Palo Alto when she was sacked.

This year, Leo Apotheker, the chief executive of the German software giant SAP, told a Davos session that chief executives needed to think not just about shareholder value but stakeholder value. This was a hard transition for many chief to make, he said. But perhaps not as hard as the transition Mr Apotheker faces after being ousted on Sunday night.

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It turns out SAP customers were grumpy about delayed new product introductions and maintenance-fee increases. Those pesky stakeholders.

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