Good Luck Finding a New CEO, Yahoo

Yahoo’s dismissal of Carol Bartz has left Peter Lauria of Reuters with a question: “Why would anyone want to be Yahoo’s CEO?” The place has become a career death trap, with past CEOs like Bartz, Jerry Yang, and Terry Semel emerging with bruised reputations. “They are going to have a lot of trouble filling that job,” said one tech consultant. “Anybody great is not likely to go there.”

“Bartz's demise underscores that fallen angels in the Internet space are really hard to turn around,” says one analyst. “Perhaps it simply can't be done by anyone (unless you're Steve Jobs).” Part of the problem is that Yahoo’s board and its co-founder, Yang, hold inordinate power, further complicating a CEO’s job. Still, actually turning around the company would be a major resume boost. “I don’t think running Yahoo is a no-win situation,” says Mark Cuban. "It’s a difficult situation," but at least it comes with "huge money." (Click to read about Bartz's blunt description of her firing.)