H-P Board Upset by Hurd's Settlement

More details on embattled ex-Hewlett-Packard CEO Mark Hurd’s ignominious resignation. According to Bloomberg Businessweek, Hurd shocked the company’s board when he settled a sexual-harassment claim before the directors even knew about the incident—a decision, two sources told the magazine, that contributed to his ouster. What’s more, the board also learned that Hurd had private dinners with his accuser, Jodie Fisher, who worked as an event organizer for H-P. Some shareholders, however, have been irked by the board’s decision. Hurd was, after all, a highly competent executive who helped reshape H-P. One shareholder in particular, Oracle Corp. CEO Larry Ellison, is decidedly upset. “The H-P board just made the worst personnel decision since the idiots on the Apple board fired Steve Jobs many years ago,” Ellison wrote in an email to The New York Times last week.