Getting Fired From HP Has Made Mark Hurd $300 Million

[Newsjock]

Source: Business Insider

Getting fired from HP is turning out to be a very lucrative move for Mark Hurd.

First he was given a fat severance package valued between $35 million and $50 million for leaving. Now, he's getting a massive pay day from his new employer Oracle.

Hurds base salary will be $950,000 at Oracle, and he will be eligible for a $10 million bonus, according to an SEC filing reviewed by the AP.

Further, Hurd will be granted 10 million stock options which will be priced when granted. If those options were granted right now, they would be worth $240 million.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/09/08/businessinsider-mark-hurds-oracle-salary-2010-9.DTL

[Taverner]

1. Dude should kick down to one of his downsized employees!

Just sayin'

[Statistical]

2. HP board is a bunch of idiots for firing Hurd.

Good thing it is *just* shareholder money they wasted firing & compensating the best executive HP has had in 2 decades.

Nothing like burning through other peoples money.

[DJ13]

4. No, they were stupid for not having a 'do not compete' clause in his contract

Firing him was the right thing to do.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

7. That is explicitly illegal in California

Non-compete agreements are unenforceable in California,

[ProgressiveProfessor]

5. I have read elsewhere they are suing to stop him going to work for Oracle

and that there is some sort of non-compete clause in place.

http://news.slashdot.org/story/10/09/07/206228/HP-Sues-Hurd-For-Joining-Oracle

there are some other interesting related links on that page

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

8. Good luck with that,

This has been settled law in California for more than a century, trade secrets are a separate issue.

[Skittles]

3. it pays to be a scum sucking, offshoring corporate whore

Hurd the Turd can fuck himself

[corpseratemedia]

6. Is that truly enough severance pay these days?

:sarcasm:

[HughBeaumont]

9. My sister works for Sun/Oracle.

Great.

Fire Chief Hurd will likely gut this company as he did the last one. Bastard.

[hugo_from_TN]

10. I don't think the writer knows how stock options work.

The options are worth something if the stock price is above the strike price. They may be worth a lot in the future, they may be worth nothing if Oracle stock doesn't rise.

[melm00se]

11. the article is slightly

disingenuous when it reports the stock options part.

yes, 10 million shares granted right now have a strike value of $240 million (10 million x $24.41/share) but if he were to exercise them immediately he would receive $0.

the options are only worth the delta between the strike price and what the shares are currently being traded.

[Fumesucker]

12. So what's the easiest and quickest way to boost the share price?

Fire a crapload of employees, Wall Street loves them some cost cutting.

[melm00se]

13. Wall street

love *profit*...if that is done by decreasing costs or increasing revenue (and being able to maintain it for an extended period of time) it makes no difference.

Also, as an "insider", he (and any other insider) has to declare when he will sell (and even then in a very narrowly defined window) and regardless of what happens to the share price once you declare you must go thru with it.

Plus the article doesn't say what his "vesting" period is. it could be instant (unlikely) or it could be stretched out over a period of time (my option vesting period was 5 years for 100%)

[Fumesucker]

14. Wall Street is not exactly rational..

At least according to Alan "irrational exuberance" Greenspan.

[Statistical]

15. Under Hurd leadership HP increased TOP LINE (i.e. total revenue) by 38%.

You can't raise revenue by simply firing employees. You need to:
a) sell more of what you sell
b) sell more things
c) sell at higher price
d) combination of the above

[Fumesucker]

16. And the chances of doing that in today's business climate are?

I would guess slim to none..

[Statistical]

17. Certainly possible. Harder but possible.

Even in a shrinking economy you can grow revenue by taking market share.

Dell was the largest computer company at one time. Their fall from grace has led to revenue expansion by others capable to stepping up (namely Apple & HP).

[melm00se]

18. good companies

look at downturns as opportunities to prepare for the inevitable upturn.

things that are readily available in a downturn are:

- a deeper pool of available "talent"
- acquisitions (of companies and their products) are cheaper

a company with deep pockets can take advantage of both and be ready to explode out of the gate when the economy turns around.