There's more trouble over at Yahoo, where the company's board is reportedly investigating discrepancies in new CEO Scott Thompson's educational history.
The error was brought to light yesterday by a disgruntled shareholder who has been pushing for changes within the company's board.
New York hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb, whose company Third Point owns a 5.8 percent stake in Yahoo, published a letter accusing Thompson of lying in a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) about having a degree in computer science.
In a filing with the SEC on April 27, Yahoo said Thompson has a Bachelor's degree in accounting and computer science from Stonehill College in Easton, Mass. But, as it turns out, he actually only has an accounting degree.
"A rudimentary Google search reveals a Stonehill College alumni announcement stating that Mr. Thompson's degree is in accounting only," Loeb's letter states.
In fact, Stonehill College didn't even offer a computer science degree until 1983, four years after the executive graduated. But the erroneous information was also previously found on Yahoo's website, as well as Thompson's bio for past jobs.
Yahoo did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but in a statement provided to the AP, Yahoo confirmed that Thompson's credentials were overstated in the filing, and called the misrepresentation an "inadvertent error."
"This in no way alters that fact that Mr. Thompson is a highly qualified executive with a successful track record leading large consumer technology companies," Yahoo said. "Under Mr. Thompson's leadership, Yahoo is moving forward to grow the company and drive shareholder value."
According to All Things D, Yahoo's board has launched an investigation into resume discrepancy.
In his letter, shareholder Loeb questioned how the search committee that picked Thompson could have overlooked the error in his bio. He called on the board to evaluate whether the misrepresentation is a violation of the company's code of ethics.
"If Mr. Thompson embellished his academic credentials we think that it 1) undermines his credibility as a technology expert and 2) reflects poorly on the character of the CEO who has been tasked with leading Yahoo! at this critical juncture," the letter states. "Now more than ever Yahoo investors need a trustworthy CEO."
Thompson, former president of eBay's PayPal unit, was hired earlier this year to replace Yahoo's former CEO Carol Bartz, who was unceremoniously fired several months earlier. Yahoo has faced a number of other leadership shake-ups in recent months, including the exit of co-founder Jerry Yang, chairman Roy Bostock, and three long-time board members Vyomesh Joshi, Gary Wilson, and Arthur Kern.
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