Hewlett Packard and Time Warner Merge Comparison

Hewlett-Packard

HP underwent a major change in that it underwent a merger with Compaq Computer in 2002. The merger was met with so much resistance upon its announcement that observers were unsure if the deal would even go through. Championing the merger was the CEO of HP at the time, Carly Fiorina, and the opposition was led by none other than the son of HP co-founder, Bill Hewlett. The general consensus now is that Fiorina lacked the skills to manage the after effects of such a large merger. Mr. Hewlett was quoted in the New York Times on February 1, 2002 saying, “The Compaq merger is a dangerously risky, a very costly, step... The risk is great that trying to meld two disparate companies and cultures together in the computer business will come to grief.” In fact, many observers and analysts were equally pessimistic about the merger, and they were already touting Dell Computer, a major competitor in the computer market, as having basically “won” the computer wars.

After almost three years of failing to reap any of the predicted rewards from the merger, Fiorina was replaced by Mark Hurd. Hurd almost immediately undid some of the changes Fiorina implemented in order to place more emphasis on efficiency and execution rather than forcing cooperation throughout the company. The new CEO “cut jobs and engaged in a restructure, breaking down the four quadrants into product divisions because they were too “matrix” in design.” The results of his management style can be are highlights below when compared to the competition at the time:

So, what techniques did Mark Hurd employ to turn the company around? Why was he so much more successful than his predecessor? Well, based on some of decisions like cutting jobs, it is reasonable to argue that Mr. Hurd was less concerned about employees adapting to change than Fiorina. He was more concerned with the numbers and how he could turn the company around. Mark Hurd has the image of a navigator because he inherited the change...