A Leadership Podcast with Alan Murray, Wall Street Journal's executive editor, online.
Alan Murray
"This has got to be the most interesting place in American Journalism to be right now." Alan Murray
Alan Murray is the Wall Street Journal's executive editor, online. He manages the editorial development of new-media initiatives and oversees the news operations of WSJ.com, related Web sites and events, video, Dow Jones's relationship with CNBC and book publishing. The editor of MarketWatch, another Dow Jones business-news Web site, also reports to Mr. Murray.
Peter Clayton spoke with Alan about the purchase of The Wall Street Journal by Rupert Murdoch, and his latest book, Revolt in the Boardroom: The New Rules of Power in Corporate America, published by Collins.
"One of the most profound periods of change since the 1930s 1:07
Alan, it’s certainly been an exciting summer at the Wall Street Journal. As someone whose written extensively about boardroom intrigue, your latest book, published this year by Collins, is titled "Revolt in the Boardroom: The New Rules of Power in Corporate America" you seem to have had a good share of it!
What is the mood in the newsroom these days?
What changes do you expect to see when Mr. Murdoch takes over?
Obviously, there’s been a lot of press regarding the Fox Business Network he’s launching…
Lets talk about what’s happening in the boardrooms around America – you know – and have written about many of the executives leading major corporations today. Do you think Enron, WorldCom, Tyco – the list is quite lengthy – created a corporate Watergate?
You wrote, about the CEO sackings that took place in 2005 "signaled one of the most profound period of corporate change since the 1930s." Can you expand on this?
Alan, you know what many people react to in the whole conversation about CEO is compensation – no where in the world are CEOs as richly compensated as they are here in the US. Let alone the exit packages many CEO get – even when they’re fired. Look at Bob Nardelli. (Former CEO of Home Depot).
One of the trends that keep cropping up at conferences I’ve been attending is the shift from the command and control type of leadership to what is called Emotional Intelligence – that the soft skills have become far more important.
Another trend – the role of Private Equity in attracting top executives.
What’s your take on Bob Nardelli being hired to run Chrysler?
You wrote that Hank Greenberg said "If I were starting over, I'd probably move to China or India," do you think he got a fair shake?
As you write in your book – the role of the corporate board has become far more powerful.
Booklist Review
Murray is the assistant managing editor of the Wall Street Journal and has written two books covering investing and the relationship between corporations and politics. Here he examines how CEOs, once the rock stars of the 1990s, are now being put under the microscope by board members, shareholders, the government, and even underling employees. In the last several years, powerful CEOs have been forced out for poor performance or improprieties, something almost unheard of in the past. According to Murray, public corporations are in the midst of radical change due to governmental oversight and high demands from shareholders and the public, and the role of the CEO may be greatly diminished as a result. He takes us inside the boardrooms of companies such as GM, Enron, and WorldCom during periods of crisis and shows how the scandals and corruption of the recent past have created a sense of paranoia and a zero-tolerance atmosphere. Although many may applaud this new shift of power, Murray explores how the ramifications of governance by committee may have drawbacks of its own. --David Siegfried
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