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What's Ailing Google Chief?
Google Inc. GOOG +1.11% says Chief Executive Larry Page has "
his voice," but it won't say
more about the matter. Some corporate governance experts think the Internet company should speak
.
The billionaire co-founder missed Google's annual meeting Thursday, and the company said he will miss two other important engagements
the next several weeks.
Google
no further information about Mr. Page's problems,
it said he continues
lead the company. The lack of details surrounding the matter prompted some speculation
Wall Street about whether he may have
serious medical condition.
an email to employees on Thursday,
, Mr. Page wrote that "there is nothing seriously wrong
me" and that he would "continue to
the company," according to a person familiar
the matter.
The 39-year-old Mr. Page took
as chief executive last year, his second stint running Google
its 14-year history. He was absent
the shareholder meeting at the company's Mountain View, Calif., headquarters.
the meeting, Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt said Mr. Page had "lost his voice" and "can't
any public speaking engagements for the time
," including the coming week's Google annual conference
software developers and at the second-quarter earnings conference call
is expected in mid-July. He added that "Larry will continue to
the company, he's running all the strategic business decisions and all that."
Mr. Schmidt,
wished Mr. Page a "quick recovery," also joked that co-founder Sergey Brin "has said
this problem will make Larry a better CEO because he's going to have to choose his words very carefully."
Few watchers of the Internet giant seemed
a joking mood, however. That is especially true in Silicon Valley,
the death of Apple Inc. AAPL +0.77% co-founder Steve Jobs is still fresh in people's
.
Apple's disclosures
the health of Mr. Jobs, who died in October after a battle
pancreatic cancer, were criticized
times for providing few details about his condition.
"We have
specific reason to think there is anything
to Larry's condition, but we find it odd that the company would already rule him
of the 2Q call which is likely still a few weeks
," wrote JP Morgan stock analyst Doug Anmuth in a note
clients.
He added, "We think this could
some questions among investors."
Mr. Anmuth also noted
Mr. Page, who regularly posts links and comments
his Google+ social network account, hasn't posted anything publicly
May 25.
Inside Google, some executives
told Mr. Page's issue isn't serious and that he's "OK," according to a person familiar
the matter.
Susquehanna Financial Group analyst Herman Leung says he's started to get calls
investors, asking if they should be worried about this. "Yeah, probably a
bit," he said. "Hopefully, Google will give us
update."
Mr. Page's voice generally sounds slightly strained, raspy or hoarse. A recording of a 20-minute speech last month
London showed Mr. Page noticeably pausing several times to swallow before continuing
speak, but it is unclear whether that was a symptom of his current problem.
Some leadership experts contend Google should divulge
about Mr. Page's voice problem.
the CEO of a public company, "he's not entitled to his privacy,'' said Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a senior associate dean
Yale School of Management.
"We need to know
it [his voice] is imperiled," he said.
The Google board should inform shareholders about the cause and likely duration of Mr. Page's condition,
to Mr. Sonnenfeld, author of several leadership books. A degenerative health problem "could have a material adverse impact
the company,'' he added.
Securities laws require publicly
companies to disclose material information that could affect investors' decision
acquire or sell shares. Directors decide what's material,
, and many boards have trouble deciding how much
tell shareholders about a CEO's sudden illness because corporate leaders prefer privacy.
Adapted and abridged from: The Wall Street Journal, June 22, 2012.
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