HP Chairman Accuses Hurd Of Repeated Lies

The new chairman of HP has launched an astonishing attack on former CEO Mark Hurd, who he accused of repeatedly lying to the HP board during the investigation that led to his resignation.

Besides the attack on Hurd, incoming HP chairman Ray Lane also took the opportunity to defend the appointment of former SAP head, Leo Apotheker, as CEO of HP. This appointment has puzzled some in the community and led to criticism of the HP’s board over its role in dismissing Hurd, who had made the company the largest in the tech sector.

Handbags At The Ready

Lane’s furious outburst came in a letter he wrote to the New York Times, which had run a column over the weekend that suggested that Hurd’s missteps were minor compared with those of Apotheker.

In his letter, Lane said that “Mr Hurd violated the trust of the board by repeatedly lying to them in the course of an investigation into his conduct.”

“He violated numerous elements of HP’s Standards of Business Conduct and he demonstrated a serious lack of integrity and judgment,” wrote Lane. “The board was unanimous in its decision that he must go, including the seven directors Mr. Hurd recruited to the board.”

Bad Blood

Hurd resigned from HP in August amid a scandal around an investigation by HP’s board relating to a sexual harassment allegation from a former HP employee and reports of fudged expense reports. Hurd has since settled the complaint out of court.

Following Hurd’s departure, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, who happened to be a personal friend of Hurd, criticised the HP board, calling their move “the worst personnel decision since the idiots on the Apple board fired Steve Jobs many years ago”.

Ellison backed up this sentiment by hiring Hurd as co-president of Oracle on 6 September.

There is little doubt that Ray Lane holds little love for his former boss, Larry Ellison, and Oracle – a company he worked for many years. Lane was a former president of Oracle, but he left the company 10 years ago after falling out with Ellison.

Lane formally joins HP on 1 November.