Yahoo Admits CEO Scott Thompson Qualification Error

Yahoo has confirmed it included a non-existent computer science degree in CEO Scott Thompson’s bio and regulatory filings.

The troubled Internet giant said the inclusion was due to an “inadvertent error”, but it has since emerged that Thompson did not deny he had the qualification when asked about it in a 2009 interview.

Call my bluff

The misinformation, accidental or otherwise, was noticed by a shareholder and although Yahoo has admitted the degree was non-existent, it offered no explanation, adding that it was reviewing the matter.  The qualification has apparently been present on documentation since he was at eBay.

However, Thompson, who was appointed as CEO in January, failed to deny he had a computer science degree in addition to the BSc in Business Administration that he graduated from Stone Hill College in Boston with in 1979.

Thompson even mentioned his tech training at Stone Hill, despite computer science not being offered at the university when he attended. He also calls himself an engineer, but did not graduate as one, although he could have been referring to work training rather than an academic qualification.

The revelation will be an unwelcome one for Yahoo and Thompson, who is currently presiding over a streamlining operation at the company. Last month, it emerged that 2,000 jobs were to be axed, mainly in the product, research and local business divisions, with warnings that more could follow. Yahoo has also announced plans to shut down a number of products which are no longer seen as important.

Yahoo has struggled in recent years, with Microsoft failing in a £28.2 billion takeover bid in 2009, although it was rumoured to be still interested late last year.

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