Yahoo! Talent Keeps Trickling

A steady stream of key executives continues to head for the exits at Yahoo!(YHOO Quote) -- just as the beleaguered Web giant can use a helping hand.

On Monday, Yahoo! confirmed that David Katz, operating head of Yahoo! Sports and Yahoo! Studios, had left the company last week. Meanwhile, the blog TechCrunch reported that Michael Marquez, Yahoo!'s director of corporate development, left the company on Friday to head up investments and acquisitions for CBS' Interactive Digital Strategy division.

Katz and Marquez are just the latest in a string of Yahoo! executives to jump ship recently, as the company continues to flounder publicly in a year the stock has lost nearly a third of its value. In November, Yahoo! saw two high-profile departures in its Publisher Network Group. The company has also lost its vice president of shopping and vice president of developer network, among others, this year.

Musings about Yahoo!'s grand strategy in the infamous Peanut Butter Manifesto or speculation about whether CEO Terry Semel will be replaced have taken center stage with many pundits. But shrewd investors will be watching the movement of Yahoo! heads across its myriad business groups.

Not only do these executives have a better vantage point from which to gauge Yahoo!'s future, but high-caliber talent in these ranks will be necessary to turn Yahoo! around -- no matter which strategy the company adopts, or who is at the helm.