Micron Technology: New CEO's Retirement Plans on Hold
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- In fast moving circumstances, details are hard to come by. Look at the tragedy at Micron Technology (MU) - Get Report, where CEO Steven Appleton was killed in a small Idaho plane crash. That was Friday. Almost immediately, the company appointed COO Mark Durcan as his replacement.
Having no CEO obviously exposes a company's flanks, so Micron wanted to act immediately. But did they act for the long-term? That remains to be seen. But Forbes did not even see it. They merely reported that Micron moved "swiftly." That gives the move a sense of decisiveness and, barring any fill-out, permanence.
Micron, though, might not be in a settled spot.
The
Wall Street Journal
(NWS) - Get Report
got it right: "Micron on Jan. 26 had said that Mr. Durcan planned to retire from the company at the end of August." The Associated Press also made mention of last week's retirement announcement, as did Reuters.
This, of course, doesn't mean that, considering the tragic and changed circumstances, Durcan still wants to sit on the beach in Boca or, considering his youth, move on to the other challenges. But his retirement plans are such recent news and need to be set beside the quick-hit appointment. Bloomberg did not mention last week's big announcement. Considering that Durcan, the sudden CEO, was recently planning a life of shuffleboard and mahjong, it's a big oversight.
At the time of publication, Fuchs had no positions in any of the stocks mentioned in this column.
Marek Fuchs was a stockbroker for Shearson Lehman Brothers and a money manager before becoming a journalist who wrote The New York Times' "County Lines" column for six years. He also did back-up beat coverage of The New York Knicks for the paper's Sports section for two seasons and covered other professional and collegiate sports. He has contributed frequently to many of the Times' other sections, including National, Metro, Escapes, Style, Real Estate, Arts & Leisure, Travel, Money & Business, Circuits and the Op-Ed Page.
For his "Business Press Maven" column on how business and finance are covered by the media, Fuchs was named best business journalist critic in the nation by the Talking Biz website at The University of North Carolina School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Fuchs is a frequent speaker on the business media, in venues ranging from National Public Radio to the annual conference of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers.
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