
Zynga's Pincus, Apple's Jobs and Other Tech CEOs Who Have Come Back
NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Lots of chief executives have left their perch only to come back and retake their old thrones. Starbucks' (SBUX) - Get Report Howard Schultz did it, so did Charles "Chuck" Schwab of the financial services firm of the same name Charles Schwab Corp. (SCHW) - Get Report. J.C. Penney's (JCP) - Get Report Myron "Mike Ullman" returned after the department store chain previous CEO (Ullman's predecessor) nearly put the company out of business, as well as Procter & Gamble's (PG) - Get Report A.G. Lafley, just to name a few.
But the tech sector, in particular, is notorious for founders and (or) CEOs who leave only to return to their former companies once things go awry. Zynga's (ZNGA) - Get Report announcement yesterday that its chairman and founder Mark Pincus is returning to the company he created in 2007 as CEO is the latest in a long line of tech executive management returns.
Including the Zynga news, here are six tech company founders or CEOs that have either left and come back to lead their companies or stepped in as CEO when needed.
1. Zynga (ZNGA) - Get Report
Zynga announced after the markets closed on Wednesday that Pincus would return
The outspoken CEO is hoping to reinvigorate his company by going after mobile gamers. The company has failed to produce another gaming hit like its once popular FarmVille as other gaming companies like King Digital Entertainment (KING) proved itself with its monster social gaming hit, Candy Crush.
Pincus, a well-known figure in Silicon Valley, whose leadership abilities have been questioned by Wall Street, is not the first founder to come back and lead his company, especially in the tech industry.
2. Apple (AAPL) - Get Report
Apple's co-founder Steve Jobs, who left the company in 1985 after being forced out amid a dispute with the board, only to retake his position 12 years later, is the quintessential example of founders who leave but come back to lead the company to great things.
Following Jobs' return in 1997, the company went on to create all things "i," including the iPod, iPhone and iPad. The devices have been a huge success both domestically and internationally. Jobs died in 2011, with Tim Cook succeeding him as CEO. Apple is getting ready to begin selling its latest device, the Apple Watch, on April 24.
Apple's market cap was at $3 billion at the start of 1997. Today, it stands at $734 billion and it is the largest company in the world, thanks much to Jobs' return.
3.Yahoo (YHOO)
After co-founding the Internet portal giant in 1995 with David Filo, Jerry Yang became its CEO in 2007 after Terry Semel stepped down under pressure. His tenure was short. Just 18 months later Yang was out as CEO. He was followed by several executives until Yahoo hired Google executive Marissa Mayer in 2012 to turn the company around. Whether Mayer can do it is still in question.
4.LinkedIn (LNKD)
In late 2008, LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman retook the role of chief executive of the professional social networking site after relinquishing the role to former Intuit (INTU) - Get Report executive Dan Nye. At the same time, Hoffman brought Jeff Weiner, a former Yahoo! executive with him to become interim president of the company he co-founded in 2002.
Weiner became CEO of the currently $32-billion market cap company in mid-2009 and is still in the role at present. Hoffman remains the company's chairman. The company went public in 2011.
5. Dell
Michael Dell is the founder, chairman and CEO of Dell, the personal computer giant that went private in 2013. Dell started the company in 1984. In 2004, he stepped down as CEO but stayed on as chairman, giving the daily management role to Kevin Rollins, the company's then president and chief operating officer. Dell returned as CEO in January 2007 at the request of the board. He took the company private in 2013 through a leveraged buyout by buying back his own company's stock with the assistance of Silver Lake Partners.
6. Etsy
Etsy, the soon-to-be public online handmade goods marketplace, has already had some changes to its executive management. The 10-year-old company's co-founder Rob Kalin left his role as CEO in 2008 but returned in 2009 to replace then-CEO Maria Thomas. Kalin stepped down in 2011 to be succeeded by Etsy's Chief Technology Officer Chat Dickerson. Dickerson is currently the company's chief executive.
Etsy plans to sell 16.7 million shares at a price of $14 to $16 apiece, which would raise as much as $267 million for the firm, according to a registration filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Brooklyn-based Web site could be valued at roughly $1.78 billion.












