In an appearance on CNBC on Monday, former AOL-Time Warner CEO Gerald Levin acknowledged the failure of AOL-Time Warner, calling it the “worst deal of the century.”
He said CEOs should take responsibility for failed companies.
It’s time for those who are involved in companies to stand up and say, ‘you know what, I’m solely responsible for it. I was the CEO; I was in charge; I’m really very sorry about the pain and suffering and loss this has caused. I take responsibility. It wasn’t the board; it wasn’t my colleagues. It wasn’t the bankers and lawyers.
Think back to all those multi-billion dollar paper acquisitions of a decade ago and the collapse of industry stalwarts.
Any other former CEOs willing to stand up?