Opinions on Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer are mixed, at best: She’s been named one of the most influential leaders as well as one of the most disappointing — both titles awarded within a four-month span. The former Google exec came aboard to help right the struggling Yahoo ship; unable to do so, she was instead tasked with overseeing its sale — first potentially as a spin-off to Alibaba and then, when that deal fell through, to Verizon.
Yahoo (and, consequently, Mayer) received a tremendous black eye earlier this year when it was revealed to be the victim of a massive data breach, and the multibillion-dollar Verizon acquisition was subsequently put on hold.
At press time, however, Tim Armstrong, CEO of Verizon-owned AOL, said he is “cautiously optimistic” that Verizon will indeed close the deal. Mayer has said she intends to stay with Yahoo after the deal closes, but her future remains to be seen.
