Carol Bartz

In the summer of 2011, Yahoo Inc's board decided enough was enough. Directors had seen the Internet giant's stock languish, and the answers they got from Carol Bartz, chief executive at the time, fell short of their expectations.So, the board held a final meeting in Los Angeles, away from Yahoo's Silicon Valley headquarters, to review the company's progress, a source familiar with the matter said.One of their conclusions? Fire Bartz, the source said.Such scenes are relatively rare, but could be played out more frequently across corporate America as companies increasingly split the roles of chairman and CEO, and heed regulatory pressure to police their companies, U.S. public company directors said in interviews.Last week, Citigroup Inc Chief Executive Vikram Pandit resigned abruptly after a clash with the board and the bank's chairman, Michael O'Neill, a day after it reported better-than-expected results. Citi declined to comment.Other marquee names, such as insurer American Internation...

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