Friday, March 14, 2008

Assignment: read Dave Morgan's column on Curt Viebranz

In case you hadn't noticed, one of the big stories this week was the firing of Curt Viebranz, head of AOL's Platform A advertising unit. One reason it made headlines was that his dismissal eschewed the usual niceties used to describe higher-ups who have been told to move on. More than one headline I read used the word "sacked." There was nothing said about "leaving to pursue other opportunities." Several posts have asserted that Viebranz got fired after refusing to meet very aggressive revenue targets. Dave Morgan's Mediapost column about Viebranz yesterday doesn't address that issue directly, but it paints a picture of a man who is not only competent, but is very clear-eyed about the interactive market, its highs and its lows. A must read.

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