As AOL Prepares To Downsize Patch, CEO Fires Employee During Meeting

An anonymous reader writes "AOL is closing or plans to sell nearly half of the 900 'hyperlocal' news websites operated by its money-losing Patch Media subsidiary (TechCrunch is also owned by AOL). Hundreds of staff layoffs are believed to be imminent. AOL acquired Patch in 2009, soon after ex-Googler Tim Armstrong took over as CEO; Armstrong was also a co-founder of Patch. During a tough conference call last Thursday Armstrong told Patch editors: 'Something at Patch has been missing for some time and that's leadership – leadership with a capital L'. Armstrong then demonstrated his grasp of Donald Trump's management style by firing an employee during the meeting for taking a picture. At 1:18 of the NY Post's sound clip from Jim Romensko: 'Leaking information Patch isn't going to bother me. I'm not changing direction'. At 2:00: 'Abel [Creative Director Lenz], put that camera down. Abel, you're fired. Out.' Armstrong later explained that 'The reason I fired Abel is I don't want anyone taking pictures of this meeting' and that, much like a sports team, AOL couldn't afford to have people 'giving the game plan away'."

Comments

Re: Two idiots in a corp meeting

[SplatMan_DK]

He was snapping pics/videoclips with his smartphone in the middle of a high level management meeting at a vergy large corporation FFS. Have you EVER heard of anyone doing the same? Has anyone else? Please? Anyone? Hello? Anyone?

Ah, I didn't think so.

Perhaps we're not hearing about other high level managers doing this because they got fired ... ;-)

Seriously. Both acted stupidly. But you just don't behave like that when you are on that level of business.

It is rude. It removes attention from the speaker/subject (in this case the CEO himself). It shows you are not taking the meeting seriously. It shows your priorities are seriously wrong - in which case you SHOULD be fired anyway (in a more appropriate way perhaps). Perhaps the proper term is that he "conducted in ways unbecoming a top-level corporate manager". This was not the local YMCA having their Thursday get together. This was a crisis meeting for all senior directors at a multi-billion dollar corporation.

He had it coming. Absolutely. It just should have been done in more subtle and appropriate way.

- Jesper