eBay's Playbook Getting 'Old and Dusty'?

Forbes published a column today about eBay's Meg Whitman, "Does EBay Need A New Boss?" adding to speculation about Whitman's chances of sticking around at eBay as her 10-year anniversary looms.

eBay says Whitman is in the top-spot for the long term, but Forbes looks to Wall Street for dissent. The author, Rachel Rosmarin, quotes Jeetil Patel, an analyst with Deutsche Bank, commenting on slowing growth and saying the company's playbook is "getting old and dusty."

Rosmarin says eBay seems "ripe for change that hasn't come from current management."

The article does not mention eBay's reorganization late last year when it created cross-functional teams designed to promote faster decision-making, began to focus on the buyer experience, and brought in a senior executive from Germany to evangelize the auction platform (http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y06/m12/i05/s01).

Users have already noticed some resulting changes, including initiatives that focus on buyer satisfaction, such as Feedback 2.0, as well as new Trust & Safety initiatives. But whether those changes increase the bidding and buying on the site has yet to be seen.

Forbes Article