eBay CEO Opens Up Again, This Time About His Marriage

by: Philip Cohen

Oh, please, Ina, stop it, my stomach is starting to churn ...

Still, it is a shame he did not put his career on hold ...

On his “performance", I can only repeat that the only measure of a listed company’s performance is the price that is put on its shares by the smart money on Wall Street; you only have to make the comparison between eBay and Amazon to know that for eBay’s “long” shareholders, Donahoe has been an utter failure; the day-trading speculators that get a thrill out of riding the daily variations may look on his performance differently … http://bit.ly/YvxFEg

His Linkedin essays … too funny; all those pathetic sycophants … yuk …

Frankly, I would not bother asking his views on anything: he habitually speaks with the white man’s forked tongue …

by: Bloggo

His Narcissistic personality disorder.

by: Rexford

The less I know about this man the better.  I don't need to know what his thinking process is and I don't need to know about his life.  I simply want him to go away.  

I perceive him to be cold, narcissistic and without the ability to relate to anyone who is not in his tax bracket.

by: TomH

@ Rexford:
''I simply want him to go away.  

I perceive him to be cold, narcissistic and without the ability to relate to anyone who is not in his tax bracket.''

And take Pierre and the BoD with him.

by: Ron

There's no doubt that with his training, he certainly knew what to do in order to get eBay's stock price up.  When you're sitting on a pile of cash, it's fairly easy to achieve growth through acquisition and then play a shell game by manipulating all sorts of key indicators - increased GMV through free listing promotions and sweetheart deals with large retailers, short term revenue growth through fee increases and account holds etc.  Add in a well managed PR campaign targeting analysts and creating the perception of good long term strategic moves, and there you have it.

Personally, I'd like his next essay to be his announcement of retirement from eBay.  I'd expect this to be not too far in the future - I'm sure that he'd want to get out before people discover that the Emperor has no clothes.

by: Anonymous Annie

Oh good grief! Gag me!

by: Digmen1

I wonder if his wife barfs every time she listens to him.

But I suppose if you have a nice big American Express card, why worry!

by: Philip Cohen

I find it fascinating to hear some people talking about how Donahoe is adding value to eBay. In reality, since August 2007, when the Ho was firmly in control, eBay’s share price has risen a paltry 35% (with no cash dividends), whereas Amazon’s has risen 650%! That’s 18.5 times as much increase … I know which company I would prefer to have bought shares in, at any time … but, more importantly, how can anyone but a paid eBay shill argue that Donahoe has done other than utterly destroy eBay shareholders’ value? eBay shareholders are, indeed, going backwards; the only ones getting anything out of eBay are those senior executives collecting the gifted shares based on performance that has only ever been documented in media releases from the eBay Dept of Spin … http://bit.ly/YvxFEg

by: comet

Ya know---of all the wives of long suffering pols--please google up Eliot Spitzer and the very PICTURE of domestic stoic wife---and the poor neglected  and serialy cheated upon Mrs Jobs not to mention Maria Shriver---go find the NPR Wait Wait chat with Mrs Gates.  Melinda.  

Now THERE is a woman worth fighting FOR.  

Donaho?  Really?  Is this woman a robot?  

Ever notice every time you read one of these soul searching type florid prose reveals--the NEXT thing you read is the piece telling you they are divorcing?  

by: lonestar

I'd rather have a chat with Mrs. Donahoe over a couple of drinks and get the truth.

by: Map

I have see leaders like this before.

They get so into themselves, the work, the organizational philosophy and then the stresses they begin to show bizarre behavior and will not let go of the power that they can no longer control.

EVERY TIME I HAVE SEEN MEN LIKE THIS THEY HAVE TAKEN A LOT OF PEOPLE DOWN WITH THEM.

It's time for a fresh leader at ebay.

by: Ming the Merciless

Too bad he couldn't figure out a way to grow .com without exterminating so many good American sellers.

Instead he engages in Bain style zero sum strategies on .com.

The strategies he describes in his marriage to preserve relationships are glaringly absent in his relationship with sellers.

Frankly, I don't give a whit about his personal life.

What I care about is how he treats the people who grew ebay and pay his bloated compensation package.

I want a divorce with him moving out of the executive suite. He can use his golden parachute as a settlement.

by: Ming the Merciless

Upon further consideration, why does this narcissistic sociopath think anyone actually cares about his marital dynamics?

Oh, right. This is what narcissists do among other things.

by: OnceuponaTime

There is a special place for people like him in Dante's Inferno.  

by: Epins

Digmen1 ''I wonder if his wife barfs every time she listens to him.''

When she tires of the bull, a California divorce, a 50% milking of his earnings and assets.

by: Ed

I think he needs to spend more time with his family. If he treats the partnership with his wife the way he treats his partnership with his seller it is much needed.

Money can't buy happiness!  

by: Al G

I
r e a l l y
d o  n o t
g i v e  a  hoot!

Maybe California should draft him to run for the Gov!

by: Will

This Donahoe guy is on such the ego-maniacal trip. "Nancy, hold all my calls today, I am not to be disturbed, as I am having a "thinking day" today", gimme a break!

And then, talking about his marriage. Guess what, nobody cares about your personal life.

by: Will

Click on that link that Ina provides to the blog. It takes you to the eBay blog site. Click around on some of the other articles. All have ZERO comments. This tells us, that nobody reads it, or nobody cares.

It's fitting, since eBay have struck a chord over the years, being aloof and distant, instead of being informative, forthcoming, and helpful.

by: Moonwishes

How much money does one family need to earn for crying out load? Him with his obscene amounts from ebay and her with her fulfilling jobs raking in the cash too. No wonder he can't see the pain of those of us that depended on making a miserly $1000 a month on ebay to help keep us fed and the mortgage paid. He can't relate at all.

Sounds like the with the Mrs out of the way in Geneva, the 2 high school boys will get the freedom that ALL high school boys dream about! Party Hearty!!!

What nonsense about 'leaning in'. What nonsense is that? Leaning towards someone isn't how you run a marriage. You run a marriage by clinging to each other and knowing whatever happens you will sink or swim together. Leaning implies, to me at least, distance between the two of you.

Blech, enough already, fire the dude but he has those that should do the firing blinded. I've worked at jobs like that where my so called partner, schmoozed the day way with cigarette breaks with the big wigs (think thinking days and writing days and vacation days, etc. when does he actually work?) while I toiled in the back room doing all the work. Funny that none of them wondered how all the work got done and when time came for promotions, the schmoozer got it not the one (me) that did the work. That is what Donuthead is doing especially as he calls buyers HIS customers when in reality they are the sellers customers. I thought Meg was horrible. I'm so glad I'm out of there. If sellers were profiting from his management so much, wouldn't we be hearing choruses of how wonderful ebay is like we did 10 years ago?