If I were Susan Decker, I'd be rollicked with mixed emotions. On one hand, the long-awaited exit of Terry Semel as Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) CEO gives Sue a lot of room to get on with her company's renovation. She's often been seen as Yahoo!'s strongest leader and most talented executive; Semel's resignation really makes the company hers in a way it never could be before. In December, her promotion to Executive Vice President, Head of Advertiser and Publisher Group made her the heir apparent. And she's been named President, surely a lovely title reminiscent of ultimate power.

But on the other hand, this is a corporation, and the real power is in the position of Chief Executive Officer -- the job we all know she should (if she has half the ambition she seems) truly desire. Not only that, but the rest of the world agrees she's the best candidate for the position. This perfect opportunity to give her the title for which her career has been grooming her? It's been passed over, and we all have to wonder: what were they thinking? and, will she ever be the bride? and, if you were her, wouldn't you be updating your profile on HotJobs about now?

Every deep discussion of the Semel resignation contains the same perplexed question. Various answers to the why not Sue? conundrum include "because she's not an outsider" and "I just don't know." Could it be because she doesn't have the coding geek background? Because she's a woman? Or is the board really (as many suggest, but I don't buy) just biding their time until ... something ... to name her CEO?

Come on. If Susan was going to be named CEO, now would be the time. Why put off any longer? If the board really was happy with her in the role, the job would be hers, effective immediately. Last time they reorganized the entire company to give her a new-and-improved title. This one, to me, says "you know honey, maybe you're just not CEO material." What do you think?

Finally, Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) has ditched its CEO Terry Semel, according to MarketWatch. And the new CEO is Jerry Yang, a co-founder of the company. Former CFO, Susan Decker was named president, positioning her for a chance to take over the top slot.

It is beyond me why Semel held onto his job for so long. He helped stabilize Yahoo after the dot-com crash but has stumbled from one incompetent quarter to the next for years. And he has taken home some truly outrageous pay -- a total of $452 million in salary, bonus and stock-option exercises since April 2001 [subscription] -- during which time Yahoo stock has risen four-fold.

However, in the last year the disconnect between Semel's pay and Yahoo's performance became too much to take. According to the New York Times, his total 2006 pay was $107.5 million during which time Yahoo's stock fell 35%. And directors concluded Yahoo was just not catching up fast enough with Google, Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) so Semel had to go.

Susan Decker had been positioned to take over the company as CEO. But Yahoo's board probably decided that she was not yet ready. However, she is considered to have the inside track during the CEO search to replace Semel. So Yang's appointment could be just a temporary move that will help stabilize the company until she is ready.

Or, with the stock up 8% to $29.62 in after-hours trading, he might just sell it. It would make a nice morsel for Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT).

Peter Cohan is president of Peter S. Cohan & Associates, a management consulting and venture capital firm. He also teaches management at Babson College and edits The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in the securities mentioned in this post.

[See our live blog of the web cast in which Terry Semel discusses his resignation here.]

How long can you perform so inexpertly at your job that all of Wall Street calls for your firing, and still keep hangin' on? Evidently Terry Semel reached the end of his mental rope as of June 17, 2007. Yahoo! Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) just announced Semel was resigning effective immediately. Yahoo! co-founder Jerry Yang will take over as CEO.

Interestingly, Semel won't be getting a separation agreement (read: no money), as he's resigning voluntarily. I wonder whose decision that really was?

A webcast discussing the resignation will be starting in five minutes, at 4:45 Eastern time. Melly Alazraki is live blogging the announcement.

Other BloggingStocks coverage:
Brian White: Even with Semel out, Yahoo! still can't catch Google
Georges Yared: Google is the reason Terry Semel just couldn't win
Peter Cohan: What took so long -- and, with YHOO up sharply since announcement, will Jerry Yang sell?
Gary Sattler: Was Terry Semel really that bad? Ummm, yes.
Melly Alazraki: Webcast uninspiring; I was hoping for new talent from the outside.
Julie Tilsner: Yahoo! disorganized; I'm glad I didn't end up as a Yahoo!
Jonathan Berr: Yahoo! needs fixing; it should avoid bidding for Dow Jones. And will Susan Decker now quit?
May 3, 2007: $40 million in 2006 too much for Semel
December 2007: Yahoo! reorganization annoints Decker; you call this a reorganization? Terry Semel should be fired.