The day after former Yahoo, Inc. (NASDAQ: YHOO) CEO Terry Semel severed his ties with the company, Yahoo! gets an official bid from Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) for over $44 billion. Just this week, Yahoo!'s Jerry Yang gave a bleak outlook for the company and shares nosedived. Could Yahoo! possibly have any more news this week? Sheesh.

Let's stick to Semel. The former Warner Bros. star took Yahoo! under his wing back in 2002 and for all intents and purposes, guided the company from the bust days of the dot-com implosion to a business based on display advertising and paid services.

Too bad Google, Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) came along and soundly thrashed Yahoo! in every possible way, which lead to Semel's ouster in 2007 and what could be considered corporate theft with his preposterous exit package. Even Yahoo! co-founder Jerry Yang's return to the CEO spot can't stop this company from floundering, while Google continues to thrive.

So, it comes as no surprise that Semel, who did not leave his board of directors position when he stepped down (er, was pushed down) from the CEO spot, finally left his board seat yesterday and severed ties with Yahoo! If someone else hires Semel because of some alleged starpower, they'll be getting a CEO who didn't do much in his 5+ year tenure at the former largest web property on the planet. Perhaps Microsoft can hire him as an adviser to its proposed acquisition?

After yesterday's no-surprise announcement that Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) CEO Terry Semel would resign his post and take the role of non-executive chairman, I was confused as to why Semel even wants to stay with Yahoo!

Semel already has gotten a huge payday, so it looks like he's sticking around so the board can save face, which is disgusting. Yet again, executives are rewarded while shareholders get stiffed. I'm glad I don't own Yahoo or I would have Semel's head on a platter.

Still, you have to wonder what in the world is going on in Sunnyvale. Company co-founder Jerry Yang is stepping in as CEO (for some odd reason) instead of seasoned executive Susan Decker, who is taking over as president, thankfully.

Yahoo! will never regain its former glory.

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.]

Today, Yahoo! (NASDAQ: YHOO) will have its annual shareholders meeting and CEO Terry Semel's compensation will likely be an issue.

Yahoo!'s glory has been getting trounced on lately, even as the company apparently sees good results from its recent launch of Project Panama. Project Panama, the company's new advertising system, intended to compete with Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), is still not getting any kind of good press. Meanwhile, Google expands its leading position and the internet media darling keeps anything and everything Yahoo! out of the limelight. That is, until it comes to the compensation of Yahoo!'s CEO, Terry Semel. He's getting paid way too handsomely for what many consider lackluster performance. And, it's only going to get worse before it gets any better.

YHOO shares have languished around the $30 level for some time now, and things are just not falling Yahoo!'s way, especially when it comes to competing with Google and a newly-resurgent Microsoft as well. Add to that CEO Terry Semel's brash claims three years ago that Yahoo! would remain the internet's brightest star along with Semel's recent pay and it's not hard to see why the CEO is in the hot seat.

Will 2007 see the end of Semel as Yahoo!'s illustrious leader? In all estimations, it will. Yahoo! has lost its shine this year as Google has completely eclipsed it, and the company's "wandering" status -- even as it continues to make a decent pile of cash each quarter -- is not sitting well with shareholders who see Yahoo! as a laggard while other companies race past it. If Semel does go this year, there will be two responsible people: Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin.