• D: All Things Digital, Tuesday, February 24, 2009 11:30 AM

Kara Swisher has more on CEO Carol Bartz's plan to sweep house at Yahoo. "This is going to be a full-scale peanut butter recall," joked one of her sources, referring to the infamous "Peanut Butter Manifesto," which was sent to the company a few years ago by former exec Brad Garlinghouse. That memo exposed Yahoo's problems, saying the company's products were spread thin like peanut butter on toast. Part of the problem, the memo said, was that Yahoo suffered from a top-heavy management structure that made it slow-moving in making decisions.

Swisher says that Bartz is likely to impose a more top-down management style, which will lead to the departure of several top execs, along with the promotion of others. CTO Ari Balogh is definitely "in," Swisher says, and will be one of the point men on the issue of Yahoo Search, and whether to sell to Microsoft or not. Balogh could be elevated to head all of Yahoo's products, moving Ash Patel, EVP of Yahoo's Audience Product Division, under him, or he might leave altogether.

Other safe bets include Venkat Panchapakesan, EVP of the Audience Technology Group, General Counsel Michael Callahan, and U.S. EVP Hilary Schneider. However, "Schneider's purview might change a bit if U.S. advertising sales head Joanne Bradford-who now reports to her-is elevated to a higher position or if sales is taken out from under Schneider," Swisher says. Not so safe bets include Connected Life Division EVP Marco Boerries, CFO Blake Jorgensen and David Windley, who heads human resources. Swisher notes that Bartz also needs to hire a marketing and PR head, and has been eyeing John Vail, director of interactive marketing for Pepsi-Cola North America.

Read the whole story at D: All Things Digital »