Ex-Vodafone chief in race for Yahoo CEO job

SAN FRANCISCO, USA: Yahoo’s search for a new head is in the final stage and the board of directors of the Internet firm have approached Arun Sarin, former head of Vodafone, to take up the job of the company’s CEO, say reports.

Sarin, an Indian American, had recently retired as the group CEO of Vodafone.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo's directors are moving closer to a recommendation and have authorized checking references on a few key candidates.

Those close to Sarin said the former Vodafone CEO is weighing the option to succeed Jerry Yang in Yahoo. However, according to reports, he has not made up his mind and was considering alternative roles at other US companies.

Jerry Yang, the co-founder and CEO of Yahoo had announced recently that he was stepping down from the post.

His tenure as the CEO had witnessed declining stock price of the Internet giant and he had faced strong criticism for his failure to lead the company efficiently.

Yang’s resistance towards the $44 billion acquisition offer from Microsoft had also caused some embarrassment among the board, which ultimately resulted in his decision to quite the post of CEO.

As the Vodafone CEO, Sarin is credited with leading the company's expansion into emerging markets. He was a key player in the $11bn deal last year to buy a controlling stake in Hutchison Essar, India's fourth-largest mobile operator.

Though Sarin’s name is doing the round, Yahoo sources said it was "still relatively early in the process" and the company was contacting potential candidates and had not made any offers.

According to analysts a very tough task is awaiting the predecessor of Yang at Yahoo.