Out with the Old (but Really Great Business Stories), in with the New

Patch Woes

The Story Behind Why AOL CEO Tim Armstrong Fired an Employee in Front Of 1,000 Coworkers

Business Insider

For a few days last August, it was one of the most talked-about business stories in America: Tim Armstrong, the CEO of AOL, fired someone abruptly during a meeting. A recording of the incident went viral. What made the typically affable Armstrong snap? In this massive piece, Nicholas Carlson analyzes Armstrong’s rise from his days as the owner of a strawberry business, uncovering a leadership trajectory that culminated in a proxy war with an activist investor and a final realization that his baby — local-news and listings provider Patch — needed to be trimmed, or else.