Mark Hurd

Mark Hurd
Mark Hurd
Born	Mark Vincent Hurd; 1 January 1957 (age 69); New York City, U.S.
Died	18 October 2019 (aged 62)
Occupation	Technology executive
Years active	1980–2019
Known for	CEO of Oracle Corporation; CEO, president, and chairman of Hewlett-Packard

Mark Vincent Hurd (January 1, 1957 – October 18, 2019) was a prominent American executive in the technology sector, best known for his role as CEO of Oracle Corporation. Prior to this, he held the positions of chairman, CEO, and president at Hewlett-Packard until his resignation in 2010. Additionally, Hurd served on the boards of Globality and News Corporation until 2010 and was an active member of the Technology CEO Council.

Early life and education

Hurd was born in New York City to Teresa A. (Fanoni), a debutante, and Ralph Steiner Hurd, who worked in finance. He completed his secondary education at The Browning School in 1974. Later, he obtained a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Baylor University in 1979, attending on a tennis scholarship and affiliating with Phi Delta Theta fraternity.

NCR (1980–2005)

Hurd dedicated 25 years to NCR Corporation, culminating in his appointment as CEO and president for two years. He advanced to president in 2001 and took on the role of COO in 2002. Beginning his career as an entry-level salesman in 1980, he progressed through various leadership roles encompassing general management, operations, sales, and marketing. His responsibilities included heading the Teradata data warehousing division for three years.

Hewlett-Packard (2005–2010)

Following the resignation of chairman and CEO Carly Fiorina in January 2005, Hurd was named HP’s permanent CEO and president. Although initially not serving as chairman, he succeeded Patricia C. Dunn as board chairman in September 2006 amid the pretexting scandal.

During Hurd’s leadership, HP claimed the top position in laptop sales by 2006 and led desktop sales by 2007. By 2008, the company secured a market share of 46% in inkjet printers and 50.5% in laser printers. Despite anticipating a possible 5% decline in sales during the 2009 recession, Hurd projected profit growth close to 6%. Under his management, HP met Wall Street’s expectations in 21 out of 22 quarters, sustained profit increases for 22 consecutive quarters, boosted revenue by 63%, and saw its stock price double.

Hurd effectively accomplished the integration of Hewlett-Packard with Compaq—a challenge that had eluded his predecessor—earning praise from The New York Times as a significant corporate turnaround marked by revenue growth and a 130% rise in stock value.

Known for his rigorous cost-cutting measures, Hurd reduced HP’s workforce by roughly 10% soon after becoming CEO and significantly optimized IT operations. Amid the economic downturn in 2009, he implemented temporary salary reductions for employees while accepting a cut to his base pay balanced by an increased bonus. His emphasis on fiscal discipline, cost efficiency, dominance in the PC market, and strategic acquisitions such as EDS and 3Com contributed to enhanced profitability and shareholder value. However, some critics perceived these moves as empire-building initiated through the Compaq merger.

In acknowledgment of his influence, Fortune Magazine named Hurd among the 25 most powerful business leaders in 2007; The San Francisco Chronicle honored him as CEO of the year in 2008; and Forbes included him among top CEOs in 2009.

Hurd’s total compensation amounted to $39.95 million in 2008—the highest CEO bonus that year—and $24.2 million in 2009.

On August 6, 2010, he resigned from all roles at HP following an investigation that uncovered inaccuracies in expense reports connected to allegations made by former contractor Jodie Fisher. While cleared of sexual harassment charges, the probe resulted in his departure. Industry analysts criticized HP’s board decision as flawed and driven by concerns over adverse publicity; Fisher later expressed remorse regarding how events unfolded.

Oracle Corporation (2010–2019)

On September 6, 2010, Mark Hurd was appointed president of Oracle Corporation alongside Safra A. Catz, succeeding former president Charles Phillips. Concurrently, he joined Oracle's board of directors through the nomination of then-CEO Larry Ellison. Following his transition from HP, Hurd faced a lawsuit alleging violations of confidentiality agreements; this dispute was resolved within two weeks, with Hurd relinquishing approximately half of his HP earnings as part of the settlement.

In 2013, Hurd undertook a significant overhaul of Oracle’s sales organization by modifying compensation structures to encourage hardware sales growth, expanding the sales team by 4,000 employees, and decreasing the number of accounts assigned per salesperson. Although this restructuring initially encountered opposition and some attrition, its objective was to stimulate revenue increases. Additionally, he initiated the “Class Of” program to hire and train thousands of recent college graduates as sales representatives specializing in cloud services, which led to establishing a new campus in Austin, Texas. By 2015, this program was recruiting around 1,300 students annually.

On September 18, 2014, Ellison resigned as CEO and designated Hurd and Catz as co-CEOs. Hurd assumed responsibility for sales, service, and marketing functions, while Catz managed operations, legal affairs, and finance.

During Hurd’s tenure, Oracle intensified its transition toward cloud computing and updated its traditional software offerings to better compete with emerging cloud-based companies. In 2016, Oracle’s cloud segment experienced an 82% increase year-over-year, supported by a $5.1 billion investment in research and development focused on cloud technologies. That same year, Oracle expanded its cloud portfolio through acquisitions including SaaS ERP provider NetSuite, Textura (cloud services for engineering and construction), LogFire (cloud warehouse management solutions), and Opower (cloud services for utilities), reinforcing its commitment to cloud strategy.

Personal life

Mark Hurd married Elizabeth A. Butler on August 23, 1980; the couple divorced in October 1987. In 1990, he wed Paula Kalupa, an executive at NCR. Together they had two daughters named Kathryn and Kelly.

In September 2019, Hurd announced a health-related leave of absence with co-CEO Safra Catz and Oracle founder Larry Ellison overseeing company operations during his absence. He passed away on October 18, 2019, reportedly due to cancer.

Bibliography

The Value Factor: How Global Leaders Use Information for Growth and Competitive Advantage by Mark Hurd and Lars Nyberg, Bloomberg Press, 2004,
Fall 2003 Baylor Business Review "Enterprise Decision-Making" by Mark Hurd

External links