SiliconBeat

Speaking at Stanford University on Sunday night, Yahoo Chief Executive Carol Bartz said it has been a “distinct pleasure” to have Carl Icahn, a famous corporate raider turned shareholder activist, on her board.
Last year, Icahn led a proxy fight to oust former Yahoo chief executive Jerry Yang and replace other members of the board of directors after Yahoo rejected a $47.5 billion bid from Microsoft. Icahn later dropped his challenge in return for being given control of three seats on the 11-member board.
Speaking at the 15th annual Stanford Directors College Bartz, who replaced Yang in January, said she was “fortunate” not to have been at Yahoo during the proxy battle but added that it is “better” to have Icahn around and described him as a “smart guy.”
Bartz, who won respect for turning around a hostile board of directors while she was chief executive of Autodesk, said corporate boards need to have more members who are involved and willing to speak up. She also said boards need a diversity of ages and should be selected from different industries and positions — not just chief executive officers.