Patricia Dunn steps down at HP

Hewlett-Packard Chairman Patricia Dunn, who launched an investigation into media leaks that resulted in a firestorm of controversy, has agreed to resign her post following a meeting of the company’s board of directors. The board has appointed CEO and President Mark Hurd to take over for Dunn, who will continue to serve as chairman through the company’s Jan. 18, 2007, scheduled meeting, the company announced early Tuesday.

This is hardly a surprise. It isn’t too often that something like this happens in a huge company, but it’s hard to say if it will hurt their image overall. In addition to her stepping down, another board member resigned. According to Dunn, he was a source of leaks earlier this year. The sad fact is that most times leaks like this will help a company. One thing is for sure, this current exposure sure isn’t helping anything.