Mark Murphy turns tables on hater who wants him to retire
Packers CEO Mark Murphy writes a monthly column on the team's website. In his latest item, Murphy turns the table on a fan who is counting the hours until Murphy is gone.
"I am emailing today to express my disappointment and dissatisfaction with the franchise and its direction during your tenure as CEO," Justin M. from Tucson writes. "I believe it is long overdue for you to retire and give control of the organization to someone else who is more properly prepared to take the team into the future. Your leadership has been inept. You do not deserve to lead such a storied franchise. Please disappear into retirement ether. Nobody likes you. You have never been a good executive. I wish you the worst in your twilight years."
Murphy surely gets plenty of emails like that. Anyone in a position like his who invites public feedback does. This time, Murphy opted to use it — and to respond.
"Thanks for sharing your opinion, Justin," Murphy writes. "I also appreciate the 11 other emails you've recently sent with similar suggestions. I get your point. You will be pleased to know that I am required to retire in July 2025 under our by-laws."
That's only one football season away. It means the Packers soon will be embarking on a search for a new CEO, to whom Justin M. and his ilk can promptly commence sending hate mail.
Although the Packers would at times benefit from having a solitary owner who can, when needed, fire someone on the spot, they benefit from the stability of a corporate structure. The person who runs the team is far more likely to be qualified to do so than someone who either made enough money in some other line of work to buy a really expensive toy, or got the team from someone's will.
The challenge for the Packers will be to find a capable CEO for a multi-billion-dollar business. Whoever they find will most likely be better than if the succession plan consisted of Murphy selling the team or picking one of his family members to take over. Which is exactly what would happen if Murphy were in charge of any of the other 31 franchises.
