Lululemon's Board Did What 40 Years of Mountain Gorilla Data Never Recorded
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Lululemon's board did what 40 years of mountain gorilla data never recorded.
A male already in the group took over in 16 of 21 changes of leader. Outsiders took five, each after the leader died. Never while he lived.
Two insiders, CFO Meghan Frank and President André Maestrini, ran lululemon after Calvin McDonald stepped down in January. He stayed senior advisor through March 31. Comparable sales fell 9% on their watch. Then the board hired Nike's Heidi O'Neill, effective September 8.
In fiscal 2025, her last year at Nike, revenue fell 10% and her role was eliminated.
My read: she is resetting the team. On October 7 she created two roles and filled both from outside: product from Athleta, operations from Walmart Canada. Two inherited chiefs, Nikki Neuburger (brand) and Ted Dagnese (supply chain), depart November 6. Frank, passed over, will receive a retention award. Maestrini stays as President and Chief Commercial Officer.
Apple and ConocoPhillips both promoted insiders September 1: John Ternus was at Apple since 2001 and Andy O'Brien was at ConocoPhillips for 29 years.
At Apple, Tim Cook stays as executive chair with a $45 million equity target, 82% of Ternus's $55 million. While at ConocoPhillips, Ryan Lance stays as transitional executive chair, with no end date and a pay cut to $1.1 million. O'Brien presented the plan: a free-cash-flow breakeven falling from the mid-$40s a barrel WTI to the low $30s by 2029. His to deliver under his former boss.
Their first calls will test what survived. Ternus, November 2: gross margin inside Cook's 47-48% guide, and a full AI compute cost-recovery plan Cook never gave.
O'Brien, November 5: breakeven off the mid-$40s.
O'Neill, date not yet set: Q3 revenue inside the $2.290–2.320 billion guide she inherited, down 10% to 11%.
Which has the market mispriced: Ternus under Cook, O'Brien under Lance, or O'Neill with no predecessor in the building?
🔗 Source: Impact of Male Infanticide on the Social Structure of Mountain Gorillas
