 beach. Although Ambrose brought icy skepticism to the company's posi- tion on almost any subject, asking tougher questions than most re- porters would, by the time she faced the media, her steely conviction had wound itself tightly around the issue until it sprung free and un- coiled in a rat-a-tat-tat volley of punctuation-free argument. The issue this evening was John Walter's appointment, and she was not optimistic. The Wall Street Journal, she reported, would carry three stories, including one on the impact on Donnelly. The New York Times would carry three, all on Walter. The New York Post, always a wild card, would probably be the most negative, focusing on the de- cline in the company's stock price on the day of the announcement. Most of the third parties we had lined up for interviews had been called by at least one reporter. Following our recommendation, they had stressed Walter's transformational leadership qualities. The search firms had worked their contacts at the various news outlets, providing enough background information on the search process to demonstrate that it had been thorough and that the board of directors had been deeply engaged. In fact, two directors-Walter Elisha, chair of the board governance committee, and Tom Wyman, chair of the compensation committee-had met with Walter several times and reported their findings to the other board members. In summary, Ambrose felt that the coverage would be prominent, with a range of perspectives from critical to skeptical and wait and see. Every- one would play up the surprise of Walter's appointment. "Well, that positions me to exceed their expectations, doesn't it?" Complete the CEO Walter said. "Let's go around the table. What's your advice? If you were me, what would you do?" I don't remember if I went first, but I do remember what I said, both because of Walter's reaction and because it unfortunately proved prescient. "Don't underestimate the complexity of the company," I said. "It's big, but, worse, it's highly complex. Everything depends on