Fiorina Resigns, Wayman New HP CEO

After months of speculation that Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina would either resign or be pushed out over disagreements on the future of HP, it was made official Wednesday morning. Fiorina's resignation took effect immediately, elevating Chief Financial Officer Robert Wayman to interim CEO.

According to HP officials, the resignation was over disagreements on how to run the company. HP board member Patricia Dunn will serve as chairman.

"The differences came down to Carly catalyzing the transformation of HP. She did that in remarkable fashion and executed the merger with Compaq in superior fashion. But looking forward, we think we'll (need a CEO with) hands-on execution," Dunn said in a conference call announcing the news.

"While I regret the board and I have differences about how to execute HP's strategy, I respect their decision," Fiorina said in a statement.

Fiorina joined HP as CEO in 1999 after a stint at Lucent Technologies. In 2002, she spearheaded a merger with rival Compaq Computer, promising that it would increase profits and gain market share for the company.

Instead, the company's stock languished and HP actually lost market share. Company sales were inconsistent, causing sharp sell-offs of the stock in recent years.