"Management Concerns" Behind Jones' Leave of Absence

At a press conference today addressing the abrupt leave of absence for incoming CEO John Jones, additional details came to light. Prime among them was that outgoing CEO Bob Harlan apparently approached the Packers' Executive Committee about three weeks ago with concerns over Jones. The concerns, though, according to reports, stretch back several months.

While Jones' own comments on the situation hint that the leave of absence may be for health reasons, the Packers aren't commenting on that. As an employer, they likely can't state anything about that publicly. And if there are other concerns, they may not be able to say anything about that publicly as well, at least at this time.

It is a very curious situation. From what has been said to what hasn't been said, as well as the timing and the fact that Jones is Harlan's hand-picked successor who has been groomed to take over the helm upon Harlan's retirement, which was supposed to be in effect this coming week. As it stands, Harlan will remain in charge until the situation can be remedied one way or another. (Do you think it would just be possible to clone Harlan?)

You can read a fuller account of the goings on here.