Digital media company Yahoo! has announced some sweeping changes to its leadership structure, with the Board of Directors (BoD) appointing Timothy Morse  as interim chief executive officer. Morse, who will also continue in his current role as chief financial officer, will assume his new role effective immediately, in place of the ousted Carol Bartz, who has been removed by the BoD from her role as CEO.

The tech giant's BoD also named key senior Yahoo! executives to a newly formed executive leadership council, which has been tasked with supporting Morse in managing Yahoo’s day-to-day operations until a permanent chief executive is appointed.

Roy Bostock, chairman of the Yahoo! Board, said: “The Board sees enormous growth opportunities on which Yahoo! can capitalize, and our primary objective is to leverage the company’s leadership and current business assets and platforms to execute against these opportunities.”

“We have talented teams and tremendous resources behind them and intend to return the company to a path of robust growth and industry-leading innovation. We are committed to exploring and evaluating possibilities and opportunities that will put Yahoo! on a trajectory for growth and innovation and deliver value to shareholders.”

Bostock added: “On behalf of the entire Board, I want to thank Carol for her service to Yahoo! during a critical time of transition in the company’s history, and against a very challenging macro-economic backdrop. I would also like to express the Board’s appreciation to Tim and thank him for accepting this important role. We have great confidence in his abilities and in those of the other executives who have been named to the executive leadership council.”

Despite Bostock’s words, Bartz’s departure wasn’t the smoothest though, as she reportedly sent a short email to all the company’s employees, entitled “Goodbye”. In it she stated the following: “I am very sad to tell you that I’ve just been fired over the phone by Yahoo’s Chairman of the Board. It has been my pleasure to work with all of you and I wish you only the best going forward.”

Other members (besides Morse) of the executive leadership council include Yahoo!’s co-founders David Filo and Jerry Yang, who will provide counsel to the new interim CEO as well as the executive leadership council.

“It is an honor to be selected for this role and lead the company with this world-class team of executives,” stated Tim Morse, interim CEO. “I look forward to working with the executive leadership council and the talented employees of Yahoo!, and to partnering with the Board to invest in the organization and continue to drive its ongoing growth plans.”

Yahoo!’s BoD have begun their search for a new permanent CEO for the company.