Yahoo replaces chief over résumé storm Yahoo chief executive Scott Thompson has quit - 10 days after it was revealed that he did not have one of the academic qualifications claimed in his personal résumé. Mr Thompson's departure comes less than five months after he was hired to inject a new sense of urgency into the group as it struggles to compete with Facebook and Google in online advertising. The Yahoo chief executive became the centre of a sudden storm after Third Point checked up on his credentials and discovered that he only had a degree in accounting, not the joint degree in accounting and computer science that had been claimed. Pressure on the chief executive mounted after Yahoo had at first tried to brush off the inaccuracy in his résumé, calling it an "inadvertent error," before reversing course only hours later to say that its board was looking into the matter. Yahoo's statement announcing the departure made no mention of the cause, or whether Mr Thompson had resigned or been forced out. However, a person familiar with the situation called it a "mutual separation" as both sides came to believe he could not continue at the company. "They didn't terminate him, ultimately he resigned," this person said. It was unclear whether Mr Thompson will be paid severance. Ross Levinsohn, head of Yahoo's media businesses, had been appointed interim chief executive to replace him, the company said, making him the fourth person to hold the title in less than a year - and the fifth in little more than three years. Late last week, recruitment firm Heidrick & Struggles, which had conducted the search that led to Mr Thompson becoming head of eBay's PayPal unit in 2000, also raised questions about his handling of the Yahoo crisis. In a letter to his own employees, Kevin Kelly, CEO, called into question reports that Mr Thompson had blamed Heidrick for introducing the error into his résumé. "Based on information in our possession, this allegation is verifiably not true and we have notified Yahoo to that effect," he added. While Yahoo's directors had already been preparing to act over the weekend, the Heidrick revelation added to the board's concerns, according to a person familiar with the situation. Another person said that Mr Thompson's fate had already been decided at that point. The exaggerated claim in Mr Thompson's résumé was contained in official filings that Yahoo made with the Securities and Exchange Commission late last month, potentially making it a subject of concern for regulators. By naming Mr Levinsohn only as interim CEO on Sunday, Yahoo raised the possibility of a protracted period of uncertainty at the company as it seeks to find a permanent replacement and end a lengthening line of leadership mishaps.