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Xerox’s poor management performance is largely the result of a breakdown in communication among the company’s top managers. Upper management in the company failed to work as a cohesive unit with common goals; instead, management was divided into opposing groups of insiders and outsiders. Insiders were those individuals like Paul A. Allaire (former CEO and current chairman for the board of directors), who spent most of their careers working up the ranks within Xerox. G. Richard Thoman, on the other hand, was the outsider recruited as Allaire’s successor. Although Allaire and other members of the board felt that Thoman was the change agent needed to move the company forward, these Xerox insiders were hesitant to relinquish power and control to a newcomer. Even though Allaire was stepping down as CEO, he maintained a position of leadership in the company by serving as chairman of the board. Longtime Xerox director Nicholas J. Nicholas, Jr., explained that, “the thinking was, ‘we like what we see so far with Rick (Thoman), but we’d like you to be here, just in case.’” Allaire’s position as chairman was very detrimental to Thoman’s managerial effectiveness and reflected the lack of confidence that his collea