Morse holds a bachelor's degree in finance and operations and strategic management from the Boston College Carroll School of Management.

Yahoo gave few details of the management change, except to confirm that Bartz had been removed by the company's board. Directors see "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," chairman Roy Boston said in the press release. "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 thanked Bartz "for her service to Yahoo! during a critical time of transition ... against a very challenging macro-economic backdrop." Morse was thanked "for accepting this important role," Bostock said. "We have great confidence in his abilities and in those of the other executives who have been named to the Executive Leadership Council."

Morse will also continue in his CFO role, and will serve on a Yahoo executive leadership council, which the struggling search company created to help him run the company.