"François Barrault, who has been chief executive of Global Services [of BT] since April 2007, has resigned with immediate effect - although he is expected to receive a year's pay." (source )

Isn't it nice for him that he can quit without any notice period yet get paid for another twelve months when he has reduced the value of BT to below that at which it floated in 1984. Nice for him maybe, but not for the many thousands of shareholders (including my mother, as it happens) who have lost out by mismanagement at the company resulting in today's profits warning. In any other 'normal' job where you had so dismally failed at your tasks you'd either be fired or someone would micro-manage you while you corrected the position; you certainly wouldn't be able to walk away with an effective bonus of a year's pay.

No wonder people complain that CEOs of major corporations do not live in the 'real world'.