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Yahoo has been trailing Google in the search industry for several years now, and the last two CEO's have done little to assuage the situation. Yahoo used to be a leader in the industry (yep, back in the days when Tim Koogle was at the helm), but stock prices and investor confidence had taken dives since Google took charge of the market. That's why the new CEO, Carol Bartz, is probably Yahoo's last hope.

Carol Bartz, 60, is taking over the reins as CEO for Yahoo, and at a critical time as well -- Google is coming out with great new features (albeit perpetually in beta stage) that continually leave the competition in the dust. Investors hope her hard-line approach to handling things will turn things around for the beleaguered company.

Bartz's two predecessors didn't do too well at catching up with Google -- in fact, they didn't seem to be fit for the job at all. Former CEO, Terry Semel, was a great leader at Warner Brothers, but had no savvy in tech and computers. The next one, Yahoo co-founder Jerry Yang is a software guru, but has some well-known management issues -- sometimes arriving at meetings almost an hour late.

Bartz provides a stark contrast to the two. She definitely knows what she's doing when she's on top -- she's credited with multiplying her former company Autodesk's annual revenue by FIVE during the 14 years she's worked there. Autodesk produces specialist drawing and modeling programs for architects and engineers.

But what Bartz is more well-known for is her tongue, which is as sharp as her focus on making a big company work at its best. She's been known to unload the occasional four-letter word at meetings and conferences, and isn't shy about it. Asked at a recent conference whether company boards should be more offensive or defensive during these economic times, she replied without missing a beat: "I'm an offensive kind of person. Stop laughing."

Bartz has seen what Yahoo has become under Yang's leadership, and while the company has the necessary technical expertise, its management resembles a "Dilbert cartoon." Yahoo employees should expect some sweeping changes in the way they do things now that Bartz is in charge. I don't know if they're excited about the idea, but I sure am.