You could win free Motley Fool gear by leaving a comment below. We're announcing 12 contests in 12 hours, so check back at Fool.com for more chances to win.
Last month, I sent an email to a select group of public companies. I had a simple request for them to answer three questions:
- What steps have you taken to navigate your business through the economic turmoil of the past 12 months?
- What are the top two or three metrics to which your business pays the closest attention?
- Now that the first decade of the new century is drawing to a close, we'd like to take a moment to reflect on what lies ahead. What excites you most about your business?
I thought these questions, a mix of review and preview, would be relevant to investors (and prospective investors). The answers I received ranged from thought-provoking to ho-hum. (Check out this exemplary response from Morningstar (NASDAQ:MORN).)
Today, I want to know the one question you would ask of a chief executive officer. The person with the best comment (as determined by a panel of Fool editors) will win free Motley Fool gear.
The contest rules are here, but otherwise, there are no ground rules. My questions were broad and company-generic; yours can be particular and company-specific. They can be earnest or serious -- but the answer would have to reveal something of value for investors. For instance, in Roger & Me style, you could ask ...
- ... Executives at Eastman Kodak (NYSE:EK) why they missed out on 2009's rally, and what they're doing about it.
- ... The embattled leader of Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS), Lloyd Blankfein, if he wishes his firm had remained a private partnership instead of going public.
- ... Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) Steve Jobs and Ford's (NYSE:F) Alan Mulally, very simply: How do they plan on keeping it up?
- ... Berkshire Hathaway's (NYSE:BRK-B) Warren Buffett: O ye Oracle, what do you see in store for 2010?
There's no limit on how many questions you can ask, although the winner will be selected for a single question, not a series of queries. The contest will be open until 8:00 p.m. EST on Thursday, Dec. 17, and again, we'll be mailing the winner a care package full of Fool gear.
The best comment posted in the below comments section (in fewer than 250 words) will win -- and I will also personally email the winning question to the company of your choice.
