We studied this time in the PC industry in business school - fascinating case studies, btw - and Fiorina's HP figured prominently, albeit not exactly in flattering fashion for her. It's a messy situation - her critics almost all get it wrong but she does defend a strategy that is, from my experience, universally derided by economist/biz school folks. That's somewhat troubling, as I distrust people that cannot admit a mistake. I also cringe every time she says that she doubled revenue - she knows darn well that focusing on revenue and not profit is a good path to unemployment. But she can't talk about profitability so we get somewhat evasive politician-speak.
What her critics get wrong is the focus on the layoffs and manufacturing offshoring in the wake of the Compaq acquisition but neither were her fault. That would have happened regardless - the personal computer market was rapidly becoming commoditized (thanks to Dell). Critics also get caught up in the cliquish and somewhat abrasive nature of her leadership team but there is a chicken/egg dynamic there, as HP's old guard were well entrenched and extremely cliquish and she was on the outside. If her team of interlopers circked the wagons, it was probably with cause. Although they did not hit the numbers Carly promised when she sold the BOD on the acquisition, the company actually executed the Compaq acquisition pretty well.
All that said, it doesn't matter how well you execute a bad strategy. She really had a choice between two acquisitions - Compaq, which would mean doubling down on the PC market and going head to head with Dell in a race to be the low cost provider, or Price-Waterhouse's consulting division, which would have taken HP into the 'world of Big Five' business consulting. Both negotiations went well but HP doubled down on the commodity hardware business, IBM swooped in and picked up PWC Consulting and the rest, as they say, is history. IBM was rejuvenated while HP floundered. A CEO's job is to get the big calls right, manage the shareholders and push her team on execution. Carly's time at HP illustrated real talent at the latter but perhaps not the former. At least, that's what I remember of the abbreviated business school take on it. Good VP material, IMHO.