Carly Fiorina, the former chairwoman and chief executive officer of Hewlett-Packard, has joined the board of directors at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing as an independent member, the chip maker said Thursday.

The world’s largest contract chip maker has worked hard over the past few years to build a board of directors able to ensure its long-term stability and viability—largely in reaction to scandals at Enron and WorldCom that brought those companies down.

"Sound corporate governance is rooted in a strong Board of Directors and we believe [that with] Ms. Fiorina’s wealth of experience in leading world class companies, she will bring unique value to the board," TSMC Chairman Morris Chang said in a statement.

Fiorina led one of the largest mergers in technology industry history, the US$21 billion combination of HP and Compaq Computer, a deal that ultimately led to her dismissal from HP early last year after a six-year reign as chairwoman and chief executive officer (CEO).

Analysts have described the results of the merger as mixed for HP, despite Fiorina’s fight to make it work. Despite wringing savings out of streamlining operations, the merger never translated into the market dominance envisioned for the company. Only its printer group holds an industry-leading position, a title it already held before the merger.

Fiorina will join TSMC’s audit and compensation committees, increasing TSMC’s board to a total of 10, with four independent board members. The other independent board members are former British Telecommunications PLC CEO Peter Bonfield, Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Lester Thurow, and former Acer Group Chairman Stan Shih.

-Dan Nystedt, IDG News Service

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