Stephen MacMillan, ex-CEO of SYK, resigned because he wanted to date an employee and the BoD said no, according to the WSJ: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304791704577420681311173856.html At the time of the resignation in Feb 2012, SYK said it for “family reasons.” p.s. MacMillan is the author of one of my favorite soundbites about The Global Demographic Tailwind: #msg-38038167.