Overcoming inertia: what would a new CEO do?

I read a dead tree interview recently with Richard Tedlow, the well regarded HBS historian who wrote a new book about Intel's Andy Grove.  He mentioned a critical event in the evolution of Intel and the microprocessor market in the USA.  In 1985, before grove was promoted to CEO, Intel was getting beaten in its core memory business.  The right answer was to get out of the memory business and focus on microprocessors, but this was difficult for Intel to see at the time due to the forces of inertia

"Andy proposed a thought experiment to his then boss, Intel CEO Gordon Moore.  'What would happen,' he asked, 'if the board kicked us out and brought in new management?'  Moore immediately deadpanned, 'They'd get us out of memories.'  Andy looked at him and said, 'why don't we walk through the door, come back, and do it ourselves.'

-Source: NewBusiness, Arthur Rock Center for Entrepreneurship, Spring 2007, Harvard Business School

It is a good lesson for those struggling to make tough choices.