Together, they capture the eternal tension in business between inspiration and perspiration, vision and data, strategy and execution.

Johnson, who got the job in June 2011 at the urging of activist Bill Ackman, came from Apple, where he helped build the company’s phenomenally successful retail arm. He fashioned himself as a charismatic leader, bent on radical change, determined to make “JCP” a cool brand. He shared the Steve Jobs phobia of surveys and focus groups – customers “don’t know what they want until you show it to them,” as Jobs famously said. He undertook an aggressive remake of the stores that alienated customers, caused sales to plummet by a third, and left 40,000 out of work. In the spring of 2013, Johnson was ousted by the board, which brought back the previous CEO Mike Ullman.

Ellison is a different sort of leader. He grew up as one of seven children that sang as a gospel group in clothes they bought from JC Penney, and he started as a security guard at Target for $4.35 an hour. He is a living embodiment of the adage that “retail is detail,” walking the store floors and repositioning merchandise to elicit more purchases from existing customers. He requires all his executives to wear JC Penney merchandise on store visits, to better identify with their customers. “We can convince ourselves that our core customers are a more affluent demographic,” he says. “But really, they are not.”

The jury is still out on whether Ellison will get the job done. But his journey, and the last decade’s journey at JC Penney, is a fascinating case study worth following.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump trounced his opponents in the Nevada caucuses, moving one more step closer to the Republican presidential nomination.

Have a great day.

Top News

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• Viacom to sell stake in Paramount

Viacom, in charge of the MTV and Nickelodeon channels, announced plans on Tuesday to sell a minority stake in Paramount Pictures – news that sent the company's shares higher. "I have decided to pursue discussions with a select group of potential investors," CEO Philippe Dauman said. There had been calls by a key activist investor to sell a stake of Paramount, so the plans Viacom announced heeds some investors' demands. The company's revenues have slumped over the last three years, so new ideas are likely to be welcomed. Fortune

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• UPS invests in same-day delivery startup

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Around the Water Cooler

• Nike co-founder makes big donation

Philip Knight, a co-founder of the iconic Nike brand, has donated $400 million to Stanford University to help fund a new graduate-level leadership program. The donation from Knight is the largest Stanford has ever received and matches the largest gift ever bestowed to a university. Hedge fund magnate John Paulson last year donated the same amount to Harvard's engineering school. Knight earned his MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business in 1962, two years before he helped found an athletic brand that would later amass a personal fortune worth some $25.7 billion. Fortune

• Uber's rich enemy in China

Uber's Travis Kalanick admitted last week the company is losing $1 billion a year in China, with most reports attributing the loss to tough competition with local ride-hailing rival, Didi Kuaidi. But as Fortune reports, many outlets failed to mention that the fierce competitor comes with deep pockets and big backers. And that could keep Uber deeply in the red in China for a while. Didi Kuaidi raised $3 billion in September and announced a tie-up with U.S. rival Lyft last year so that Lyft users could use Didi seamlessly in mainland China, and vice versa. Fortune

• Honda's plans for cars to be green

Honda Motor on Wednesday said it aimed for new-energy vehicles to account for two-thirds of its line-up by 2030, from around 5% now, as stringent global emissions regulations prompt automakers to make greener cars. The auto maker said its gas-battery hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery electric and fuel cell vehicles (FCV) would collectively outnumber its gas-only offerings in less than 15 years’ time. Top rival Toyota also recently set dramatic long-term emissions-related targets. But these goals are challenged by limited infrastructure such as charging stations, while currently low oil prices have supported demand for bigger, petrol-guzzling vehicles. Reuters