

JCPenney and CEO Ron Johnson still haven't come clean with the reason for Francis' abrupt departure, which is leading to much speculation.

Here's Deutsche Bank analyst Charles Grom's take on what's happening at JCPenney's Plano headquarters:

"We're afraid the environment in Plano has become "Ron's way or the highway," says the Deutsche Bank note, "which is never a good culture for a company trying to find itself.


Remember, the company's previous CFO Michael Dastugue left the company recently as well. Dastugue's case is slightly different from Francis, though. He was the last surviving member of the previous regime's c-suite, while Francis was handpicked by Johnson.
