If you're compiling a list of CEOs who deserve to be fired, the challenge is not in finding deserving candidates. It's in cutting down the list to the most deserving.

My list of endangered CEOs is based on several objective criteria. First, I tried to separate companies hurt by macroeconomic factors beyond their control from those whose fortunes were hurt by specific management decisions. Then I culled the list further to include companies with stock prices down by at least 30% for the year. 

A few companies, such as Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (GMCR), are on the bubble after reporting disappointing quarterly earnings that made Wall Street wonder whether the company's growth would slow. 

Inclusion on my list does not mean that Wall Street has abandoned all hope that the stock price will increase. These shares all have theoretical upsides that may or may not happen with the current CEO.

Here is the list of the most endangered CEOs:
 
Research In Motion (RIMM) has two CEOs sharing the title: Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis. Price decline this year: 75.01%. On the hotseat: RIM is proof that that when it comes to corporate management, two heads are not necessarily better than one. The Canadian company recently stunned investors when it announced that a new line of BlackBerry phones would be delayed until a more efficient microprocessor was available. Its earnings continue to be awful.

Sears Holdings (SHLD) CEO Lou D'Ambrosio. Price decline this year: 53.57%. On the hotseat: When D'Ambrosio was named CEO of the venerable retailer, Chairman Eddie Lampert called him "the right person to lead and transform Sears Holdings." Less than a year later, Sears continues its death spiral. The Illinois company Tuesday announced plans to shutter as many as 120 stores in the wake of awful holiday sales. D'Ambrosio may make a convenient fall guy, since Lampert, who has faced declining sales since 2005, isn't likely to fire himself.  Whatever hopes of a turnaround I saw have been dashed.

AOL (AOL) CEO Tim Armstrong. Price decline this year: 34.92%. On the hot seat: Armstrong needs to put up or shut up. Armstrong, a former Google (GOOG) executive, has gobbled up sites such as the Huffington Post and has launched more than 800 Patch local news sites.  The strategy has not paid off yet and some investors are losing patience with Armstrong.

Best Buy (BBY) CEO Brian Dunn. Price decline this year: 31.64%. On the hot seat: The world's largest consumer electronics firm recently made headlines when it announced it would not be able to fill some holiday orders. This is an epic screw-up that should cost Dunn his job. Plus, there is the company's dismal earnings.

--Jonathan Berr is a former AOL freelance writer.  He does not own shares of the listed stocks.