Topline
Two of Twitter’s top leaders are leaving the company, which also announced it will freeze most new hiring and potentially rescind current employment offers, according to a memo obtained by the New York Times and Bloomberg, a month after Twitter’s board agreed to be acquired by billionaire Elon Musk for $44 billion.
The logo for Twitter appears above a trading post.
Key Facts
Kavyon Beykpour, who oversees Twitter’s consumer division, and Bruce Falck, Twitter’s general manager for revenue, will both depart the company, according to the memo.
In a tweet, Beykpour confirmed he had left Twitter, saying it was not his decision and adding Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal told him he wanted to “take the team in a different direction,” while Falck wrote in a now-deleted tweet Agrawal fired him.
Agrawal announced that Jay Sullivan, who served as Twitter’s vice president of consumer product, would replace Beykpour, according to the Times.
In the memo, Agrawal told staff it was “critical to have the right leaders at the right time,” and said Sullivan’s “ability to inspire, move quickly and drive change is what Twitter needs now,” the Times reported.
The memo also said the company will freeze most hiring and cut other costs such as travel, consulting and marketing, Bloomberg reported.
The war in Ukraine as well as supply chain disruptions have hurt Twitter’s business, Agrawal said in the memo, according to Bloomberg.
Twitter did not respond to a request for comment from Forbes.
Key Background
The changes come amid a period of limbo for the company after Musk made a $44 billion offer to acquire the social media network last month. The billionaire is currently seeking to solidify his funding. Twitter may make some exceptions to its new hiring freeze for important business roles and is not considering any company-wide layoffs, Agrawal wrote in the memo, according to Bloomberg. The company was forced to make the cuts partially because it failed to meet audience and revenue growth goals, according to the reports. Musk has pledged to make big changes to the social media site if his bid is completed, including by reducing the company’s reliance on ad revenue and increasing Twitter’s payments business, according to a pitch desk he presented to investors obtained by the Times. Musk in recent weeks has taken aim at some Twitter executives through posts on the platform, including the social media company’s top lawyer, Vijaya Gadde. He also said this week he would lift Twitter’s permanent ban on former President Donald Trump, a move he called “flat-out stupid” and “morally bad.”
Big Number
931 million. That’s how many users Musk has said he hopes Twitter will have by 2028, more than four times the 217 million users it had at the end of 2021, the Times reported last week. He also pledged to quintuple the company’s revenue in that time.
Further Reading
Two Twitter leaders are leaving after Musk’s deal to buy the company. (New York Times)
Twitter to Freeze Hiring, Rescind Offers Ahead of Musk Deal (Bloomberg)
Inside Elon Musk’s Big Plans for Twitter (New York Times)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/madelinehalpert/2022/05/12/two-twitter-leaders-out-amid-sale-to-musk/