Twitter proved itself to be the place people go for breaking news over the weekend, but it came at the company’s expense: several top executives at Twitter announced their departure from the company on Sunday via tweet.
Included in the departing group was senior vice president of product Kevin Weil, vice president of global media Katie Jacobs Stanton, senior vice president of engineering Alex Roetter, and vice president of human resources Brian Schipper.
After 7 incredible years, I'm moving on from Twitter. Next up: @elizabeth, @thirdweil, and some long trail runs. Also, GO TEAM! 💪❤
— Kevin Weil 🇺🇸 (@kevinweil) January 25, 2016
https://twitter.com/aroetter/status/691486956782358530
5½ years, 600,000+ miles, 20+ countries & many friends. Un grand merci, Twitter, for the adventure of a lifetime https://t.co/7xF7qDOToJ
— Katie Jacobs Stanton (@KatieS) January 25, 2016
Schipper was the lone leaving executive to not tweet about leaving the company, presumably because he works in HR and understands the policy of “never tweet.”
Jason Toff, the general manager of Twitter-owned video app Vine, also left the company on Sunday. He will return to Google, where he worked prior to Vine, to pursue virtual reality projects at the search giant.
Personal update! I'm joining Google to work on VR. So much exciting potential there.
— Jason Toff (@jasontoff) January 25, 2016
While the Sunday evening announcement of the split seems like an exodus, it appears likely that it is all part of the plan under CEO Jack Dorsey. The Twitter co-founder, who returned last year to retake control of the company, issued layoffs and made interim appointments as soon as he took over. The four higher-ups leaving is part of the CEO’s ongoing shakeup.
Dorsey took to Twitter as well on Sunday night to offer insight into the news and what’s next for the company. Twitter has offered no additional comment beyond Dorsey’s tweets.
Was really hoping to talk to Twitter employees about this later this week, but want to set the record straight now: pic.twitter.com/PcpRyTzOlW
— jack (@jack) January 25, 2016
I’m forever grateful to @aroetter, @katies, @skipschipper & @kevinweil for everything they’ve given to Twitter. They are absolutely amazing!
— jack (@jack) January 25, 2016
There have been conflicting reports as to how mutual the decision between Dorsey and the departing executives was, including claims that higher ups were pushed out the door. A tweet from Ellie Stanton, the daughter of former media head Katie Stanton, seemed to put to rest that idea, as she claimed the reports to be “complete bullshit.”
For any of you reading this, just a little heads up, it is complete bullshit. https://t.co/SUURzaXeeA via mashable
— Ellie Stanton (@twellie) January 24, 2016
According to the New York Times, the next few weeks will mark a significant overhaul in Twitter’s executive office. Two new board members are expected to be announced, including a “high-profile media personality.” A new chief marketing officer will also be appointed.
Twitter’s stock prices hit an all-time low last week, falling as low as $16.51 per share. The stock recovered some value during the week but took an immediate drop back down on Monday morning, spurred on by the sudden changes at the executive level.
H/T Quartz | Illustration by Jason Reed