Highlights:
- Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down as Meta Platforms’ COO.
- Sheryl Sandberg joined Meta, then Facebook, 14 years ago.
- Sandberg announced her resignation in an official Facebook post.
Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Meta Platforms, announced her resignation after 14 years in the position. Sandberg, Meta’s second-most-important person after Mark Zuckerberg, announced her leave in an official Facebook post on Thursday. Sandberg has stated that she will quit her position in the fall but will remain on the board. Meta CEO Javier Olivan will be the next Chief Operating Officer, according to an official Facebook post.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg describes Sandberg’s resignation as the ‘end of an era.’ “After 14 years as COO of Meta, my good friend and partner Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down,” Zuckerberg announced in a Facebook post. Zuckerberg stated that he had no intention of replacing “Sheryl’s role in our (the) existing structure.”
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“I’m not sure that would be possible since she’s a superstar who defined the COO role in her own unique way. But even if it were possible, I think Meta has reached the point where it makes sense for our product and business groups to be more closely integrated, rather than having all the business and operations functions organized separately from our products,” he wrote on Facebook.
The next Meta COO will be Javier Olivan, though his role will be considerably different from Sandberg’s. “Javi will be our next Chief Operating Officer since he will now head our integrated ads and business products and contribute to our infrastructure, integrity, analytics, marketing, corporate development, and growth teams. However, this role will be distinct from what Sheryl has previously played. Javi will take on a more traditional COO position, focusing on internal and operational objectives, building on his strong track record of making our execution more efficient and rigorous. As part of this, Molly Cutler, our VP of Strategic Response, will join Javi’s team and report to Naomi Gleit,” Zuckerberg explained the new structure and how the company would work once Sandberg departs as COO of Meta later this year.
“I’m going to miss operating this firm with Sheryl,” Zuckerberg remarked. But I’m delighted she’ll stay on our board of directors so we can benefit from her expertise and experience even when she leaves her day-to-day managerial position in the coming months.”
Sandberg stated that she will devote more time to her foundation and philanthropic work. “But I know it will include focusing more on my foundation and philanthropic work, which is more important to me than ever given how critical this moment is for women,” she said in the official post. She will remain on the board, as stated previously.
“Over the next few months, Mark and I will transition my direct reports and I will leave the company this fall. I still believe as strongly as ever in our mission, and I am honoured that I will continue to serve on Meta’s board of directors,” Sandberg said on Facebook.
