Sheryl Sandberg is stepping down as chief working officer of Fb-parent Meta, the corporate confirmed on Wednesday.
In a put up on Fb, Sandberg didn't disclose the rationale for her departure from the corporate, which is able to happen within the fall. Sandberg stated she deliberate to deal with her philanthropic work going ahead. She has labored for the corporate for 14 years.
"The controversy round social media has modified past recognition since these early days. To say it hasn't all the time been straightforward is an understatement," Sandberg wrote.
"However it needs to be arduous. The merchandise we make have a huge effect, so we've got the accountability to construct them in a approach that protects privateness and retains folks secure."
Sandberg will proceed to serve on the corporate's board of administrators, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated in a separate Fb put up.
Javier Olivan, the corporate's Chief Development Officer, will change into its subsequent COO, however his position can be "totally different from what Sheryl has completed" and "a extra conventional COO position," Zuckerberg added.
"I feel Meta has reached the purpose the place it is smart for our product and enterprise teams to be extra intently built-in, fairly than having all of the enterprise and operations features organised individually from our merchandise," he stated.
Finish of an period after a protracted partnership
Sandberg was already a high-profile determine within the tech trade when she joined Fb, having been Google's vp of world on-line gross sales and operations. Previous to Google, she had held senior roles on the World Financial institution and the Treasury Division beneath President Invoice Clinton. In these early years at Fb, she was also known as the grownup supervision for an organization run by a really younger founder.
"When Sheryl joined me in 2008, I used to be solely 23 years previous and I barely knew something about working an organization," Zuckerberg stated in his put up. "We would constructed an ideal product - the Fb web site - however we did not but have a worthwhile enterprise and we have been struggling to transition from a small startup to an actual organisation."
In partnership with Zuckerberg, Sandberg helped develop Fb's income from roughly $150 million in 2007 to greater than $3.7 billion in 2011, the 12 months earlier than it went public. She additionally gained new prominence as one of the vital influential ladies in tech.
That popularity was burnished by her work launching the 'Lean In' motion, providing a plan for the way ladies can succeed and obtain their targets.
"Sheryl architected our adverts enterprise, employed nice folks, solid our administration tradition, and taught me tips on how to run an organization. She created alternatives for thousands and thousands of individuals around the globe, and he or she deserves the credit score for a lot of what Meta is as we speak," Zuckerberg wrote.
However Sandberg additionally presided over Fb because it shifted from being one in all Silicon Valley's most enjoyable new ventures to being a scandal-prone organisation, accused of every thing from undermining democracy to abetting genocide. Together with Zuckerberg, Sandberg confronted rising challenges from policymakers and the general public alike on misinformation, allegations of political bias, and looming authorities regulation - forcing her to reply questions she could not have foreseen when she first agreed to affix the corporate.
To assist handle the general public coverage a part of Fb's enterprise, the corporate employed Nick Clegg as head of world affairs in 2018. Whereas the previous UK deputy prime minister reported to Sandberg, it additionally meant relieving Sandberg of a portion of her portfolio and lowering her profile - which, in line with a 2021 report by the New York Instances, partly highlighted a rift between Sandberg and Zuckerberg that had emerged through the Trump administration and solely widened over time. (Fb disputed the Instances' characterisation of their relationship.)
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Through the years, there have been rumors that Sandberg would depart. In 2018, Zuckerberg stated Sandberg wasn't going anyplace and famous that he hoped "we work collectively for many years extra to come back."
In his put up Wednesday, Zuckerberg stated: "It is uncommon for a enterprise partnership like ours to final so lengthy. I feel ours did as a result of Sheryl is such an incredible particular person, chief, associate, and pal."