< Back to situations

Monitor this situation.

[SITUATION] · [ACTIVE] · [BUSINESS]

2 clusters · 12 sources · 3 days · First seen · Last updated

Automattic leadership dispute and CEO leave

Overview

The Automattic board of directors placed co-founder and CEO Matt Mullenweg on a paid leave of absence, appointing CFO Mark Davies as interim CEO. Mullenweg alleged that Davies conspired with certain board members to vote for his removal and claimed he was denied the opportunity to have the resolution reviewed by legal counsel. This leadership shift occurred amidst a lawsuit from WP Engine and reports of missing hardware during e-discovery processes.

Following a period of instability, Mullenweg has returned to his role as chairman and CEO. During the dispute, Mullenweg reportedly removed administrators within the company’s Slack workspace and communicated to employees that he was back ‘in control’. An Automattic spokesperson confirmed his reinstatement, stating he holds the position with the ‘full support of the board’.

Entities

Matt Mullenweg · WordPress · Mark Davies · Automattic · WP Engine

Timeline

  1. 1 day ago

    [BUSINESS] 9 sources
    Matt Mullenweg returns as Automattic CEO after board leave

    Matt Mullenweg has been reinstated as CEO of Automattic following a board decision to place him on leave and a period of internal leadership conflict.

  2. 4 days ago

    [BUSINESS] 5 sources
    Automattic board places CEO Matt Mullenweg on leave

    Automattic has placed WordPress co-founder Matt Mullenweg on a paid leave of absence, appointing CFO Mark Davies as interim CEO following allegations of conspiracy by Mullenweg.

Sources

apple.slashdot.org · blocktempo.com · blogspan.net · finanznachrichten.de · gazetedamga.com.tr · it-boltwise.de · moncloa.com · pulse2.com · sbctv.gr · searchenginejournal.com · techcrunch.com · teknoblog.com