Two Twitter Leaders Are Leaving Company Following Musk Deal

SAN FRANCISCO — Twitter’s chief government fired two prime executives, froze most new hiring and stated he was slashing spending on Thursday, because the social media firm tries to alter its enterprise trajectory whereas grappling with a takeover from Elon Musk, the world’s richest man.

In a memo shared with staff and obtained by The New York Times, Parag Agrawal, Twitter’s chief government, stated the corporate was pausing most hiring and pulling again on discretionary spending, although it was not planning layoffs. The strikes stemmed partly from Twitter not hitting objectives in viewers and income development, Mr. Agrawal wrote.

Kayvon Beykpour, Twitter’s basic supervisor, and Bruce Falck, the final supervisor for income, are leaving, the memo stated. Mr. Beykpour is being changed by Jay Sullivan, the interim basic supervisor of shopper product, the memo stated.

“It’s critical to have the right leaders at the right time,” Mr. Agrawal stated within the memo. He added that Twitter had determined at the start of the pandemic in 2020 to speculate aggressively in development, however “as a company we did not hit intermediate milestones that enable confidence in these goals.”

Mr. Beykpour and Mr. Falck stated on Twitter that they'd been fired by Mr. Agrawal. Mr. Falck later appeared to delete his tweet.

Brian Poliakoff, a Twitter spokesman, confirmed the memo and Mr. Agrawal’s modifications. He declined to remark additional.

The modifications increase questions for Mr. Musk about his $44 billion deal to purchase Twitter. The billionaire, who has stated he doesn't care in regards to the economics of the corporate, is paying $54.20 a share for the agency. In a pitch to buyers, he has additionally stated he needs to quintuple Twitter’s income by 2028 and develop its customers to 931 million by then, up from 217 million on the finish of final 12 months.

But Twitter’s shares have been sinking, a part of a broader pullback in know-how shares, and hovered at $45.22 on Thursday. Mr. Agrawal’s strikes additionally sign that the corporate’s enterprise, which depends primarily on digital promoting, is troubled. Last month, Twitter reported quarterly income development and earnings that fell in need of what Wall Street had been anticipating.

“Looking into a crystal ball two weeks ago, the board made a great decision,” stated Brian Quinn, an affiliate professor at Boston College Law School specializing in company mergers, referring to Twitter’s board. “The idea the board could reasonably get to a $54 price on their own by their own making was debatable before they took the offer — but clearly now, it’s not going to happen anytime near term.”

Mr. Musk, who additionally runs the electrical carmaker Tesla and the rocket firm SpaceX, didn't instantly reply to a request for remark. He has stated he'll take Twitter personal and desires to enhance the product. He has additionally criticized a few of Twitter’s prime executives publicly, particularly for the best way that they've moderated speech on the service. The billionaire, who remains to be lining up some financing for the acquisition, is predicted to shut the deal for Twitter within the subsequent few months.

Mr. Musk may stroll away from the deal, however must pay a $1 billion breakup payment. And so long as his debt financing for the acquisition stays intact, Twitter may deliver Mr. Musk to court docket to drive him to pay for the deal.

Mr. Agrawal, who was appointed Twitter’s chief government final November, has made a sequence of modifications on the firm and terminated some longtime executives. That identical month, for example, the corporate’s head of communications departed and its head of individuals stated she would depart by the top of the 12 months. In December, Twitter’s head of engineering and head of design and analysis left.

While Mr. Agrawal makes an attempt to overtake the corporate, Twitter has been in an uproar over Mr. Musk’s takeover. At an organization assembly on the day the deal was introduced, Mr. Agrawal answered questions on how the deal got here to be, what would occur to staff’ compensation and jobs, and the way Mr. Musk may change Twitter.

“Some of you are concerned, some of you are excited, and some of you are waiting to see how this goes. I know this affects all of you personally,” he stated on the time. He later added, “Once the deal closes, we don’t know what direction this company will go in.”

In his memo on Thursday, Mr. Agrawal didn't point out Mr. Musk by identify however acknowledged the corporate was in the midst of an acquisition and was unclear when it could shut.

It’s unclear how lengthy Mr. Agrawal will likely be accountable for Twitter. Mr. Musk has floated the thought of turning into the corporate’s short-term chief government as soon as the deal is accomplished.

Last week at one other firm assembly, Mr. Sullivan, the newly elevated basic supervisor, advised Twitter staff to remain motivated and proceed working, regardless of the uncertainty brought on by Mr. Musk, based on audio of the assembly that was obtained by The Times.

“We may be private, we may be public, we may have an owner who wants to do something different,” Mr. Sullivan stated. “We don’t know what the future is going to hold, but what we’ll know is we left it all on the field for the people who rely on us everyday.”

Mr. Sullivan additionally gave a frank evaluation of Twitter’s weaknesses, saying that the corporate had failed to hold on to new customers and staff had handed the buck on fixing powerful issues. He stated machine studying, which is a form of synthetic intelligence, was essential to Twitter’s development. He additionally warned that Twitter’s content material moderation insurance policies may develop into extra versatile.

“Social media is in a crisis of confidence right now,” Mr. Sullivan stated.

Kate Conger and Lauren Hirsch contributed reporting.