Jack Dorsey has announced his resignation as CEO of Twitter with a tweet that simply read “not sure anyone has heard but, I resigned from Twitter.”
The announcement, which took millions of Twitters users around the world by surprise, does not seem to surprise tech industry players, as it appears Dorsey finally buckled under the pressure of an investor onslaught regarding Twitter’s financial performance.
But Dorsey maintained that his departure was entirely his decision, “and a tough one”.
In an expanded version of his surprise Tweet, Dorsey explained he believes it is important Twitter stand on its own and be free of the influence of one of its co-founders.
Dorsey will however keep his position as on the Twitter board until his term expires in 2022.
Twitter has since named Chief Technical Officer (CTO), Parag Agrawal as Dorsey’s replacement, with the new CEO also becoming a board member.
Meanwhile, another change will see board member and president and COO of software company Salesforce, Bret Taylor becoming Twitter’s chair.
Turbulent times
Dorsey first became CEO in 2007, with co-founder Evan Williams appointed chair.
The pair switched roles in 2008 before Dorsey retook the CEO post in 2015 alongside duties as chief of fintech company, Square, from which a greater chunk of Dorsey’s wealth is said to come from.
Dorsey was dogged by criticism for leading the two companies, with activist investor Elliott Management pushing for his removal as Twitter chief in 2020.
The investment company reached an agreement with Twitter shortly after under which Dorsey was kept on and Elliott Management took a seat on the board.
Throughout 2021, Twitter introduced premium and subscription-based features in an effort to boost revenue and return to profit after recording a net loss of $1.2 billion in 2020.
