Meta: Sheryl Sandberg announces departure from the board – 01/18/2024 – Tech

Sheryl Sandberg, former chief operating officer of Meta, announced that she will leave the board of directors of Facebook and Instagram in May, after 12 years in the role.

In a Facebook post, Sandberg announced his departure and thanked the company: “After I left my role as COO, I remained on the board to help ensure a successful transition.”

According to her, Meta’s business is “strong and well positioned for the future, so it feels like the right time for me to step aside,” she added.

Although she is not running for re-election to Meta’s board in May, Sandberg said she may remain as a consultant. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg commented on the executive’s post and thanked her for the “extraordinary contributions you’ve made to our company and community over the years.”

Sandberg stepped down as Meta’s chief operating officer in June 2022, after 14 years at the company, in a surprising exit that cost Zuckerberg one of his closest subordinates.

The 54-year-old was one of Facebook’s first executives, helping it grow from a revenueless startup into a digital advertising giant. She became one of the most important women in Silicon Valley and positioned herself as an advocate for women in the workplace, writing the feminist call Lean In.

At the same time, Sandberg was a polarizing figure due to his role in building Facebook’s ad empire and several controversies during his tenure, including comments downplaying the idea that he played a role in the events that led to the storming of the U.S. Capitol, on January 6, 2021, by a crowd of Donald Trump supporters.

His departure comes at a difficult time for the company, just after facing multiple scandals, including the Cambridge Analytica data privacy controversy and Russian disinformation campaigns surrounding the 2016 US election.

The share price had also fallen due to increasing competition and slowing growth. Zuckerberg changed the company’s name to Meta less than a year earlier as part of a billion-dollar shift to focus on the “metaverse,” a gamble that has since been widely criticized.

Sandberg, a committed Democrat, sparked speculation about a possible entry into politics when she left Meta. Since then, she has fought against abortion bans, including a $3 million contribution to the American Civil Liberties Union, and campaigned alongside Israeli officials against sexual violence in its war with Hamas. She has also dedicated time to philanthropy, including her leadership program called Lean In Girls.