Automattic rebuilds board after failed CEO ouster
Original: Automattic has a new board after failed attempt to put CEO on leave
Why This Matters
Automattic's governance crisis highlights the risks of founder-controlled voting structures at major web infrastructure companies.
Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg has named a new board of directors weeks after the previous board voted to place him on paid leave. Mullenweg, who controls 84% of voting shares, retook control within 33 hours and removed the directors involved. The new board includes sci-fi author Hugh Howey and two co-founders of the defunct app IRL.
Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg has overhauled the company's board following a failed internal coup, announcing the new lineup to staff via Slack on Friday. The governance fight turned dramatic earlier this month when the previous board voted to place Mullenweg on paid leave — only for him to retake control just 33 hours later, removing or accepting the resignations of directors involved. Mullenweg, who controls 84% of Automattic's voting shares, used that leverage to reconstitute the board on his own terms.
The new board is an unconventional mix. Hugh Howey, author of the bestselling 'Silo' sci-fi series and a hiking companion of Mullenweg's from a 2018 Camino de Santiago trip, is included. So is Amy Chan, author of 'Breakup Bootcamp.' Henry Khatachryan and Krutal Desai, co-founders of the now-shuttered social app IRL, also join — a notable pick given IRL shut down after investigations found nearly its entire user base consisted of bots, and was later entangled in SoftBank securities fraud litigation.
Several new advisers were also named, including Curio Studio co-founder Jaime Waydo, June co-founder Matt Van Horn, and KISSmetrics co-founder Hiten Shah. In his message to staff, Mullenweg stated that 'for purposes of Delaware law, I am the CEO, President, Treasurer, and Secretary.' Automattic is the parent company of WordPress.com, Tumblr, and WooCommerce.