Automattic’s board forces CEO Matt Mullenweg into leave of absence
Automattic's board of directors has placed founder and CEO Matt Mullenweg on a mandatory paid leave of absence against his wishes. CFO Mark Davies has been appointed as interim CEO, though Mullenweg remains on the board.
Why it matters
This represents a significant leadership shakeup at the company behind WordPress, a platform that powers a large portion of the internet, raising questions about the future governance of the open-source ecosystem.
Matt Mullenweg, the founder and CEO of Automattic, best known as the parent company of WordPress.com, has been put on a leave of absence by his board against his will, according to a Slack message seen by TechCrunch.
Earlier Wednesday, Mullenweg posted in a Slack channel visible to all employees that the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Mark Davies, had “conspired” with other board members Ann Dunwoody, Toni Schneider, and Sue Decker to vote to put Mullenweg on a paid leave of absence.
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