- After almost 16 years in the position
- Praise for Lawson
- Khozema Shipchandler taking over
- Lawson spoke at length and said 148 words
(exechange) — San Francisco, California, January 8, 2024 — Jeff Lawson, chief executive of Twilio, leaves his position. As announced by Twilio Inc. in a news release and in a regulatory filing published on Monday, January 8, 2024, Jeff Lawson leaves his post as chief executive officer at the software company, after almost 16 years in the role, effective immediately.
It is the end of an era.
Generally speaking, it raises questions when a CEO leaves his post abruptly.
Jeff Lawson’s duties as CEO will be taken over by Khozema Shipchandler, most recently President, Communications at Twilio Inc.
“Deliver increased value”
The management change is explained as follows. Jeff Epstein, incoming Board Chair, stated: “Khozema is a proven leader and the right person to lead Twilio in its next chapter. This appointment ensures that Twilio is best positioned to deliver increased value to all stakeholders going forward.”
Precise information regarding Jeff Lawson’s future plans was not immediately available.
“Stepping down/resigned”
Twilio said: “Shipchandler succeeds Jeff Lawson, Twilio’s co-founder, who is stepping down as CEO and as a member of the Twilio Board. In addition, Jeff Epstein, a member of the Twilio Board and Lead Independent Director since 2017, has been appointed as Chair of the Twilio Board.”
Twilio further said: “On January 7, 2024, Jeff Lawson resigned as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) and as a member of the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) and as Board Chair, in each case, effective January 8, 2024.”
“Did not result from any disagreement”
Twilio stated, regarding the change: “Mr. Lawson’s decision to resign from the Board did not result from any disagreement with the Company on any matter relating to the Company’s operations, policies or practices.”
Share price decline since January 2021
The announcement follows a decline in Twilio Inc.’s share price of 79% since January 2021.
In the position of CEO since 2008
Jeff Lawson became CEO of the Company in 2008.
Lawson is one of the Company’s founders and has served as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Company’s board of directors since April 2008 and as the Company’s Board Chair since November 2015.
From 2001 to 2008, Lawson served as founder and Chief Technology Officer of Nine Star, Inc., a multi-channel retailer of equipment and apparel to the action sports industry.
From 2004 to 2005, Lawson served as Technical Product Manager of Amazon.com. In 2000, Lawson served as Chief Technology Officer of StubHub, Inc. (“StubHub”), an online marketplace for live entertainment events.
Lawson holds a B.S. in Computer Science and Film/Video from the University of Michigan.
148 words by Jeff Lawson
In the release announcing his departure as CEO of Twilio Inc., Jeff Lawson received praise.
In announcing his departure, Jeff Lawson spoke at length and said 148 words.
“Khozema is a great leader”
Jeff Lawson stated: “Building Twilio over the past 15 years has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. We launched Twilio in 2008 with a to-do list written on the back of a pizza box and 15 years later, Twilio’s platform handles over 1.7 trillion interactions a year on behalf of more than 306,000 customers across the globe. I’m proud to have led the company from zero to over $4 billion in annualized revenue, and now generating a 19% free cash flow margin as of our last earnings. I leave Twilio in the hands of a capable and talented management team who have my full support and respect. Khozema is a great leader, and I am confident he will lead the company well. Thank you to every Twilio customer, employee and developer I’ve had the privilege of building with – I can’t wait to see what you build next.”
Push-out Score for Jeff Lawson’s move determined
The Push-out Score™ determined by exechange gauges the pressure surrounding Jeff Lawson’s move on a scale of 0 to 10.
Read the full story in the exechange report 3.2024 ($).