Washington: It is more or less certain that Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal will have to go once the USD 44 billion sale of the social media platform is complete with Elon Musk. Sources have been quoted as saying by ‘Reuters’ that Elon Musk has lined up a new chief executive for Twitter who will replace Parag Agrawal. Musk had told Twitter’s chairman Bret Taylor last month that he does not have confidence in the San Francisco-based company’s management.
Agrawal was named Twitter’s CEO in November last year. He will continue in the position till the sale of the company to Musk is completed. The source who told ‘Reuters’ about Musk’s plans declined to reveal the identity of the replacement.
Research firm ‘Equilar’ has said that Agrawal will receive approximately USD 42 million if his services are terminated within 12 months of the contract.
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Amid intense speculation about what’s in store for him following the hostile takeover by the ‘Tesla’ and ‘SpaceX’ boss, Agrawal has appeared confident in his future at the company. He, however, sought to quell employee anger Friday during a company-wide meeting where employees demanded answers to how managers planned to handle an anticipated mass exodus prompted by Musk.
The meeting came after Musk repeatedly criticized Twitter’s content moderation practices and a top executive responsible for setting speech and safety policies.
Musk has pitched lenders on slashing board and executive salaries but exact cost cuts remain unclear, according to sources familiar with the matter. One source told ‘Reuters’ that Musk would not make decisions on job cuts until he assumes ownership of Twitter.
“I’m tired of hearing about shareholder value and fiduciary duty. What are your honest thoughts about the very high likelihood that many employees will not have jobs after the deal closes?” one Twitter employee asked Agrawal, in a question read aloud during the meeting. Agrawal answered that Twitter has always cared about its employees and would continue to do so. “I believe the future Twitter organisation will continue to care about its impact on the world and its customers,” Reuters quoted Agrawal as saying.
During the meeting, Agrawal urged staff to expect change in the future under new leadership. He acknowledged that Twitter could have performed better over the years. “Yes, we could have done things differently and better. I could have done things differently. I think about that a lot,” he said.