Elon Musk has selected esteemed advertising executive, Linda Yaccarino to assume the day-to-day leadership of Twitter in an effort to turn around the fortunes of the platform, which he acquired for $44 billion last year.
Musk hinted at the hiring of Yaccarino recently, announcing in a tweet that he had chosen a woman to take over his position as the head of Twitter and its newly renamed parent company, X Corporation.
Yaccarino, known for her accomplishments in the advertising industry, recently resigned from NBCUniversal with immediate effect amid speculation that she would succeed Musk as the CEO of Twitter.
Following Musk’s controversial acquisition, Twitter has encountered difficulties in finding its stability. The takeover resulted in the termination of numerous employees and the return of far-right and controversial figures on the platform, causing its most lucrative advertisers to withdraw.
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The Interview with Musk
Yaccarino’s departure from the conglomerate that owns NBC, Universal, and Telemundo, where she has been employed since 2011, occurred a few weeks after she conducted an interview with Musk at a marketing conference held in Miami.
During the interview, Yaccarino asked Musk about the progress since the acquisition, to which he responded, “It’s going well… It’s entertaining… It’s a trainwreck sometimes.”
Although Yaccarino is widely regarded as one of the advertising industry’s most esteemed executives, she will face significant challenges in persuading major companies to return to the platform.
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Musk to oversee design and technology at Twitter
Musk declared in a tweet that he would continue overseeing the design and technology aspects of Twitter, while Yaccarino would primarily focus on managing the business operations and transforming Twitter into an all-encompassing application called X.
Musk’s association with the letter X dates back to 1999 when he played a role in the establishment of X.com, an online bank that was later acquired and transformed into PayPal.
Additionally, Musk has long expressed a desire to create an all-inclusive application similar to China’s WeChat, which combines features of Twitter-like social media, messaging, and mobile payments.
As stated on the company’s website, Yaccarino held the position of leading a team of 2,000 individuals at NBCUniversal, where she successfully revamped the advertising business to suit the demands of the 21st century.
Since late October, Musk has been the sole owner of Twitter and has garnered considerable controversy during his tenure as CEO. His actions have included the dismissal of a significant portion of the staff, the reinstatement of far-right figures on the platform, the suspension of journalists, and the introduction of fees for previously free services.
By hiring Yaccarino, Musk is finally fulfilling his promise to respect the outcome of a Twitter poll he conducted in December. In this unofficial survey, over 17 million accounts participated, with 57.5 percent of the votes indicating that Musk should step down.
The financial community on Wall Street had expressed frustration with Twitter’s ability to divert Musk’s attention from his other ventures. Consequently, the share prices of Tesla experienced an increase upon the announcement that Musk had found a CEO for Twitter.