Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg has restructured the company’s board just weeks after a failed attempt by previous directors to remove him. The new board, announced to staff on Friday, features an eclectic mix of members, including a best-selling science fiction author and two co-founders of the now-defunct social app IRL.
Background
This board change comes amid an internal governance struggle at Automattic, the parent company of WordPress.com, Tumblr, WooCommerce, and others. Earlier this month, the previous board voted to place Mullenweg on leave in an effort to oust him, but he regained control just 33 hours later, accepting resignations from the involved directors.
New Board Composition
Mullenweg has now informed Automattic employees about the board changes through the company’s announcements channel on Slack. Sources indicate that the new board includes:
- Jaime Waydo, co-founder of Curio Studio
- Matt Van Horn, co-founder of June
- Hiten Shah, co-founder of KISSmetrics
It is worth noting that IRL shut down after investigations revealed that nearly all of its user base consisted of bots. The co-founders, including CEO Abraham Shafi, later sued SoftBank and other investors after SoftBank had sued for securities fraud.
Mullenweg's Statement
In his announcement to staff, Mullenweg stated, “for purposes of Delaware law, I am the CEO, President, Treasurer, and Secretary,” and mentioned that the attempted firing had garnered “many amazing supporters.” He remarked, “We had the most interesting board meeting in a decade (since the Woo acquisition).”
