Even if Kevin was to stay as TikTok CEO, he would have to leave his role as the COO of ByteDance. It’s totally understandable that he would want to leave given the reduced scope (no more head of a global company etc.). What seems suspicious however is why he would leave prior to an acquisition. As a CEO, that won’t reflect too good on his reputation... so there’s gotta be a tradeoff somewhere. Wait & see!
TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
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Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#12I'm confused on why he's leaving. Is the political scope of the role too much for him and/or is this not the role he intended to occupy?
What's your annual rate for being caught in the middle of a geopolitical superpower dispute?
A few million. But that number goes way up once I've banked a few million. This guy presumably has plenty.
Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#13I'm confused on why he's leaving. Is the political scope of the role too much for him and/or is this not the role he intended to occupy?
What's your annual rate for being caught in the middle of a geopolitical superpower dispute?
I'll stick it out as long as you 10x my networth every year
Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#14I'm confused on why he's leaving. Is the political scope of the role too much for him and/or is this not the role he intended to occupy?
I could be off but to me this read like whoever buys us probably won't want me heading the business so better I get out now
Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#15Even if Kevin was to stay as TikTok CEO, he would have to leave his role as the COO of ByteDance. It’s totally understandable that he would want to leave given the reduced scope (no more head of a global company etc.). What seems suspicious however is why he would leave prior to an acquisition. As a CEO, that won’t reflect too good on his reputation... so there’s gotta be a tradeoff somewhere. Wait & see!
He left Disney after being passed over for CEO. Although (assuming that Microsoft or a comparable company buys TikTok) he would likely stay on as its head, with potential to rise within should he do a good job, Mayer is one of the very few people who's already been in that exact spot (or higher; Disney might have a smaller market cap than Microsoft, but in every other way they are equals in their global reach and ambition), so to speak, so it's understandable that he wouldn't want to go through it again.
That said, surely his contract has provisions for a payout should his company gets acquired. Wouldn't leaving before any transaction close void that?
Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#16I'm confused on why he's leaving. Is the political scope of the role too much for him and/or is this not the role he intended to occupy?
I would personally be afraid of being declared persona non grata by other companies.
Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#17I'm confused on why he's leaving. Is the political scope of the role too much for him and/or is this not the role he intended to occupy?
He's only been there 3 months. I suspect there's a deeper story, but it's anyone's guess right now.
Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#18I'm confused on why he's leaving. Is the political scope of the role too much for him and/or is this not the role he intended to occupy?
The stated reason seems to be that the role is no longer badass enough:
> what it means for the global role I signed up for.
> I understand that the role that I signed up for—including running TikTok globally—will look very different as a result of the US
> We appreciate that the political dynamics of the last few months have significantly changed what the scope of Kevin’s role
Not alotta scope.
Re: TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer to leave the company
#19I'm confused on why he's leaving. Is the political scope of the role too much for him and/or is this not the role he intended to occupy?
What's your annual rate for being caught in the middle of a geopolitical superpower dispute?
I am highjacking your comment to express my confusion about this dispute. Not that it exists, but on what grounds it exists. Has TikTok done something that is materially different and worse from what, for example, Facebook has? Or is it only that they do similar things, but they originate from China?