Lead, then go.

Leaving Twitter, Jack Dorsey joined the list of founders of American technology groups that have become digital giants who have given up running their companies to make way for new, often more experienced leaders.

From Bill Gates (Microsoft) to Jeff Bezos (Amazon) via Sergey Brin and Larry Page (Google), all these entrepreneurs let go of the reins of their company after having managed the day-to-day business for several years.

The case of Steve Jobs at Apple is different: suffering from pancreatic cancer, he left his post in August 2011, a few weeks before his death, choosing Tim Cook to succeed him.

Others have been fired by their board of directors after multiple controversies, such as Travis Kalanick (Uber) or Adam Neumann (WeWork).

The boredom of administrative management

“When a company grows, it transforms enormously and you go from a small company where you know everyone to a large group where you don't know anyone,” says independent analyst Rob Enderle. “You go from field work to mainly administrative and internal political tasks,” he continues, specifying that creative and entrepreneurial minds tend to lose motivation as their group grows and becomes institutionalized. .

Especially since these founders are often involved in other projects: Bill Gates has long devoted himself to the charity he created with his ex-wife, Jeff Bezos is very involved in his space exploration company Blue Origin, while Jack Dorsey exhibits a long-standing fascination with bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in general.

The abandonment of the post of CEO does not, however, necessarily mean a full divestment of the group: some ex-bosses, such as Larry Page and Sergey Brin or Jeff Bezos, continue, for example, to sit on the board of directors, in charge of major strategic directions.

Experience vs innovation

One of the justifications often invoked to explain the withdrawal is the need to leave the hand to more seasoned leaders, better equipped to deal with the daily lives of groups weighing tens, hundreds or even trillions of dollars. in stock exchange.

The profiles chosen to replace the founders go in this direction, most of the new bosses having spent long years climbing the corporate ladder, such as Satya Nadella at Microsoft, Sundar Pichai at Alphabet (Google's parent company), Andy Jassy at Amazon or Parag Agrawal at Twitter.

But placing managers, however competent they may be, is not without risk, because it can make the company lose its innovative character, says Rob Enderle.

"A founder will often act against the members of the board of directors, who have financial motives, because he wants to protect his company", explains the analyst.

The danger, he continues, is that the group "will fall into obsolescence as subsequent leaders focus on short-term financial gains rather than long-term strategic survival."

The Zuckerberg exception

Mark Zuckerberg, founder and boss of Facebook (renamed Meta in October), is an exception by hanging on to his position as CEO, which he has held continuously since 2004. While COO Sheryl Sandberg has acquired a role major in recent years, "Zuck" remains the face and voice of the number one social networks.

This seizure questions and arouses many criticisms, especially since Facebook has been going through one of the worst crises in its history for several weeks.

The influential journalist Kara Swisher believes that the time has come for Mark Zuckerberg to pass the hand, with a name and a face emblematic of the repeated controversies, which have always put user safety in the background.

But by unveiling his Metaverse project, Mark Zuckerberg implied: he does not intend to go anywhere.

With a stock up 200% over five years, it continues to have Wall Street backing.

Above all, he controls the majority of voting rights on the board of directors.

Clearly, he will only leave of his own free will.

  • Mark zuckerberg

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