--- title: "Friday Buzz: Twitter’s Complicated CEO Transition" id: "28908" type: "post" slug: "friday-buzz-twitters-complicated-ceo-transition" published_at: "2015-06-12T18:00:14+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T17:51:27+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2015/06/12/friday-buzz-twitters-complicated-ceo-transition/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2015/06/12/friday-buzz-twitters-complicated-ceo-transition.md" excerpt: "The departure of Twitter CEO Dick Costolo comes with a transition process that could raise bigger questions. Also: Some considerations for off-site meetings." taxonomy_category: - "Executive Leadership" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "C-suite" - "Executives" - "Leadership" - "transition" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "C-Level" - "Executive Team" - "For-Profit CEO / President / Owner / Partner" taxonomy_persona: - "Executive Leadership" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Friday Buzz: Twitter’s Complicated CEO Transition Twitter’s CEO transition process is hard to describe in just 140 characters. The big news in the world of Twitter came Thursday from the very top—[with longtime CEO Dick Costolo stepping down from his role (opens in a new tab)](http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/AMDA-2F526X/276316155x0x835061/73F87749-004E-4043-9144-AAC4E73E53FE/Press_Release_FINAL.pdf) [PDF]. https://twitter.com/TwitterIR/status/609089921492459520 But the real eyebrow-raiser is the transition process from Costolo to a new leader. [Costolo’s been replaced (for now) by interim CEO and board chairman Jack Dorsey (opens in a new tab)](http://techcrunch.com/2015/06/11/twitter-announces-ceo-dick-costolo-stepping-down-jack-dorsey-named-interim-ceo/#.5knwta:qeOO) , who helped found Twitter back in 2006. Problem is, Dorsey is already busy with his CEO role at another company, the payment processor Square. So that makes things complicated if—as many expect—the goal is to bring Dorsey back to Twitter as CEO. [Business Insider editor Henry Blodget notes (opens in a new tab)](http://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-ceo-search-2015-6) that both sides “have an easy, face-saving out” in case it doesn’t work. On the other hand, the process raises some big questions that could hurt the company’s momentum moving forward. “The trouble and risk with the interim plan is that it means the company’s purgatory period will continue,” Blodget writes. “For the past six months, Twitter and its employees have already had to deal with the distraction of reports and speculation that former CEO Dick Costolo was about to be canned. Now it will have to deal with questions about how long Jack Dorsey will be around.” But one positive from the process, [Fortune explains (opens in a new tab)](http://fortune.com/2015/06/11/twitter-ceo-dorsey-costolo/) , is that Costolo was open about wanting to make the transition on his own terms. “The scrutiny of the company would intensify if I remained CEO while the search process takes place,” he said in a conference call. Because Costolo quit, he won’t get a severance package. ### Infographic of the Day **Are in-office meetings not having quite the effect** with staff that you’d hoped? This infographic from [Noah’s Event Venue (opens in a new tab)](http://noahsbusiness.com/) , discussing the effectiveness of offsite meetings, might offer some useful food for thought: [http://associationsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/0612_noah.jpg](http://associationsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/0612_noah.jpg) ### Other Links of Note **Does your site search stink?** If so, your association might be shooing away users, [CMS Wire says (opens in a new tab)](http://www.cmswire.com/information-management/dont-let-your-site-search-suck/) . **Also on the Twitter front,** the company [has finally decided to get rid of the 140-character limit (opens in a new tab)](http://techcrunch.com/2015/06/11/twitter-gets-serious-about-messaging-will-remove-dm-character-limit/) on direct messages, making them a bit more useful. **If you’re a BlackBerry user,** this news might surprise you: The company is reportedly talking about [ditching its own operating system in favor of Android (opens in a new tab)](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/06/11/us-blackberry-google-android-idUSKBN0OR2ZM20150611) . Departing Twitter CEO Dick Costolo. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) [Ernie Smith](https://associationsnow.com/author/ernie-smith/) Ernie Smith is a former senior editor for Associations Now. [More articles by this author](https://associationsnow.com/author/ernie-smith/) Tags: [#C-suite](https://associationsnow.com/tag/c-suite/) [#Executives](https://associationsnow.com/tag/executives/) [#Leadership](https://associationsnow.com/tag/leadership/) [#transition](https://associationsnow.com/tag/transition/) **Stay Informed** [Subscribe to our free newsletter](https://associationsnow.com/newsletter/) , *Associations Now Daily News*, to find out what’s happening in the association world every business day. ## You Might Like - [ArticleBefore You Hire the Next Leader, Hit ResetSeptember 8, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/09/08/before-you-hire-the-next-leader-hit-reset/) - [ArticleWhat Successful CEO Transitions Look LikeJuly 25, 2025](https://associationsnow.com/2025/07/25/what-successful-ceo-transitions-look-like/) - [VideoSmarter Board Management for Associations: An OnBoard ShowcaseJuly 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/07/24/smarter-board-management-for-associations-an-onboard-showcase/) - [VideoAmerican Geophysical Union: Standing Up for Science: AGU’s Year of Action for Scientists and SocietySeptember 24, 2026](https://associationsnow.com/2026/09/24/american-geophysical-union-standing-up-for-science-agus-year-of-action-for-scientists-and-society/) ## Comments **Comments are for ASAE members.** [Learn more about comments on this site.](https://associationsnow.com/comments/) [Log in](https://associationsnow.com/login?redirect_to=https%3A%2F%2Fassociationsnow.com%2F2015%2F06%2F12%2Ffriday-buzz-twitters-complicated-ceo-transition%2F%23comments) to your member account or [join ASAE](https://my.asaecenter.org/select-a-membership-type/) !