Twitter CEO Dick Costolo Stepping Down, Jack Dorsey Named Interim CEO

You don’t have Dick to kick around any more — Dick Costolo as CEO of Twitter, that is. Fairly described as embattled over the past few months, Twitter announced that Costolo is stepping down, with Twitter cofounder and current chair Jack Dorsey to take over as interim CEO as of July 1.

Twitter tweeted the news today:

Our CEO, @dickc, will step down as CEO, and we’ll welcome @jack as Interim CEO on July 1 #TWTRannouncement: http://t.co/q8Ygg91jzc

— Twitter (@Twitter) June 11, 2015

The tweet references a “Twitter Initiates CEO Transition” press release (PDF). The release can also be found here. It explains that

• Costolo will remain a board member at Twitter
• Dorsey will remain CEO of Square even as he takes over as interim Twitter CEO
• A search for a permanent replacement CEO will take place

From the release, Costolo said:

I am tremendously proud of the Twitter team and all that the team has accomplished together during my six years with the Company. We have great leaders who work well together and a clear strategy that informs our objectives and priorities.

There is no one better than Jack Dorsey to lead Twitter during this transition. He has a profound understanding of the product and Twitter’s mission in the world as well as a great relationship with Twitter’s leadership team.

I am deeply appreciative of the confidence the Board, the management team and the employees have placed in me over the years, and I look forward to supporting Twitter however I can going forward

Costolo also welcomed Dorsey, appropriately enough, with a tweet:

https://twitter.com/dickc/status/609090180725678080

Also from the release, a statement from Dorsey:

“The future belongs to Twitter thanks in large part to Dick Costolo’s dedication and vision. Dick has put a world-­class team in place and created a great foundation from which Twitter can continue to change the world and grow. We have an exciting lineup of products and initiatives coming to market, and I look forward to continuing to execute our strategy while helping facilitate a smooth transition as the Board conducts its search.

I am grateful for the talented team at Square, which I will continue to lead. We have built a very strong company from top to bottom, and I am as committed as ever to its continued success.

Paul Stamatiou, a designer for Twitter Video, tweeted this picture of Costolo getting a standing ovation at Twitter’s San Francisco headquarters, when the news apparently was shared with employees there:

Standing ovation for @dickc. Thank you. pic.twitter.com/5V6lraFuHT

— Stammy (@Stammy) June 11, 2015

Costolo has come under increasing pressure over the past few months, as Twitter’s performance has disappointed Wall Street.

Twitter is hosting a conference call today at 2:15pm PT to answer questions about the transition, that we’ll live blog here on Marketing Land. Anyone can submit questions by tweeting to @TwitterIR or using the hashtag #TWTRannouncement. You can also listen to the webcast via this page.