Image Credit/Wikipedia
We earlier reported about the dismal performance in this quarter and in recent quarters Now in an attempt to correct the situation, Groupon has announced that it has fired its CEO Andrew Mason from the company. This has happened after poor stock performance of Groupon for a long period of time which led to questions being asked about the financial and performance health of Groupon. Eric Lefkofsky will replace Adnrew Mason.
Groupon issued a detailed memo for the staff intimating them about the decision that Mason had been asked to step down as CEO “after more than five years of super-human service to Groupon.” The memo also goes on to explain how Groupon is a different business than at the time when it was started.
Mason wrote a note describing his departure from Groupon in a memorable way. Here is the note he sent to Groupon employees:
After four and a half intense and wonderful years as CEO of Groupon, I’ve decided that I’d like to spend more time with my family. Just kidding – I was fired today. If you’re wondering why… you haven’t been paying attention.
Given below is the full memo published on The Wall Street Journal website:
Dear Groupon,
After more than five years of super-human service to Groupon, Andrew has been asked to step down.
Andrew’s achievements during his tenure are virtually unmatched in Internet history. Not only did he help invent the daily deals space, but he also created one of the fastest growing companies in history. But for all of us on the Board, maybe his greatest achievement is that in the face of extreme pressure and public scrutiny, he guided the company with grace and never lost sight of the things that matter most: our customers and merchants.
It’s hard to believe that Groupon is only four years old. Our journey began in November of 2008 when we offered our first deal (pizza at 50% off) to a handful of people in Chicago. Today, with over 11,000 employees, we now offer more than 30,000 deals a day to over 200 million subscribers globally. But even more staggering is the fact that our customers purchased more than 50 million Groupons last quarter alone.
Groupon is a very different company today than it was just a few short years ago. From our local daily deal roots, we have spent significant time and resources evolving into new categories including Goods, Getaways, and Live. We have also fundamentally changed the way customers interact with Groupon. We have migrated nearly 40% of users in North America to mobile, while dramatically reducing our reliance on email which now accounts for less than 50% of our transactions. And with Pull, consumers can browse among thousands of deals on our site and buy exactly what they want, when they want it.
In the midst of this evolution in 2012 we delivered 35% growth in billings to $5.4 billion, 45% growth in Revenue to $2.3 billion, 22% growth in active customers to 41 million. Additionally our Operating Profit improved from a loss of $233 million in 2011 to a gain of $99 million last year.
Yet we all know our operational and financial performance has eroded the confidence of many of our supporters, both inside and outside of the company. Now our task at hand is to win back their support.
We also need to stay relentlessly focused on doing what is right for our customers and merchants. We’ve built a curated marketplace that is vibrant and thriving; and if we continue to invest in our future, stay focused on the long term and lead through innovation, we can achieve truly great things together.
As Groupon starts to write its next chapter, Ted and I are both honored to be able to help guide the company until a new CEO is in place. We are fortunate to have a very talented and committed management team to help us execute on our vision.
We appreciate the tireless effort you have poured into getting our company where it is today, and we are even more excited about the future that lies ahead.
Eric Lefkofsky
Executive Chairman & co-founderTed Leonsis
Vice Chairman
