Groupon Co-Founder Andrew Mason was removed from Groupon CEO position by the Groupon Board, and Andrew Mason had publicly published his final email sent to the Groupon Employees. . He is saying that “I was fired Today” in the brutally honest internal memo to employees on his departure.
He takes responsibility for the company’s downturn, expresses his appreciation for his staff, and wishes them well. ‘For those who are concerned about me, please don’t be — I love Groupon, and I’m terribly proud of what we’ve created. I’m OK with having failed at this part of the journey. If Groupon was Battletoads, it would be like I made it all the way to the Terra Tubes without dying on my first ever play through.’
Read below the entire email message of Andrew Mason.
(This is for Groupon employees, but I’m posting it publicly since it will leak anyway)People of Groupon,
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. From controversial metrics in our S1 to our material weakness to two quarters of missing our own expectations and a stock price that’s hovering around one quarter of our listing price, the events of the last year and a half speak for themselves. As CEO, I am accountable.
You are doing amazing things at Groupon, and you deserve the outside world to give you a second chance. I’m getting in the way of that. A fresh CEO earns you that chance. The board is aligned behind the strategy we’ve shared over the last few months, and I’ve never seen you working together more effectively as a global company – it’s time to give Groupon a relief valve from the public noise.
For those who are concerned about me, please don’t be – I love Groupon, and I’m terribly proud of what we’ve created. I’m OK with having failed at this part of the journey. If Groupon was Battletoads, it would be like I made it all the way to the Terra Tubes without dying on my first ever play through. I am so lucky to have had the opportunity to take the company this far with all of you. I’ll now take some time to decompress (FYI I’m looking for a good fat camp to lose my Groupon 40, if anyone has a suggestion), and then maybe I’ll figure out how to channel this experience into something productive.
If there’s one piece of wisdom that this simple pilgrim would like to impart upon you: have the courage to start with the customer. My biggest regrets are the moments that I let a lack of data override my intuition on what’s best for our customers. This leadership change gives you some breathing room to break bad habits and deliver sustainable customer happiness – don’t waste the opportunity!
I will miss you terribly.
Love,
Andrew
Groupon Executive Chairman Eric Lefkofsky and Vice Chairman Ted Leonsis would participate in a newly created Office of the Chief Executive, effective immediately, serving in this role on an interim basis until the board finds a CEO replacement.
“On behalf of the entire Groupon Board, I want to thank Andrew for his leadership, his creativity, and his deep loyalty to Groupon. As a founder, Andrew helped invent the daily deals space, leading Groupon to become one of the fastest growing companies in history,” Lefkofsky said in the statement. It also quotes Leonsis saying that “Groupon will continue to invest in growth, and we are confident that with our deep management team and market-leading position, the company is well positioned for the future.”
When disgraced CEOs are fired from major companies, they typically get a few million dollars in cash or stock to cushion the blow. Groupon’s Andrew Mason will take home a severance package of $378.36.
Groupon is a deal-of-the-day website that features discounted gift certificates usable at local or national companies. Groupon was launched in November 2008, and the first market for Groupon was Chicago. By October 2010 Groupon served more than 150 markets in North America and 100 markets in Europe, Asia and South America and had 35 million registered users.
The idea for Groupon was created by ousted CEO Andrew Mason. The idea subsequently gained the attention of his former employer, Eric Lefkofsky, who provided $1 million in “seed money” to develop the idea. In April 2010, the company was valued at $1.35 billion.
