Mozilla’s CEO, Chris Beard had made an official announcement on the company’s blog stating that he will resign from the company by the end of this year. Beard originally joined the company as a VP of products and was responsible for launching the Firefox browser.
“…while I’ve been a Mozillian for 15 years so far, and plan to be for many more years – this will be my last year as CEO,” wrote Beard.
Beard joined Mozilla in 2004 and steadily worked his way up the ladder to become the company’s Chief Marketing Officer in 2010. After three years as the company’s CMO, he quit Mozilla in 2013 and joined a VC firm known as Greylock Partners in 2013 and served as the Executive in Residence.
After a one year brief stint at the aforementioned VC firm, he joined Mozilla again in 2014 as the company’s CEO and has held his position ever since. In the recent blog post announcing his resignation, Beard said that he had returned to the company during a “particularly tumultuous time” in the company’s history.
Beard worked at Mozilla for over a decade and, after what appears to be a long history of work in new areas, he finally opted to take a break and start his next chapter. The CEO said that he felt it was high time he took a “step back” to recharge and take a “meaningful break” before he decided what’s next for him.
He stated that he’d end his tenure by the end of this year after ensuring that they have picked his successor to “sustain the positive momentum” they had built.
“Mitchell Baker and I are working closely together with our Board of Directors to ensure leadership continuity and a smooth transition. We are conducting a search for my successor and I will continue to serve as CEO through that transition,” wrote Beard.
He further added that if the search for a CEO extends beyond the end of this year, he will step down as the CEO and Baker will take charge as the interim CEO instead. Beard is going to continue being a part of the company as he will serve as a long-term advisor to the board and Mitchell Baker after stepping down as the company’s CEO.
More: Beard’s Resignation
