As Twitter plans to refocus and keep expenses down, the social media platform pirated Google executive Omid Kordestani as its new executive chairman. The hiring came after permanent CEO Jack Dorsey announced that the online social networking company was laying off 8 percent of its employees on Tuesday.
Despite Twitter's aim to refocus and cost-cutting plans, employing Kordestani raised some eyebrows in the business realm, sparking curiosity on how much his salary is since he's earning a lot at Google. According to CNN Money, Kordestani was one of the pioneering employees at Google. And though he left the company in 2009, he was remarkably rewarded when he returned last August as Google's Chief Business Officer.
Last year, Kordestani received almost $130 million in compensation, making him the company's highest-paid employee. Based on Google's annual proxy filing for 2014, the 51-year-old executive received a prorated annual salary of $236,500, a bonus of $6.5 million and stock awards worth over $123.5 million. And for his 10-and-a-half month work at Google this 2015, he likely made about $500,000.
While many are curious about Twitter's offer in hiring Kordestani, a company spokesperson said they would reveal his compensation through a SEC filing within the next few days.
Meanwhile, analysts said that Kordestani's extensive sales experience could be beneficial to Twitter cofounder Dorsey's product knowledge and vision. However, Reuters noted that the announcement could lead to other changes to the board, particularly the highly-criticized number of former CEOs, an excess that investors and analysts said had hindered the company's ability to attract executives and high-level employees.
After last quarter reporting its slowest rise in monthly average users since going public in 2013, Twitter is working to reignite its growth. However, it announced plans to lay off up to 8 percent of its workforce, mostly engineers and product employees. Kordestani, on the other hand, will play a significant role in operations, supporting the leadership team and helping with recruiting, The New York Times reported.
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