Expedia CEO, finance head quit after clash with board

Expedia chairman Barry Diller says the board and senior management disagreed on strategy.
Expedia chairman Barry Diller says the board and senior management disagreed on strategy.

SAN FRANCISCO • Expedia Group's chief executive officer Mark Okerstrom and finance head Alan Pickerill have resigned with immediate effect following a disagreement with the online travel company's board over its business outlook, chairman Barry Diller said on Wednesday.

Mr Diller, who also chairs Expedia's former parent IAC/InterActiveCorp, said he will oversee the executive leadership team along with vice-chairman Peter Kern until the board finds a CEO replacement.

"Ultimately, senior management and the board disagreed on strategy," Mr Diller said in a statement, adding that the company's reorganisation plan launched earlier this year had led to disappointing third-quarter results and a "lacklustre" near-term outlook.

"The board disagreed with that outlook, as well as the departing leadership's vision for growth, strongly believing the company can accelerate growth in 2020," he said.

The 77-year-old billionaire also said he would purchase additional shares in Expedia in a show of "faith in and commitment to the company's long-term future".

The company's shares, which have lost about 12 per cent this year, rose nearly 8 per cent to US$107.04 after the surprise resignations of the CEO and chief financial officer. The stock closed 6.2 per cent higher at US$105.56.

"It raises the question - what did the board members see in the business in terms of levers and opportunities for 2020 that the management didn't see?" D.A. Davidson analyst Tom White said.

The Seattle-based company has been facing increasing competition from Airbnb and Booking.com as well as Google, which is eating into its search traffic. Expedia is also pumping money into its own vacation rental business Vrbo.

"(It was) certainly out of the blue... I guess (Diller) felt the change had to be made," Benchmark Company analyst Daniel Kurnos said. "I would think he will find the right people to run it, but he certainly has a very impressive resume."

The Diller-led IAC has a history of spinning off companies, and announced earlier this month it intends to sell its ownership stake in Tinder owner Match Group.

REUTERS

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 06, 2019, with the headline Expedia CEO, finance head quit after clash with board. Subscribe