After a down quarter, Groupon’s Cehif Executive Officer Andrew Mason announced that he was fired in a memo to employees that he also posted publicly.
A day earlier, Groupon reported weak fourth- quarter earnings, which caused investors to shave off a quarter of the Chicago company’s value. The news about Mr. Mason, released after the market closed, sent shares up more than 4 percent in late trading.
The company replaced him with two board members while it searches for a replacement. In his note Mason positioned his departure as an opportunity for the company.
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!
Questions remain about the fate of daily deal companies since both Groupon, and its largest rival, LivingSocial, which is owned by Amazon, are both struggling.
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