INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Airbnb COO Belinda Johnson notified employees of her impending departure next March, CNBC first reported
Airbnb has since confirmed the news, saying Johnson will remain involved with the company on its board of directors
Her last day as COO will be March 1, 2020.
News of Johnson stepping down comes as Airbnb gears up to make its initial public offering next
In September, the company announced it hit more than $1 billion in revenue in Q2 2019
Airbnb says it has also been EBITDA profitable for the last two years.
However, Airbnb is no stranger to controversy
From regulatory issues stemming from Airbnb impact on housing prices, to discrimination, Airbnb has some buttoning up to do before it goes
public.
Johnson decision to leave came down to work-life balance, she said in a note posted on the Airbnb newsroom.
&Being elevated to the
Board of Directors and contributing to the long term success of Airbnb while taking more time to be with my amazing family is an incredible
opportunity,& Johnson said.
Johnson, who joined Airbnb back in 2011, was the first executive Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky ever
hired.
&Though we intend for her to serve on our board for a long time to come, I have told Belinda that she can return to Airbnb as an
executive if she ever wishes to do so,& Chesky wrote.
How Airbnb handles discrimination claims
