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Spotify: Difference between revisions
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== Valuation == | == Valuation == | ||
== Management == | == Management == | ||
December 7, 2023: Spotify CFO Paul Vogel to leave the company in March 2024. The company said it has begun the search for a new CFO. As Spotify searches for a new CFO, Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis Ben Kung will take additional responsibilities to support the financial team. “Spotify has embarked on an evolution over the last two years to bring our spending more in line with market expectations while also funding the significant growth opportunities we continue to identify. I’ve talked a lot with Paul about the need to balance these two objectives carefully. Over time, we’ve come to the conclusion that Spotify is entering a new phase and needs a CFO with a different mix of experiences," CEO Daniel EK said in a statement<ref>https://investors.spotify.com/news/news-details/2023/Spotify-Announces-CFO-Transition-March-31-2024/default.aspx</ref>. Paul Vogel joined Spotify in 2016 as head of investor relations, financial planning and analysis, and treasury teams and was promoted to the CFO position in 2020, replacing Barry McCarthy who resigned<ref>https://variety.com/2023/music/news/spotify-cfo-paul-vogel-exits-1235827992/</ref>. Before joining Spotify, he was managing director and head of the internet and media equity research team at Barclays. He also worked at AllianceBernstein as a portfolio manager and at Morgan Stanley as a research analyst. Vogel sold shares worth $9.3 million after the recent layoff<ref>https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001639920/f18a146d-db7a-45f3-a5b1-eb0557f8fb90.pdf</ref>. Vogel joins Taj Alavi (head of marketing since 2021)<ref>https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-12-07/spotify-is-losing-top-marketing-exec-cutting-podcasts-amid-restructuring</ref>, Jenny Hermanson (managing director for the Nordic region since 2015)<ref>https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7136302975114706944/</ref>, and Tom Connaughton (managing director for the UK and Ireland since 2018)<ref>https://forum.investmentwiki.org/t/spotify-news/99/28</ref> who are leaving the company. <code>Assessment: Given that some other senior executives have left the company following the layoff, Vogel may have been fired or didn’t agree with the huge headcount reduction. We consider his departure as positive for the company given that costs ballooned during his tenure. Investors such as ValueAct, which managed more than $9 billion</code><ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ValueAct_Capital</ref> <code>in assets in 2019 criticized Spotify’s operating expenses</code><ref>https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-10/valueact-takes-spotify-stake-backs-streaming-leader-s-cost-cuts</ref><code>. However, such high-level departures tend to create instability in the company’s operations.</code> | |||
February 21, 2022, it was announced that Max Cutler, Spotify's head of audio talk shows and partnerships will leave the company on May 1. His exit follows that of Dawn Ostroff who was in charge of content and advertising. Max oversaw partnerships such as Joe Rogan, Emma Chamberlain, and Alex Cooper of Call Her Daddy. He joined Spotify in 2019 after the company acquired his podcast network Parcast.<ref>https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-21/spotify-official-overseeing-rogan-podcast-deals-to-exit-company</ref> | |||
February 10, 2022, ValueAct Chief Executive Officer Mason Morfit said that they had taken a stake in Spotify. ValueAct is known for working with management to bring change within the company. Mason did not disclose how much stake they had taken in the company but he believes that the company is on the right track. He said, "“Spotify’s superpower was combining engineering breakthroughs with organizational abilities — it organized creators and copyright owners to build an entirely new economic model that benefited everyone involved.” He also added, " “During the boom, it applied these powers to new markets like podcasts, audiobooks and live chatrooms. Its operating expenses and funding for content exploded. It is now sorting out what was built to last and what was built for the bubble.” <ref>https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-10/valueact-takes-spotify-stake-backs-streaming-leader-s-cost-cuts</ref>As of 2021, ValueAct had more than $13 billion in assets under management. Its Q3 2022 13F filing showed $5,902,272,000 in managed 13F securities and a top 10 holdings concentration of 99.86%.<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ValueAct_Capital</ref> <ref>https://www.ft.com/stream/5ec498b9-d958-3e5b-931e-b086b50f2b3c?page=2 | |||
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