The appointment of a new CEO by a tech company took a dramatic turn when the old leader—and the founder—refused to step down. What followed next was a war of emails between the new leader and the old one. The boardroom clash erupted when OpenWeb’s founder Nadav Shoval refused to leave his position and accused the company of breaching his contract after the announcement that Tim Harvey would be the new interim CEO.
Nadav Shoval’s public statement:
Shoval also took to LinkedIn to share his decision about not stepping down from his position. “I have not stepped down as OpenWeb’s CEO,” he wrote.
“I recently notified the company that they breached my contract, which was intended to directly call out concerning conduct by the Board of Directors. Instead of addressing the issues, the Board chose to announce a leadership transition at a sudden Company-wide meeting, continuing to act against OpenWeb’s best interests,” he added.
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He further posted, “I do not accept these actions. I will continue to fight for OpenWeb’s mission and purpose alongside our team.”
Exchange of emails:
{{/usCountry}}He further posted, “I do not accept these actions. I will continue to fight for OpenWeb’s mission and purpose alongside our team.”
Exchange of emails:
{{/usCountry}}“The board has falsely stated that I am stepping out of my role as CEO,” Shoval shared in an email to OpenWeb’s staff, reported Fortune, citing multiple sources. “Let me be clear: that is not true and not my intent,” he reportedly added in his email.
Harvey reportedly replied to his predecessor's email expressing that the company is going ahead with the transition. “We are progressing with the CEO transition process as planned,” Harvey wrote, as the Israeli outlet CTech reported.
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“As we move forward, we are committed to handling this situation with the utmost respect for all individuals involved and acknowledging their contributions to OpenWeb… Our priority remains the continued success, stability and providing value to our partners,” Harvey added in his email.
OpenWeb has already removed Nadav Shoval’s name from the company website and added Tim Harvey as the “Interim CEO.”
In an earlier statement to local media outlets, the company welcomed “Tim Harvey as interim CEO in place of Nadav Shoval.” They also thanked Shoval for his passion and contribution as the founder and former CEO.