Twitter appointed Hugh Johnston and Martha Lane Fox to its board committee on April 8 in the hope of cashing in on the new directors' consumer products and technological skills and reinvigorating sluggish growth.
This addition is the latest step by CEO Jack Dorsey to restructure the management, following a string of appointments and departures from a company criticized for homogeneity.
The new directors assumed their responsibilities effective immediately after the appointment, filling in the spots for board members Peter Currie and Peter Chernin, who were not considered for re-election at their request. Their terms are soon set to expire at the next annual meeting in May. Currie is the president for a private investment firm and Chernin a Hollywood executive.
The new directors have taken to Twitter (no surprises there) to introduce themselves to the employees and the leadership. A Twitter novice, Hugh Johnston, 54, has been the chief financial officer at PepsiCo since March 2010.
Looking forward to partnering with @jack @omidkordestani and the @twitter Board to strengthen its power and impact.
— Hugh Johnston (@hughjohnston) April 8, 2016
On the other hand, Martha Lane Fox is a power tweeter, with nearly 200,000 followers. But that isn't why she got hired by the CEO. With a long list of credentials, Fox, 43, founded the private karaoke company Lucky Voice as well as Lastminute.com, a travel and leisure website, after which she served as the chairman of MakieLab, a 3-D printing and game company, from 2012. Also having served as a board member at Channel 4 and Marks & Spencer, she has been leading Doteveryone.org.uk from last September, which is an organization that aids in understanding and usage of technologies supported by the Internet.
I'm joining the board of @twitter Thanks @jack @omidkordestani I can't wait. Best. Job. Ever. Watch out silicon valley :-)) — martha lane fox (@Marthalanefox) April 8, 2016
The process of filling out the important positions has been rather tumultuous for the social networking company that still finds itself under the shadow of Facebook. The board is known to oust almost every single CEO, including Jack Dorsey who has finally shed his 'interim' tag for a 'permanent' one.
Dorsey promises "more additions to the board soon, ones that will bring diversity and represent the strong communities on Twitter," after the board received flak for lacking diversity and innovation. The microblogging site's user base has remained flat at 320 million users since the last quarter while the midday trading on April 8 showed a 2.5 percent decrease in shares.
With Johnston and Fox joining the crew, it remains to be seen whether their presence acts as a growth catalyst for this ship that seems to be stuck in doldrums.
