A spokesperson from Automattic has confirmed that Matt Mullenweg is back in charge of Automattic. The statement follows a period of days when it appeared that Mullenweg had gained access to the Automattic Slack account but not Automattic itself. Yet the statement itself reads as if it were dictated or authored by Mullenweg himself.
Catching Up With The Automattic Drama
On Wednesday, September 9, the Board of Automattic put Matt Mullenweg on paid leave for unspecified reasons and put the CFO, Mark Davies, into the CEO seat. Mullenweg was apparently given fifty minutes’ prior notification of the meeting, and his request for a delay to have an attorney review the move was denied. Mullenweg was subsequently ousted, and Automattic issued the following three-sentence statement:
“Matt Mullenweg is currently on leave from Automattic. Mark Davies, Automattic’s CFO, will lead the company as interim CEO. The Board has full confidence in Mark’s leadership and in the team’s ability to execute against the company’s priorities.”
Matt Mullenweg Back In Control… Of Automattic’s Slack
Automattic however had failed to remove Mullenweg from the company Slack workspace and he took control of it, removed admins, and announced he was back in control.
On Friday September 11 it was reported that Mullenweg was posting to Slack claiming to be back in control of Automattic, though his statement was unsupported by an official statement from Automattic itself. TechCrunch’s headline reflected the uncertainty of whether Mullenweg was indeed in control of Automattic or was simply trolling: “Matt Mullenweg tells (trolls?) Automattic staff, saying he’s back in control after CEO ouster”
Mary Hubbard, the Executive Director of WordPress, tweeted:
“I’m relieved and pleased to see Matt Mullenweg return as CEO of Automattic, the largest financial contributor to the WordPress project. Having WordPress’s Co-founder and Project Lead at the helm gives me confidence that their support will remain strong. Matt has my support.”
That led to a perception that maybe Matt was in control of Automattic’s Slack workspace but not Automattic itself. Numerous Automatticians (Automattic employees) then tweeted on social media in support of Mullenweg, with Mullenweg reposting each post to amplify their comments across social media, effectively drowning out the tweets that supported his ouster.
Statement From Automattic
An official statement was issued just after 5 PM EST on Saturday, September 12:
“Matt Mullenweg is the chairman and CEO of Automattic, with full support of the board and if you search online you can see many top executives and Automatticians supporting him as well.”
That was the official statement, written in a tone that differs greatly from the first statement in tone, word choice, and structure.
Review Of First Official Statement
The first official statement is written in a corporate style that is formal, in the third-person and in the language of an officially vetted announcement. It was written in three sentences that communicated Mullenweg’s status, who has succeeded him, and that the board has full confidence in the decision.
“Matt Mullenweg is currently on leave from Automattic. Mark Davies, Automattic’s CFO, will lead the company as interim CEO. The Board has full confidence in Mark’s leadership and in the team’s ability to execute against the company’s priorities.”
Comparison To Second Official Statement
The second statement is written in an informal style that sounds like a personal assertion and not an official corporate communication. It invites the reader of the statement to go online to verify the truth of the statement rather than just state the fact as the first notification did.
Most strangely, the first official statement is informative but the second statement consists of a single run-on sentence that is persuasive and contains an argumentative edge to it.
Here’s the second communication sent on Saturday:
“Matt Mullenweg is the chairman and CEO of Automattic, with full support of the board and if you search online you can see many top executives and Automatticians supporting him as well.”
Was the second announcement dictated or authored by Matt Mullenweg himself?
Responses
Many from Automattic posted supportive tweets like this one from @jamesgrierson:
“I have worked alongside @photomatt first as a contributor and sponsor for 10 years while at Bluehost and then as a co-worker at @automattic
for the last 10 years. The future of Automattic and WordPress are bright, and I am excited for the next 10 years!”
Featured Image/Screenshot Keynote – Fireside Chat with Ma.tt Mullenweg
