Why is Sandberg stepping down?

Sheryl Sandberg, the chief operating officer of Facebook and its parent company Meta, has announced her resignation, following 14 years in the position.

Sandberg revealed the change in a statement on her personal Facebook page on Wednesday, June 1 adding that she is unsure of her future intentions but intends to focus on her foundation and humanitarian activities in the meantime.

“When I took this job in 2008, I wanted to stay for five years.” “It is time for me to write the next chapter of my life, fourteen years later,” Sandberg wrote on Facebook.

Photograph: José Luis Magaña/AP
Sandberg wrote that she would leave the company in fall 2022 but will remain on Meta’s board. She thanked Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg for his support, adding “sitting by Mark’s side for nearly 14 years has been the honour and privilege of a lifetime.”

Sandberg did not include her reason for stepping down in her Facebook post. She did however share that she would be focusing on her foundations.