Bianchini (pictured here) founded Ning with well-known Silicon Valley iconic entrepreneur Marc Andreessen. She will be replaced at Ning by COO Jason Rosenthal.

Ning has raised about $120 million in funding since it was founded in 2004, and it has been one of the more high-profile start-ups and among the most closely watched.

Interestingly, I pinged Bianchini last week about some controversies related to discontent among Ning techies I had heard about in the wake of the fall departure of SVP of Engineering Jay Parikh.

She responded quickly, noting that VP of Engineering Sridatta Viswanath was doing a great job.

And, she added, inviting me in for an update while betraying no sense of her impending departure, Ning was “gearing up for the launch of the next-generation Ning Network this summer.”

Here is the post about Bianchini’s departure as CEO that will be on the start-up’s blog today from Ning Chairman Marc Andreessen:

An Update from Ning Chairman & Co-Founder Marc Andreessen

I’d like to update everyone on a change happening in our company today.

My fellow co-founder and Ning CEO Gina Bianchini has decided to step down after five and a half years of hard and terrific work. I support her wholeheartedly in her decision. Gina is handing the CEO duties over to Jason Rosenthal, who has been our Chief Operating Officer (COO) and head of business operations for the last year and a half. Nothing else is changing–I remain Chairman, the current management team remains exactly the same, and the Ning service continues unchanged.

I’d like to celebrate this moment by enthusiastically congratulating Gina on an amazing series of accomplishments in her time as CEO. Ning today is one of the world’s top social networking properties, with more than 2.3 million user-created Ning Networks and more than 45 million registered users, and is far and away the market leading social platform for interests and passions. Ning Networks span every area of human endeavor, from the arts to business, politics to social activism, and every other field you can think of. Over 5,000 new Ning Networks are created every day, and we’re adding a million new registered users every 12 days. This is all the result of Gina’s incredible dedication, as well as the phenomenal team she has built, since we first started the company.

I am also delighted to mention that Gina is becoming an Executive In Residence (EIR) at my new venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz–my venture capital partner Ben Horowitz and I are looking forward to being able to benefit from her insight and wisdom even more than before.

Gina says: “Now that we have built Ning to its current position in the market, I am ready to hand the reins over to Jason and the team to continue to execute on our vision and strategy. As a founder and large shareholder, I’ll continue to do everything I can to support and cheer on Ning in my new role!”

Let me also give you a thumbnail sketch of Jason Rosenthal, our new CEO. Jason has been a friend and colleague of mine for 15 years–we first worked together at Netscape, where Jason took on a sequence of crucial management roles from the very early days until we sold the company to America Online in 1998. Jason then became the first person my co-founders and I brought onboard when we founded Loudcloud in 1999–our internal nickname for him was “critical hire.” Jason and I then worked together there for nearly 10 years, until we sold that company (renamed Opsware) to Hewlett-Packard in 2007. Since that time, Jason has been immersed in Ning as a senior executive, head of business operations, and COO. Jason is a highly talented executive, manager, and leader, and I can’t think of anyone better to succeed my co-founder Gina as CEO.

Jason says: “Through Gina’s vision, leadership, and passion, she has taken the company from inception to our position today as the largest social platform for interests and passions. It’s been my privilege to work with her for the last 18 months and I look forward to expanding on the outstanding foundation she has put in place.”

Thank you very much for your time and attention, and we’ll see you on Ning!

Another Goog-Bye.

Sukhinder Singh Cassidy (pictured here), president of Google’s Asia-Pacific and Latin American operations, is leaving the search giant and joining Silicon Valley venture firm Accel Partners as a CEO-in-residence.

Singh Cassidy, 39, is one of Google’s more visible execs and also one of its highest-ranking women leaders. She has been at Google (GOOG) since 2003.

Previous to that, she was at Yodlee, an online banking start-up, which was backed by Accel–along with stints at Amazon (AMZN) and OpenTV (OPTV).

She is also the second top Google exec to depart the company recently. Tim Armstrong, president of the Americas and a top advertising SVP, left the company a month ago to become CEO and chairman of Time Warner (TWX) online unit AOL.

While any executive exodus from Google is much noticed, especially in such close proximity, the moves by both are probably not too surprising, given that the powerful company–as it matures–has limited avenues for its typically ambitious managers.

It was well known that Armstrong had long wanted to have the top job at a company and that Singh Cassidy is a longtime entrepreneur with higher goals.

Singh Cassidy said as much in an interview with BoomTown last night.

“I was at the end of my streak [at Google] and ready to take the next step and run or grow my own company,” she said. “It is key for me to be stepping out and spreading my wings now.”

Where Singh Cassidy will fly to next is not determined yet, she said, but it will be in the consumer Internet space, she said, although it could be at a start-up or a more established company.

“I think what I was known for at Google was scaling for growth opportunities and I am interested in finding a company with a lot of momentum and need for scale,” said Singh Cassidy.

(Helloooo, Twitter?!? Here’s a way to get a little bit of Googley management without, you know, actually selling out to Google.)

Google CEO and Chairman Eric Schmidt said in a statement about Singh Cassidy’s departure:

“We are deeply grateful to Sukhinder for all that she has done for Google since she joined in 2003. She’s an ambitious, entrepreneurial executive who has a proven track record of building successful operations–most notably, developing Google’s advertising sales teams across Asia Pacific and Latin America. We wish her only the best as she pursues her passion to lead and run her own company.”

A place like Accel is often the first stop for consumer tech players like Singh Cassidy before heading out to another leadership job in the industry. It has backed companies like Facebook, Glam Media and many others.

Yahoo (YHOO) EVP Jeff Weiner, for example, was an executive-in-residence at both Accel Partners and Greylock Partners when he left the Internet giant last year before taking a job in December as president at business networking start-up LinkedIn, which is a Greylock investment.

Interestingly, the CEO-in-residence title is a unique one at Accel, which typically gives high-level exiting managers like Singh Cassidy that EIR title.

But that’s what Singh Cassidy is clearly aiming for. She said she was still sad to be departing Google, even as she was looking forward to the next chapter of her career.

“I am leaving a tremendous platform…but Google or any big company does not present the opportunities to pursue management prowess that you can only get as a CEO,” said Singh Cassidy. “I hope the next thing I jump into will have that and also be long and enduring.”

Here’s the entire Accel press release on Singh Cassidy:

Accel Partners Adds Google Executive Sukhinder Singh Cassidy as CEO-in-Residence

Sukhinder Singh Cassidy Brings Growth and Early Stage Experience to the Global Firm

PALO ALTO, CA, April 8, 2009–Accel Partners, a leading global venture and growth equity firm funding companies from inception through the growth stage, today announced the addition of Sukhinder Singh Cassidy as CEO-in-Residence. Ms. Singh Cassidy joins Accel from Google where she served most recently as President for Asia-Pacific (APAC) & Latin American Operations. In this role, she was responsible for all of Google’s commercial operations in both regions, and built the company’s presence from inception to its current scale serving users, advertisers and partners across 40 domains and 103 different countries throughout APAC and Latin America.

“Having already worked with the Accel team as a Google executive and an entrepreneur, I know first-hand Accel’s approach to engaging and supporting their companies,” said Ms. Singh Cassidy, Accel Partners. “Accel’s portfolio of category-transforming digital media companies such as AdMob, Etsy, Facebook, Glam Media, Kayak, and others creates a rich set of opportunities for marketplace dialog and new category creation.”

Ms. Singh Cassidy has a long-standing relationship with Accel having co-founded Accel-backed Yodlee, a leader in the internet financial application and online banking space. As CEO-In-Residence, Ms. Singh Cassidy will be evaluating new venture and growth equity opportunities in partnership with Accel in addition to working with companies in Accel’s digital media and advertising portfolio. “Sukhinder’s reputation as an entrepreneurial leader in both startups and Google are well known in the industry,” said Jim Breyer, Partner, Accel Partners. “We’re very pleased to have Sukhinder join the Accel team.”

“Sukhinder is the rare executive who has excelled both at founding internet companies as well as running a multi-billion dollar business within Google,” said Theresia Gouw Ranzetta, Partner, Accel Partners. “Her experience will be a real asset for both Accel’s early stage and growth franchise.”

“Sukhinder is a world-class Internet executive,” said Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and former Google colleague of Ms. Singh Cassidy. “It will be great to be working together again as part of the Accel family.”

Prior to running Asia Pacific and Latin America, Ms. Singh Cassidy joined Google in 2003 as the first General Manager for Google Local & Maps, helping to launch these innovative new services, then expanding her responsibilities to lead the company’s strategic partnerships for Google Books, Scholar, and Video. From 1999-2003, Ms. Singh Cassidy was Co-founder and Senior Vice President of Business Development for Yodlee.com Inc., a leading solutions provider to the global financial services industry. Ms Singh Cassidy started her Internet career in strategy and business development, working for Amazon.com and interactive TV provider OpenTV. For her work in the Internet industry, Ms. Singh Cassidy has been profiled in numerous publications globally, including Fortune, Business Week, Canada Post, India Today, and the book, Innovation Nation, profiling Canada’s most innovative business leaders.

In addition to Accel’s continued investments in early-stage startups from the Accel X early stage fund, Accel announced its $480 million growth fund in December of 2008. This fund will focus on growth equity opportunities across a broad range of sectors, including: information technology, internet, digital media, mobile, networking, software, and services. As with Accel’s early-stage efforts, Accel Growth Fund will play an active role in helping entrepreneurs and management teams build category-defining, global businesses.

About Accel Partners

Founded in 1983, Accel Partners has a long history of excellence and innovation in the global venture and growth equity business. It is dedicated to partnering with outstanding entrepreneurs and management teams to build world-class companies, from inception through growth. Accel today invests globally using dedicated teams and market-specific strategies for local geographies, with offices in Palo Alto, California; London, UK; and Bangalore, India; as well as in China via the IDG-Accel Partnership.

With over $6 billion under management, Accel has helped entrepreneurs build over 300 successful category-defining companies including: Actuate, Alfresco, AMCC, Arrowpoint, Baidu, BBN, Brightcove, ComScore, Etsy, Facebook, Focus Media, Foundry Networks, Gameforge, Glam Media, Imperva, Infinera, Interwoven, JBoss, Kayak, Macromedia, metroPCS, Mu Sigma, Polycom/PictureTel, Portal Software, QlikTech, Rapt, Real Networks, Redback Networks, Riverbed, Sohu.com, UUNet, Veritas, Walmart.com, Webroot, XenSource, and Zimbra. For more information, visit the Accel Partners web site at www.accel.com.

Please see this disclosure related to me and Google.