“After four and a half intense and wonderful years as CEO of Groupon, I’ve decided that I’d like to spend more time with my family. Just kidding — I was fired today.”
Facebook’s imminent IPO might mint a mess of millionaires in Silicon Valley come Friday — but in the meantime, it seems to be driving wealth in a few newly public Internet companies, as well.
Google made a record 48 acquisitions last year and hopes to make even more this year, continuing its aggressive M&A pace despite soaring start-up valuations. And with nearly $35 billion in cash in hand and aggressive new CEO and co-founder Larry Page, it certainly has the means and drive to do it.
Allison Johnson, who’s served as Apple’s vice president of worldwide marketing communications since 2005, is leaving the company, according to several sources, for a new Silicon Valley communications firm with a former Facebook PR exec.