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Tumblr's 'Shadow CEO' Is Out

Jay YarowJul 1, 2014, 21:22 IST

LinkedInDerek Gottfrid

A key Tumblr employee is out of the company.

Derek Gottfrid, who joined from the New York Times in 2010, is leaving, according to a memo David Karp sent to the staff.

Gottfrid was almost a "shadow CEO" according to people close to the company. When he joined Tumblr it was still a messy company, but he stepped in and helped organize it.

He kept taking on new responsibilities, and eventually he was leading things on a day-to-day basis. He led product, then engineering, then he got Tumblr into the ad business, and he was a key part of the Yahoo deal.

In many ways, he was Tumblr's Sheryl Sandberg, but without the big name or profile.

More to come, but here is the email from Karp: