According to the NY Times report, Esther Crawford, a female executive who slept on Twitter but was eventually fired, released a 14-minute video today. The video tells her story after Musk took over the company. At the same time, she expounded her views on Elon Musk in the video. In the video, she believes that Elon Musk lacks empathy in leadership and does things only by intuition. Esther Crawford is Twitter’s former product director and she now calls herself “sleeping in ex-product @Twitter”. She was a former top executive at Twitter thus, she should have access to information that most former staff wouldn’t have.
Twitter staff were rarely sacked before Musk – Crawford
According to Esther Crawford, Twitter was like a “nursing home” before Musk became involved, and staff were rarely let go. However, after Elon Musk’s takeover, over half of the company staff were laid off in just a few months.
Esther Crawford has shown concerns about the lack of psychological safety in the company since Musk took over Twitter. She fears that all staff may be fired without cause. Crawford also warns that Musk is surrounded by sycophants who only agree with him, creating an echo chamber. She believes that Elon Musk only humbles himself to those who challenge him with data or expertise and is frustrated by the lack of willingness to accept change. To cope, she has resorted to tactics to encourage some staff to leave.
Esther Crawford aired her views about her time on Twitter
Esther Crawford also said
“Musk is good at cultivating fanatic fans. These fanatic fans will unswervingly support everything Musk says, and Musk also gets enough confidence from these fanatic fans…“.
She adds
“It is difficult for people to understand Musk, and blindly praising Elon Musk’s employees can easily lead to Musk’s sudden rage and quick dismissal of these ‘sycophants’. Share negative news with Musk.”
However, despite the plethora of criticism, the former Twitter staff praised certain aspects of Musk’s leadership. This includes his “extraordinary talent for solving difficult physics problems.” She said she learned a few things about being human from the billionaire, which she found “quite interesting”. She says
Musk is smart, has enough money to make a lot of mistakes, even if things go wrong, he doesn’t have to pay any serious consequences, he’s always right and has the say because of his rabid fans, he can hold down in the short term and can also send a few words at will to reverse the market situation.
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According to Esther Crawford, she had a positive experience after parting ways with Musk. When she was let go from Twitter in February, she considered it the “best gift” she had ever received. On her LinkedIn profile, she says that she’s on Sabbatical after Twitter. She says she will take a break from work, travel the world, and focus on her personal life.
Elon Musk’s leadership style in the context of Twitter’s operations
Elon Musk’s leadership style in the context of Twitter’s operations has been a subject of discussion and analysis. According to Apuedge, he is an authoritative leader who seeks to motivate and inspire his staff. The Guardian and CNN also describe his decisions and management style as brutal and dictatorial. CNN further claims that Musk’s actions and decisions have caused pain and uncertainty among Twitter staff. However, there are reports that consider Elon Musk a visionary leader with a clear purpose, strategy, and expectations.
When Musk took over Twitter, he made huge changes, including laying off a large portion of the workforce. He did this because he saw the need to reshape the company’s culture. For this reason, some (like CNN and The Guardian) say he is brutal and dictatorial. Musk is not seen as a collaborative leader, but rather one who exerts control over decisions and expects his subordinates to follow his lead. Apuedge claims that he is described as an authoritarian leader who takes total control.
Esther Crawford’s background, expertise and career
Earlier, we said that Esther Crawford used to work as the Director of Product Management at Twitter. Business Insider also reports that she played a crucial role in Elon Musk’s deal with Twitter and is also known for sleeping in the office. On her LinkedIn profile, Crawford states her strengths as a project manager, particularly in developing go-to-market strategies. She co-founded Squad, a video chat app which Twitter bought in 2020, and served as its CEO. Crawford holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Oregon State University. She also has a master’s degree in international relations and national security from Syracuse University. However, Crawford was let go from Twitter, along with a group of other product leaders a few months ago.
She started her career in 2007 as a Millennial Marketing Strategist at Weight Watchers. She also worked as a Product Marketing Lead at Facebook from 2014-2015. Crawford was a Director of Product Management at Twitter, where she led efforts to diversify revenue beyond ads. Looking at the top positions she has held in the social media space, it becomes clear that she is a highly respected and influential figure.
Author Bio
Efe Udin is a seasoned tech writer with over seven years of experience. He covers a wide range of topics in the tech industry. From mobile phones to tablets, Efe has kept a keen eye on the latest advancements and trends. He aims to provide insightful analysis and reviews to inform and educate readers.
