Expedia announced Wednesday that CEO Mark Okerstrom and CFO Alan Pickerill will be stepping down from their roles at the company.
Shares of Expedia climbed as much as 6.1 percent in pre-market trading following the announcement.
Expedia Chairman Barry Diller will manage day-to-day operations at the company, as well as oversee its executive leadership team, while the board focuses on a plan for long-term leadership. Eric Hart, Expedia’s chief strategy officer, will serve as acting chief financial officer, the company said.
In a statement, Diller said the leadership changes were being made as a result of disagreements over strategy between Expedia’s senior management and the board.
Expedia's CEO Mark Okerstrom took over in 2017 after Dara Khosrowshahi left to become CEO of Uber.
“Earlier this year, Expedia embarked on an ambitious reorganization plan with the goal of bringing our brands and technology together in a more efficient way,” Diller said in a statement. “This reorganization, while sound in concept, resulted in a material loss of focus on our current operations, leading to disappointing third quarter results and a lackluster near-term outlook. The Board disagreed with that outlook, as well as the departing leadership’s vision for growth, strongly believing the Company can accelerate growth in 2020. That divergence necessitated a change in management. Mark Okerstrom is a talented executive and his 13 years of service to Expedia has greatly benefited the enterprise. The Board and I wish him the best for the future, as we do for Alan Pickerill.”
Okerstrom took over as CEO in 2017 when then-CEO Dara Khosrowshahi left the company to become CEO of Uber. He served as CFO at Expedia prior to being named CEO.