YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki resigns, joining an exodus of high-profile women in Silicon Valley

Over nine years running YouTube, Wojcicki grew revenue to US$29 billion and introduced new products like YouTube TV and Shorts, a TikTok competitor

Powerful women in tech remain, but they tend to be more low profile than figures like Meta’s Sheryl Sandberg, Yahoo’s Marissa Mayer and HP’s Meg Whitman

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YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki speaks during the introduction of YouTube TV at YouTube Space LA on February 28, 2017, in Los Angeles. Wojcicki announced Thursday, Feb. 16, 2023, that she is stepping down as CEO at YouTube after spending nine years as the head of the social media platform. Photo: AP

Published: 10:21am, 17 Feb 2023

The resignation of YouTube chief Susan Wojcicki after 25 years at Google is another example of an unsettling trend in Silicon Valley: high-profile women are heading for the exits.

Just this week, Meta Platforms Inc chief business officer Marne Levine stepped down after 12 years at the social media juggernaut. Last year, Sheryl Sandberg left her role as chief operating officer of Meta.

To be sure, powerful female figures remain in tech, but they tend to have a lower public profile. Safra Catz, chief executive officer of Oracle Corp rarely gives interviews. Susan Li, Meta’s chief financial officer has yet to give an interview, though she was just promoted to the role last November. Lisa Jackson is one of five women on Apple’s leadership team, compared with 13 men. Advanced Micro Devices Inc CEO Lisa Su, who now speaks frequently with the press around company earnings reports and launches, is a notable exception.

AMD CEO Lisa Su holds up a Ryzen 7040 series chip during her keynote address at CES on January 4, 2023. Photo: Matt Haldane / SCMP

Every company and every woman has their own story, but it’s no secret the pandemic was especially hard on women. By some estimates, some 2 million women left or lost their jobs between February 2020 and January 2022, while the number of men in the workforce remained about the same. Women leaders are also switching jobs at record rates according to a study by Lean In and McKinsey. In Silicon Valley, they are leaving their jobs, period.

Wojcicki spent nine years at the helm of YouTube, an incredibly long run for any chief executive in Silicon Valley, especially a non-founder. During her time as YouTube CEO, she grew revenue to US$29 billion and active users to well over 2.5 billion. Before that, she helped create and nurture Google’s now dominant advertising business.

Wojcicki vows she’s leaving her job but not disappearing entirely. “I’m committed to continuing to support women in tech in my next chapter,” she wrote in an email. “I’m committed to mentoring women leaders and CEOs and investing in women-founded and led companies!”

But she’s clearly taking a big step aside. Wojcicki’s name was always the first to be floated in talks about who might succeed Alphabet Inc CEO Sundar Pichai. Now that seems unlikely. Other prominent women who’ve left top tech jobs and receded from the spotlight include former Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, former HP and Quibi CEO Meg Whitman and former IBM CEO Ginny Rometty. All were targeted with ferocious criticism for their job performance that at times could feel overly personal.