Skift Take

The reshuffle of Airbnb's executive ranks should be viewed in the context of the need to reinvigorate the company's growth prospects, including international expansion.

With critics questioning Airbnb's growth momentum, Airbnb announced Tuesday that Chief Financial Officer Dave Stephenson will become chief business officer, a newly created position, and VP of Finance Ellie Mertz will become CFO March 1.

Meanwhile, Catherine Powell, who became global head of hosting in July 2020, "has decided to transition to an advisor role and move on from Airbnb later next year," the company said.

Stephenson will be leading all of the internal teams that reported to Powell other than the community team, and there are no plans to name a successor to Powell.

He will begin his new role as chief business officer January 2, will be a speaker, along with C