Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s founding COO, is leaving Meta

‘Today, I am sharing the news that after 14 years, I will be leaving Meta,’ Ms Sandberg announced

Meta Chief Operating Officer Sandberg says she is stepping down (REUTERS)

Sheryl Sandberg, the chief operating officer of Meta (formerly Facebook), has announced she is stepping down.

“Today, I am sharing the news that after 14 years, I will be leaving Meta,” Ms Sandberg wrote in a Facebook post on Wednesday. “I am so immensely proud of everything this team has achieved.”

The company’s founding COO, who helped lead it from a fledgling website to a global tech giant, said she will officially resign this fall. Her responsibilities will be transferred to others over the next few months, she said, but she will remain on the company’s board of directors.

In addition to her work at Facebook, Ms Sandberg is the author of Lean In, a 2013 book encouraging women to be more assertive in their professional lives. That book led to the creation of the Lean In Foundation (now the Sheryl Sandberg & Dave Goldberg Family Foundation), an organisation Ms Sandberg hopes to spend more time on in the future.

“I am not entirely sure what the future will bring – I have learned no one ever is,” she wrote. “But I know it will include focusing more on my foundation and philanthropic work, which is more important to me than ever given how critical this moment is for women.”

Ms Sandberg thanked a number of colleagues, business partners, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, whom she called one of her best friends.

“Thank you to the colleagues who inspire me every day with their commitment to our mission,” she wrote, “to our partners around the world who have enabled us to build a business that serves their businesses, and especially to Mark for giving me this opportunity and being one of the best friends anyone could ever have.”

Mr Zuckerberg reciprocated that gratitude in a comment below her post.

“The end of an era,” the CEO wrote. “In the 14 years we’ve worked together, you’ve architected our ads business, hired great people, forged our management culture, and taught me how to run a company. I’m going to miss working alongside you every day, but grateful to have you as a lifelong friend. Thank you for all you’ve done for me and my family, for our company, and for millions of people around the world. You’re a superstar.”