Nine Entertainment chief executive Mike Sneesby has announced he will step down from his role at the company by the end of the month.
Sneesby will be stepping down both as CEO and a director of the board, with chief financial officer Matt Stanton appointed interim chief executive.
His departure comes after three-and-a-half years as CEO of the media company.
Sneesby said it had been a privilege to lead the masthead but that it was time for new leadership in a statement released on Thursday.
‘I take great pride in the achievements of the company during my time as CEO and thank the board, the leadership team and everyone at Nine for their support during my tenure,’ the outgoing CEO said.
New Nine chair Catherine West, who replaced Peter Costello in June, thanked Sneesby for his work at Nine on behalf of the board.
‘As Chief Executive Officer, his achievements include guiding the company out of the challenging Covid pandemic, securing the rights to the Olympic Games through to 2032 and progressing the strategic and cultural transformation of Nine,’ West said.
‘The world-class coverage of Paris 2024 showcased the power of the Nine’s diversified portfolio of premium media assets.’
Sneesby replaced Hugh Marks as Nine CEO in early 2021, beating out then-publishing boss Chris Janz and Carl Fennessy, the former head of Endemol Shine, for the top position.
On top of securing the broadcast rights for the winter and summer Olympic Games until Brisbane 2032 in a $305 million deal, Sneesby was responsible for retaining the free to air broadcast rights for the NRL and overseeing mass subscription growth.
The news of his departure follows several brutal rounds of layoffs at Nine – which owns several major media assets including the Nine Network, the Sydney Morning Herald, radio stations 2GB and 3AW, and Stan – earlier this year.
In late August the company saw 85 voluntary redundancies across the n Financial Review, Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, WAtoday and Brisbane Times.
A number of veteran journalists and editors were among the voluntary redundancies.
The layoffs were part of a $30million cost-cutting plan for the media giant which involved around 200 of 5,000 total jobs being cut.
The decision led the boss of the Pedestrian Group to announce his departure alongside plans to cut deals with Vice, Refinery29, Gizmodo, Lifehacker and Kotaku.
The staff cuts and a proposed 10.5 per cent pay increase over three years saw Nine’s heavily unionised workforce strike for the first five days of the Olympics.
Editorial staff walked back into newsrooms around the country after higher-ups agreed to an extra one per cent increase in pay among other demands.
Those included ethical use of artificial intelligence, a commitment to report on workplace diversity and agreeing to negotiations for a fair deal to freelancers.
Nine’s chief people officer Vanessa Morley on Wednesday announced the company’s external review into its workplace culture will likely be handed down at the end of October.
‘We remain committed to sharing the findings of the report with you and expect to be in a position to do so by the end of October,’ she said.
The report was prompted by sexual harassment allegations against Nine’s former head of news and current affairs Darren Wick.
The company’s management team faced criticism for its handling of the allegations and slowness to remove Wick following several complaints. Wick left the company in March.
Costello stepped down as chair in June after a News Corp journalist claimed he’d been pushed over at Canberra Airport while quizzing the head about Sneesby’s reaction to the Wick allegations.
Nine’s full-year results, which were delivered two weeks ago, reported a 31 per cent drop in profit and three per cent drop in revenue.
Executive bonuses were cut as the company did not reach its EBITDA target of $533million, set by the board.
Nine’s share price has plummeted 57 per cent since Sneesby became CEO.
It’s market capitalisation fell below $2billion to $1.96billion this week.
The company’s share price has similarly suffered with a 38 per cent decrease recorded so far this year.
The upcoming review will deliver a verdict on the culture at Nine – including its News and Current Affairs department.