TripAdvisor Begins CEO Succession Hunt Amid Travel Rebound

TripAdvisor is on the hunt for a new CEO after its co-founder and long-time CEO, Stephen Kaufer, announced he will step down from his position in 2022.

The company didn’t provide an exact date for Kaufer’s departure, which is likely dependent on the start date of his successor.

In the company’s note, Chairman of the Board Greg Maffei said, “We are fortunate to already have excellent internal candidates and we will complement this with an external search to ensure we get the best leader for Tripadvisor.”

Kaufer co-founded the online travel guidance platform in 2000 and over the past 21 years has served as the company’s President and CEO. Prior to that, Kaufer was an executive in the software industry and served as the President of software vendor CDS. He also co-founded and was the VP of Engineering of CenterLine Software.

He leaves the company as it rebounds from a tough period as COVID-19 halted many would-be travellers’ plans. However, over the past year, regulations and restrictions have eased and travellers who have been cooped up are now fueling strong demand for TripAdvisor’s platform.

"We come to the close of 2021 in a strong position—travelers are returning as we exit the pandemic, exciting new initiatives are well on their way, and we continue to leverage our strengths as we evolve TripAdvisor for the future," Kaufer stated. "Given our strong position, the talented teams driving our plans forward, and after over 20 years at TripAdvisor, I believe now is the best time to announce my plans to step away from the company next year.”

In the past quarter, TripAdvisor posted $303 million in revenue up just over 100% from just $151 million in Q3 2020.

To help the company capitalize on the return of commercial travel, TripAdvisor launched its own subscription service called TripAdvisor Plus. The $99 per year service promises subscribers discounts at hotels, car rentals, and other travel-related businesses but struggled to see mass adoption and was forced to switch up its rewards structure just months after launch.