Pinterest Operations Head Don Faul Departs in a "Personal Decision"

Pinterest* operations head Don Faul, one of the visual discovery site’s highest-ranking execs, is departing the company.

A Pinterest spokesperson confirmed the move, which was described as a “personal decision.”

The company would give no further details of the management change under the leadership of co-founder and CEO Ben Silbermann. The former Marine came to Pinterest from big jobs at both Google and Facebook, making him a big hire for the San Francisco-based Pinterest when he arrived in 2012.

Such shifts are common in fast-growing startups, which often see a lot of turnover in executive ranks as they rejigger the organization. Pinterest — which has been organizing around products of late — declined to say who would be replacing Faul, if anyone at all.

But here’s a statement from Pinterest, which says very little, but is very pleasant:

“Don’s had a huge impact since joining Pinterest in 2012. He’s grown partner, support and international teams from four to well over a hundred, launched offices across the U.S. and around the world, supported our tremendous growth in users, and helped launch our monetization efforts. Don has played a critical role in scaling our leadership and culture and will be sorely missed. We wish him nothing but the best in whatever endeavor is lucky enough to next receive his unique combination of leadership, integrity, and work ethic.”

And from Faul:

“My time at Pinterest has been truly special. I’m so proud of the incredible team we’ve built and what we’ve accomplished together. I’ve been inspired by the impact that Pinterest has had in helping people explore their passions and plan their future and will be rooting for the company’s continued success while I think about what’s next for me.”

* Full disclosure: Pinterest executive Joanne Bradford is an independent board member of Re/code parent company Revere Digital, but has no involvement in our editorial process.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?

Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple of big issues with relying on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on:

First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.

Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. And we can’t do that if we have a paywall.

So even though advertising is still our biggest source of revenue, we also seek grants and reader support. (And no matter how our work is funded, we have strict guidelines on editorial independence.)

If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today? Any amount helps.

One-Time Monthly Annual

$5/month

$10/month

$25/month

$50/month

Other

$

Yes, I'll give $5/month

Yes, I'll give $5/month

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via