Question

Identify this current event highlighted in the news that relates to business strategy. You will submit a report that should include written analysis of the current event. In the report, you must discuss the current event, and then discuss how it affects the strategy of businesses that may be impacted by the current event.

Airbnb Hires New CFO From Amazon

Airbnb Inc. has hired another executive from Amazon.com Inc., this time naming Dave Stephenson as chief financial officer of the vacation-rental portal ahead of a potential initial public offering.

Mr. Stephenson will join the San Francisco-based company in early January, according to a company blog post, and will report to Airbnb Chief Executive Brian Chesky. He joins Airbnb after 17 years at Amazon, where he was most recently vice president and finance chief of the company’s world-wide consumer organization and responsible for Amazon’s global web sales.

Before that, he was vice president for Amazon’s international consumer business and oversaw the finances of various business units, including the North American retail operation, merchant services and Amazon Web Services.

Mr. Stephenson left Amazon for a brief stint to work as president and CFO of Big Fish Games Inc., a maker of computer and smartphone games, and served for nearly a decade at Procter & Gamble Co. on various finance and engineering roles, Airbnb said.

“Dave is one of the best financial operators in the world and there’s no one better prepared to serve as our CFO,” Mr. Chesky said in the blog post. “In the years ahead, Dave will be Airbnb’s quarterback for long-term growth, driving us to be even more efficient and leverage what makes Airbnb unique to create new businesses and continue to expand.”

Mr. Chesky has said Airbnb is preparing for an IPO in 2019, but the timing is uncertain. Airbnb was valued by investors at $31 billion as of a capital raise in March 2017.

In September, the company had requested the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission change its rules that could potentially allow the home-sharing platform to give hosts stock in the company.

Mr. Stephenson will succeed Laurence Tosi, who stepped down from Airbnb in February to focus on his investment fund.

“I am thrilled to be joining and bringing my experience leading fast-growing businesses at scale to help Airbnb accelerate its already incredible growth,” Mr. Stephenson said in the blog post.

Airbnb earlier this year hired another executive from Amazon, Greg Greeley, who became president of its homes unit.

Compensation details for Mr. Stephenson weren’t immediately available. Airbnb didn’t immediately respond to a request for additional comment. Amazon declined to comment.

Corrections & Amplifications
Greg Greeley is the president of Airbnb’s homes unit. An earlier version of this article incorrectly named him Mr. Geeley. (Nov. 26)

Answer 1

Hiring CFO from Amazon is a very prominent step taken by air bnb in its respective environment. Add company requires proper alignment with the International strategies to expand its structure in developing countries like India, china, bangladesh, pakistan and other countries, having a CFO that understands International environment and have worked for multinational organisation as an international chief financial officer, availability of opportunities for air bnb is directly increasing. As a company could have better plan for increasing its market as well as well I know the standards of operation in international business and Standards best type of structure would provide adequate level of support to its business opportunities and increase its probability in the respective environment which creates a difference for the overall revenue generation by air bnb.
If the company also gets home sharing platform for hosting the stock in the company then it would be affecting the overall level of revenue generation by a huge margin. This would create an effect of extensive availability of opportunity for the specific organisation to obtain better segment of the market as well as to provide adequate level of support in its business operations.