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The
unexpected move came little more than a year after Staggs had
been promoted to chief operating officer, and about two years
before Iger, Disney's chief executive and chairman, is due to
retire.
A source with knowledge of the situation said Staggs, 55, had
learnt he was not guaranteed the CEO job and that the board was
going to broaden its search for a new leader. Staggs and the
company mutually decided he should step down, said the source,
who requested anonymity because the reasons were not announced.
Disney, which operates television networks, theme parks and a
movie studio, said in a statement that the board aimed to
evaluate a "robust slate of candidates."
Iger has led Disney to record profits and executed successful
acquisitions of Pixar, Marvel Entertainment and "Star Wars"
producer Lucasfilm Ltd. But he recently acknowledged subscriber
declines at Disney's sports network ESPN, raising concern among
investors about how the channel would adapt to online streaming
technology that is rapidly drawing viewers away from traditional
TV.
Disney's board may have decided the company needs a new CEO with
more experience in technology to navigate that change, Edward
Jones analyst Robin Diedrich said in an interview.
"How do you transition to that five, 10, 15 years out?" said
Diedrich, who recommends buying Disney shares. "There may be a
need there for someone who has more experience with that
consumer trend that is certainly here to stay."
Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg, who sits on
the Disney board, has been seen as a potential CEO candidate.
Facebook declined to comment.
Iger, 65, has insisted that he would retire from Disney in June
2018, though the board previously convinced him to extend his
contract twice after he announced plans to leave.
Disney's shares fell 1.5 percent to $97.18 in after-hours
trading on Monday.
The company promoted Staggs to COO in February 2015 from his
post as head of Disney's theme parks and resorts and following a
previous stint as chief financial officer. While Disney never
referred to him as the heir apparent, his move into the No. 2
job put him in the lead to ascend to CEO. One of his biggest
projects was the building of Shanghai Disneyland, which is
scheduled to open in June.
Staggs will remain employed by Disney as a special adviser to
Iger through the company's fiscal year, which goes through
September, Disney said. He joined Disney in 1990 after working
in investment banking at Morgan Stanley & Co.
CFO Jay Rasulo, who had been seen as Staggs' chief rival for the
top position, said last June that he would step down.
(Reporting by Anya George Tharakan in Bengaluru and Lisa
Richwine in Los Angeles; Writing by Peter Henderson; Editing by
Leslie Adler and Richard Chang)
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