Stafford Masie, Chief Executive of Google South Africa has resigned from his position at the company. Masie, who joined Google in 2007 after a stint as South African country manager of Novell, cited personal reasons for the split from the global tech giant.
In his personal blog (smasie.blogspot.com), Masie had the following to say about his resignation: “I resigned from Google to re-focus on my marriage and family which critically suffered due to many reasons, but predominantly work commitments and my failure to maintain a balance. My decision is completely and solely due to this personal situation which degraded to an extent where I just had to prioritize it above all else. Nothing other than my love for my wife and children prompted this decision and I am blessed enough to have the ability to take this time out (the first since I returned from the USA in ’03) after enjoying much success in my professional life.”
Google has tried to establish a presence in Africa in the last few years, with company offices and representatives being appointed in south Africa, Egypt and Kenya. Google currently has a market cap in excess of US$100 billion with 50% of profits coming from geographies outside of the United States, totaling US$2.86 billion in 4Q08. The company is yet to announce the appointment of a replacement for Masie.
Mr. Masie further indicated on his blog that he has no immediate plans to pursue other opportunities or offers for at least the next tow to four months.
Google south africa has achieved very little in terms of consumer offerings, and as such has little basis for a successful advertising business. The features offered by Google Kenya exceed those offered by SA and both are far behind other countries. It is not only disappointing it is also annoying to be redirected constantly to Google SA with its limitations of service.