Tech

One of Facebook's most senior executives is so loyal she says she'd agree to 'cleaning the toilets' if asked

Key Points
  • While it's unlikely the vice president of social good would be called upon for custodial services, Naomi Gleit's apparent willingness is indicative of the mission-driven mentality that keeps Facebook executives from leaving, even amid months of scandal.
  • Executives across the company have faced heightened scrutiny in recent months as reports of widespread data leaks led critics to question the oversight and driving forces within Facebook.
  • "At the end of the day you can't quit your family," Gleit said.
Facebook's VP of Social Good Naomi Gleit during Facebook's 2016 Social Good Forum.
Kevin Mazur | Getty Images

One of Facebook's most senior executives, Naomi Gleit, believes so deeply in the social media company and her colleagues that she'd agree to "cleaning the toilets" if asked, Gleit told Recode in an interview.

"I would kind of do anything with them," Gleit told the news site. "If they told me ... to work on cleaning the toilets, I would say, 'Okay.'"

While it's unlikely the vice president of social good would be called upon for custodial services, Gleit's apparent willingness is indicative of the mission-driven mentality that characterizes most senior Facebook executives — and that keeps them from leaving, even amid months of scandal.

Nine of Facebook's top executives have been at the company for more than nine years each. Only two top executives have left in 2018.

Most recently, WhatsApp CEO Jan Koum left reportedly over disagreement about the company's advertising model. Koum joined the company's top ranks in 2014 when Facebook bought encrypted messaging service WhatsApp.

Executives across the company have faced heightened scrutiny in recent months as reports of widespread data leaks led critics to question the oversight and driving forces within Facebook. Shareholders, lawmakers and Facebook users alike called for transparency into the company's decision-making and directed particular criticism at founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook executives have said the company didn't do enough to curtail abuse on the platform, and it has made several changes to its privacy policies in the weeks since the reports

"At the end of the day you can't quit your family," Gleit said.

Read why other Facebook executives have stuck around in the full Recode report.

Disclosure: CNBC parent NBCUniversal is an investor in Recode's parent Vox Media. Recode and NBC have a content-sharing arrangement.