Fourteen months after Tom Staggs was named COO of Walt Disney
Co., a promotion thought to position him as CEO Bob Iger's successor, the
company announced that Staggs is leaving the company.
Staggs will step down as COO on May 6 and remain with Disney as a special adviser to Iger until the end of September.
Tom Staggs
Staggs’ departure ends
a 26-year career at Disney. During that time, he served as CFO and
also headed the Parks and Resorts division.
“Tom has been a great friend and trusted colleague for more than 20
years,” said Iger in a statement. “He’s made important contributions to this
company, earning wide respect across the organization for his
achievements and personal integrity. I’m proud of what we’ve
accomplished together, immensely grateful for the privilege of working
with him, and confident that he will be enormously successful in
whatever opportunity he chooses.”
With approximately
two years left before Iger is slated to step down as chairman and CEO, Disney said its board of directors will "broaden
the scope of its succession planning process to identify and evaluate a
robust slate of candidates for consideration."