LivePerson Appoints John Collins as Interim Chief Executive Officer

Rhea-AI Summary

LivePerson announces that John Collins, the CFO, has been appointed as interim CEO. Robert LoCascio steps down as CEO and will continue as a Special Advisor. The Board is working on finding a new CEO. Second quarter financial results will be discussed in a conference call.

Positive

• John Collins appointed as interim CEO
• Company well-positioned for profitable growth

Negative

• Robert LoCascio steps down as CEO

NEW YORK, Aug. 8, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- LivePerson, Inc. (NASDAQ: LPSN) ("LivePerson" or the "Company"), a global leader in Conversational AI, today announced that John Collins, the Company's Chief Financial Officer, has been appointed to the additional role of interim Chief Executive Officer. In connection with the appointment, Robert LoCascio has stepped down as CEO and as a member of the Board of Directors, effective August 7, 2023. He will continue as a Special Advisor to the Company through December 31, 2023.

The Board has been working with a nationally recognized executive search firm to identify LivePerson's next CEO and intends to effect a smooth and orderly transition. 

Board Chair, Jill Layfield, said, "John is the right person to step in on an interim basis as CEO and is well-positioned to continue advancing our strategy with the Board's ongoing support and oversight. Together with the deep bench of talent across the organization, including LivePerson's finance team who will continue to support John in his capacity as CFO, we will ensure LivePerson doesn't miss a beat."

Layfield added, "As the search for our next CEO progresses, we will benefit from Rob's involvement as a Special Advisor to facilitate an orderly transition. We are grateful for his contributions and wish him the best in his next chapter."

Collins said, "With the recent product launch and rightsized cost structure, we are strongly positioned to meet our customers' evolving needs and accelerate profitable growth. I am committed to ensuring we continue to execute on the strategy and enhance value for shareholders."

LoCascio commented, "Having worked closely with John as CFO, I have every confidence in his ability to take on the additional role of interim CEO. Moreover, LivePerson has an incredibly dedicated team of employees who, together with John and the rest of the management team, will continue to drive the Company's success. I look forward to supporting a smooth transition in my capacity as a Special Advisor."

The Company notes that Mr. LoCascio's departure did not result from any disagreement regarding LivePerson's financial statements or disclosures.

2023 Second Quarter Financial Results
In a separate press release issued today, LivePerson reported 2023 second quarter financial results. LivePerson will host a conference call and live webcast at 5 p.m. ET today to discuss its financial results. The live webcast and replay will be available on the LivePerson website at https://ir.liveperson.com.

About John Collins

John Collins, 41, has served as CFO of LivePerson since 2020, overseeing the Company's finance organization. As CFO, Collins has played a critical role in driving LivePerson's corporate strategy and business development efforts, including successfully executing M&A, divestiture, and capital markets transactions. Collins previously led the development of automations and machine learning to support strategic decision-making and predictive analytics as LivePerson's Senior Vice President of Quantitative Strategy. Prior to joining LivePerson in 2019, Collins pioneered approaches for transforming third-party data exhaust into investment signals as Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer of Thasos, a cloud-based artificial intelligence platform. Collins also served as portfolio manager for a systematic equities strategy at an NYC-based hedge fund. Collins's previous financial services experience includes executing leverage finance transactions at Credit Suisse and building automated equity surveillance systems to detect suspicious trading activity at the New York Stock Exchange. Collins holds an MBA from MIT's Sloan School of Management, a JD from Chicago-Kent College of Law, and a BS from the University of Central Florida.

About LivePerson, Inc.
LivePerson (NASDAQ: LPSN) is the global leader in enterprise conversations. Hundreds of the world's leading brands — including HSBC, Chipotle, and Virgin Media — use our award-winning Conversational Cloud platform to connect with millions of consumers. We power nearly a billion conversational interactions every month, providing a uniquely rich data set and safety tools to unlock the power of Conversational AI for better business outcomes. Fast Company named us the #1 Most Innovative AI Company in the world. To talk with us or our AI, please visit liveperson.com.

Forward Looking Statements
Statements in this press release regarding LivePerson that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future events or results to differ materially from such statements. Any such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. It is routine for our internal projections and expectations to change as the quarter and year progress, and therefore it should be clearly understood that the internal projections and beliefs upon which we base our expectations may change. Although these expectations may change, we are under no obligation to inform you if they do. Some of the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements contained herein include without limitation, our ability to execute on and deliver our current business and product plans and goals, and the other factors described in the Risk Factors section of the Company's most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, filed with the SEC on March 16, 2023 and as from time to time updated in LivePerson's Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The list of risk factors is intended to identify only certain of the principal factors that could cause actual results to differ from those discussed in the forward-looking statements.

Media Contact:
Mike Tague
pr@liveperson.com

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SOURCE LivePerson, Inc.

FAQ

Who has been appointed as interim CEO of LivePerson?

John Collins has been appointed as interim CEO of LivePerson.

What is the role of Robert LoCascio now?

Robert LoCascio will continue as a Special Advisor to the Company.

What is the plan for finding a new CEO?

The Board is working with an executive search firm to identify LivePerson's next CEO.

What will be discussed in the conference call?

The conference call will discuss LivePerson's second quarter financial results.