• Following an unconventional takeover, Elon Musk is expected to serve as temporary CEO of Twitter.
  • The aquisition places the world’s richest man at the helm of one of the most powerful platforms.
  • Consultants and experts say leadership changes are on the horizon.

Last week, Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company, had his offer to buy Twitter for $44 billion accepted. The acquisition would place the world’s richest man at the helm of one of the most powerful social platforms.

The takeover sparked speculation about the future of leadership at Twitter and whether Parag Agrawal, the company’s recently appointed CEO, would remain in the role. However, speculation of a potential CEO swap was squashed on Thursday as CNBC reported that Musk is expected to serve as temporary chief executive officer of Twitter.

Known for his visionary leadership and out-of-the-box thinking, Musk took Tesla from a fringe brand to the world’s most valuable car company and recently sent a four-person civilian crew into orbit in a SpaceX spaceship.

Experts who spoke with Insider said it’s tough to predict the moves of such a characteristically unpredictable figure. “It’s impossible to know what Elon Musk will do next,” said Richard Levick, the chair and CEO of Levick, a crisis-public-relations firm.

Levick's firm has represented Musk's private spaceflight company, so Levick has firsthand knowledge of Musk's penchant for unpredictability.

"I remember one night in particular he called at 6 or 7 o'clock at night and said, 'I'm flying into Washington. Can we do a press conference at 9 o'clock tomorrow morning?'" Levick said. "We pulled it off, and the press conference was a success, but I share that story because I think it's indicative of no one knows what Elon Musk is thinking, and sometimes not even Elon Musk."

Insider spoke with experts including Levick; a reputation-management consultant; and a CEO consultant about how Twitter's executive leadership could shake out under Musk. Their two biggest predictions were that changes are imminent and that a CEO swap is likely.

Change is on the horizon

Musk has been public about his grievances with Twitter's leadership. Last week, Musk, who has more than 91 million followers, posted a barrage of tweets criticizing two of the company's top executives.

Jim Baker, a deputy general counsel for Twitter, faced trolling after Musk affirmed a tweet by the right-wing activist Mike Cernovich accusing Baker of committing fraud as a general counsel for the FBI. Twitter's policy and legal head, Vijaya Gadde, also faced online harassment after Musk described her decision to restrict a news story on the platform as "incredibly inappropriate."

Experts argue that Musk's rifts with top executives are clear indicators that Twitter's leadership will change under his watch.

"I think you're going to see a painful cascade of carnage," Eric Schiffer, the chair and CEO of Reputation Management Consultants, said. "It will be an emotional whiplash to many of the executives who had a comfortable position."

Musk has also made clear his intentions to transform Twitter into a bulwark of free speech. In response to his tweet on Tuesday criticizing "the extreme antibody reaction from those who fear free speech," he said: "By 'free speech,' I simply mean that which matches the law. I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law."

Levick questioned whether Musk will be able to invoke the kind of free-speech rights he envisions globally across the platform. "They don't have the First Amendment in China," he said. "European regulators are way out in front of the Americans in terms of regulating the internet. How will he handle the Digital Services Act that the EU recently passed?"

Going private will mean Twitter will no longer have to post quarterly financials publicly. Jay Baer, a digital-marketing consultant, suggested that would make it easier to implement sweeping changes to the company's leadership and revenue model.

Last year Twitter reported total revenue of about $5 billion. "I think he truly believes that with some changes, there could be a colossal midterm increase in revenues and profits," Baer said. "Ultimately, I don't think he makes a move like this unless he sees financial upside."

Still, though some have lauded him as a decisive leader, Musk often confounds observers. "I think it's very hard to interpret what he's doing and his intentions. I think we are wrong to assume that he will necessarily get deeply involved in the day-to-day operations," Tom Goodwin, a CEO consultant, said.

Musk as Twitter CEO 

Agrawal, who replaced Twitter's founder Jack Dorsey as CEO last year, took the helm at a critical point as the platform introduced revenue-producing features such as its Blue subscription product and Ticketed Spaces, which allows creators to charge for exclusive access to their content.

Following Dorsey's announcement of Agrawal's appointment, Musk posted a meme of Agrawal's head edited on the body of Joseph Stalin, the Soviet leader known for his strict censorship. In a securities filing on April 13, Musk said he did not "have confidence in management." Given Musk's vehement criticisms of Agrawal, the pending removal of the current CEO comes as no surprise to experts.

In a companywide town hall following the announcement of Musk's acquisition, Agrawal told employees that the future of Twitter under Musk is uncertain, Reuters reported. 

Baer said that Agrawal's expulsion shouldn't be seen as a result of incompetent leadership.

"Given the amount of tumult internally and globally during his short tenure, I don't see too many ways he could have done better," Baer said. "Talent acquisition is up. Twitter is leading in NFTs among social networks. The platform is as vital as ever as a cultural touchstone, globally."

Musk's tendency toward brashness and off-the-cuff tweets poses questions about his approach to free speech and his ability as Twitter's owner and CEO to use the platform as his personal megaphone. And the experts who spoke with Insider say that while Musk has demonstrated success as a leader, it's anyone's guess what he'll do next.