Netflix’s chief communications officer Rachel Whetstone and global public policy vice president Dean Garfield are set to exit the streamer.
“For nearly six years, Rachel and Dean have been not just leaders, but true partners,” Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said in a statement. “Their counsel, dedication and passion have shaped our company and contributed to our success. Greg and I are incredibly grateful to them both, and wish them all the best for the future.”
Sarandos plans to hire a chief global affairs officer, who will oversee policy and corporate communications. An individual familiar with the matter tells TheWrap that no one has been identified for the new role yet, adding that Garfield doesn’t have comms experience and that Whetstone wasn’t interested in the role.
The pair is the latest batch of senior executives to depart Netflix in recent months, following film chief Scott Stuber in January and vice president of ad sales Peter Naylor in July.
While Netflix reorganized its film division earlier this year, resulting in layoffs of around a dozen employees, streamlining of the company’s workforce has been less severe than that of its legacy media competitors like Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount Global over the past several months as part of efforts to cut costs.
Whetstone joined Netflix in 2018 following stints at WhatsApp, Facebook, Uber and Google, covering communications and policy issues. Before working in the tech sector, she spent the first half of her career working in U.K. politics as a policy advisor, including at the Interior Ministry.
Meanwhile, Garfield joined the streamer in 2019. Before Netflix, he served as president and CEO of the Information Technology Industry Council, executive vice president and chief strategic officer for the Motion Picture Association and vice president of legal affairs at the Recording Industry Association of America. Additionally, he was appointed by President Obama and re-appointed by President Trump to the President’s Trade Advisory Council and was appointed to the Department of Transportation Advisory Committee on Automation.
News of their departures was first reported by Deadline.
