WeWork cofounder Rebekah Neumann, cousin of Gwyneth Paltrow, reportedly demanded employees be fired within minutes of meeting them because she disliked their 'energy'
Rebekah Neumann, the WeWork executive and wife of cofounder and CEO Adam Neumann, demanded that employees be fired after meeting them for mere minutes because she disliked their "energy," The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.
The Journal's report didn't indicate if those employees were ultimately terminated. The We Company declined to comment on this report.
Rebekah Neumann is a cofounder and the chief brand and impact officer of WeWork. She is also the founder and CEO of WeGrow, the "conscious entrepreneurial school" for children ages 2 to 11 under The We Company's corporate umbrella.
She also happens to be the first cousin of the actress Gwyneth Paltrow, the founder of the health and wellness empire Goop, which, like WeWork, has occasionally endured ridicule. Rebekah Neumann's apparent focus on "energy" is another thing they might have in common: Goop article titles include "Clearing out old energy," "Understanding how to move and manipulate energy," and "Energetic Detox: How to get rid of bad energy."
Rebekah Neumann also "pushes to infuse spiritualism in We," former employees who worked with her told The Journal.
The Journal further characterized the Neumanns as "impulsive at times," reporting that Adam Neumann was "bemoaning the number of 'B' players hired amid rapid growth" and consequently ordered his staff to fire 20% of the company's workers annually.
The We Company included a plan for succession in its initial-public-offering filing in August involving Rebekah Neumann, who was described in the filing as Adam Neumann's "strategic thought partner." The plan would put Rebekah Neumann at the helm of a committee with two board members charged with selecting a new CEO if Adam Neumann were permanently incapacitated within 10 years of the IPO.
Involving Rebekah Neumann in the succession plan yielded investor pushback. Consequently, The We Company changed course, removing her from the plan and barring her from serving the board.
Read more: WeWork CEO Adam Neumann has a $4.1 billion net worth â Here's how he spends his money
Kevin Webb contributed to this report.
