Hootsuite’s new CEO has some thoughts about Facebook’s advertiser rebellion

Hootsuite, a tool that helps companies manage their social media accounts, has tapped a top executive from Zendesk as its CEO.

Tom Keiser, formerly chief operating officer at customer service software maker Zendesk, will take the top position at Hootsuite on July 6. His appointment comes after Hootsuite founder Ryan Holmes announced plans late last year to step down. Holmes, who led the company for 12 years, will remain as chairman.

In an interview with Fortune, Keiser said because of the global pandemic, he's unable to visit Hootsuite’s Vancouver headquarters. But he said that its business is strong because more companies are trying to reach their customers at home through social media and need tools like Hootsuite to do it well.

“If you look at the space Hootsuite is in, social media and businesses trying to communicate to consumers on digital platforms, the growth is significant,” he said.

Keiser explained his vision for the company and addressed the current hot-button issues facing social media. His responses have been edited for brevity and clarity.

Tom Keiser: The company has really good solid history. It’s a $200 million business and has a really nice growth arch. There’s a lot more growth in this space as social media and social commerce has moved into the mainstream for businesses. There’s tremendous opportunity. My focus will be on making sure a foundation is in place to be able to run down different growth paths. If we can focus on growth and build a great company, it’ll become clear if there is a trajectory to an IPO or if there is another path. But we’re in no rush. It’ll become clear as we get into the next 12 to 18 months. 

Facebook tightened its policies on hate speech and ads on Friday to quell a growing boycott by advertisers. What's your opinion about Facebook’s response to the pressure?

I think of it very positively. What we’re going through right now is a compounding set of events, but it’s causing all companies to step back and take a firmer stand on what they believe in and get past sloganeering. Employees and customers are pushing companies. It’s super healthy that it’s happening. There’s change coming to social platforms from the regulatory side, but better changes will come from rising expectations from people on those platforms.