News on Kristina Salen’s WWE departure

Former WWE Chief Financial Officer Kristina Salen was reportedly not well-liked at company HQ in Stamford, CT.

As noted earlier, WWE announced this morning that Salen is gone from the company, just hours after she participated in the WWE Q3 2021 earnings call. Salen is being replaced by new CFO & Chief Administrative Officer Frank A. Riddick III, who served as the interim CFO before Salen joined the company in August 2020, after former WWE Co-Presidents Michelle Wilson and George Barrios were let go. Riddick is also a longtime member of the WWE Board of Directors. You can click here for the full announcement on Salen and Riddick, with statements from both, and WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon.

In an update, Brandon Thurston of Wrestlenomics reports that there was talk from multiple sources several months ago that Salen was not well-liked within the company. Thurston heard this again on Thursday and was told Salen was contributing to WWE finance department employees wanting to quit.

WWE’s Human Resources department will now fall under Riddick. James Johnstone previously served as Senior Vice President of Human Resources until he was let go in April. After Johnstone left, Salen oversaw HR. There was a feeling that someone would eventually be hired to replace Johnstone, but that never happened and Riddick leading HR now is apparently a permanent change.

Salen’s two major hires were Chief Accounting Officer & Controller Karen Mullane, who started back in November, and General Counsel Samira Shah, who signed with WWE in June. Shan and Mullane worked with Salen at Moda Operandi and Etsy, respectively. It’s unclear what Salen’s departure means for Shah and Mullane moving forward.

Stay tuned for more.