Joel Kaplan Replaces Nick Clegg as Head of Meta’s Global Policy Team

Meta named Joel Kaplan as its new Chief Global Officer Affairs Officer, replacing Nick Clegg. According to Reuters, the change in Meta’s leadership came just before the inauguration of Donald Trump’s Presidency. The company aims to build better relationships with the new President as he has called out the platform’s handling of political content and has also threatened to imprison its CEO.

Joel Kaplan is taking up the role of leading Meta at a sensitive time for the company. Since 2011, Kaplan is the Vice President of Meta in charge of Global Public Policy, which means that he used to report to Clegg. This leadership change comes at a time when Meta Platforms is redefining its priorities. In October 2024, Meta announced that the tech giant is developing its own AI search engine to cut down its reliance on Bing and Google.

As Kaplan moves to a leadership role, his early position would not be left empty. Another long-time executive named Kevin Martin will take the position of Kaplan in the company. Clegg wrote in a social media post on Thursday, 2nd January 2025. ” As a new year begins, I have come to the view that this is the right time for me to move on from my role as President of Global Affairs at Meta.”

He also said, “Joel is quite clearly the right person for the right job at the right time – ideally placed to shape the company’s strategy as societal and political expectations around technology continue to evolve”

Strategic Leadership Change

The decision to appoint Joel Kaplan as leader confirms Meta’s plans to strengthen its policy work at a time when it is under scrutiny from governments all over the world. The shift also aligns with the company’s changing approach to challenges that the tech giant has to face from the global regulation of personal data, protection from fake news, and the rules of the future of artificial intelligence.

The shift by Nick Clegg away from day-to-day policy leadership must be seen as indicative of wider changes within Meta Platforms. As for Clegg, he will remain intensely involved in Meta’s long-term strategy and planning but Kaplan will be important for dealing with short-term policy issues that the company needs to face.

Clegg wrote in a memo to the employees, “I will look forward to spending a few months handing over the reins — and to representing the company at a number of international gatherings in Q1 of this year. My time at the company coincided with a significant resetting of the relationship between ‘big tech’ and the societal pressures manifested in new laws, institutions and norms affecting the sector”

Clegg’s time at Meta coincided with some of the major events. He helped the company in steering through the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Other than that, he represented the company in Washington and London at the panels for Artificial Intelligence and Congressional hearings.

A Pivotal Moment for Meta

With Meta recently launching Motivo AI, Kaplan’s appointment is seen as a step toward ensuring the company’s policies align with its broader vision while addressing the regulatory challenges posed by emerging technologies.

As Joel Kaplan steps up to lead the Meta policy team, all eyes will be on how his tenure shapes the company’s regulatory strategies and public engagement. This transition marks a new chapter in Meta’s leadership, reflecting its commitment to navigating an increasingly complex global policy environment.

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta said, “Nick: I’m grateful for everything you’ve done for Meta and the world these past seven years. You’ve … built a strong team to carry this work forward. I’m excited for Joel to step into this role next given his deep experience and insight leading our policy work for many years.”