SAN JOSE, Calif. (KRON) — A little over a month after a racism scandal ousted the Silicon Valley Organization’s President and CEO, the board has appointed a new leader.
The new interim President & CEO is Robert, or Bob, Linscheid, who is the former CEO of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce. The organization publicized the appointment on Wednesday.
Linscheid is replacing a position left by Matthew Mahood, who resigned in October after a “blatantly racist, completely inappropriate and unacceptable,” image was posted to the SVO website, the organization said.
In announcing his resignation, Mahood said he had no knowledge of the image’s posting on the website, but that he is ultimately responsible for the team member who made the “horrible mistake.”
A third party investigation revealed the image came from San Jose City Council District 6 ads run by SVO’s Political Action Committee.
“The ads were racist in nature and showed a serious lack of sensitivity towards our community. We take full responsibility for the ads – they never should have been developed and there is no excuse for stoking fear and division in our community.”
Statement on Dec. 9, 2020 by Silicon Valley Organization
The SVO’s full statement and results of the investigation can be read here.
The new interim president & CEO also works as a senior advisor to the president of California Polytechnic State University, and is an advocate for Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, according to SVO.