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Co-founder Chris Kelly to leave Convene
Kelly had stepped down as president earlier this year
Convene’s co-founder is leaving.
Chris Kelly, who also serves as vice chairman, will resign from the flexible office provider by the end of the year, according to Commercial Observer. He will still advise the startup.
Convene has raised $260 million since its founding in 2009. Its backers include RXR Realty, the Durst Organization and Brookfield Asset Management.
Kelly announced the decision Friday at a company meeting. He said he had been thinking about stepping down for years. The move signals a “vote of confidence in the company and its leadership,” he said, according to the report.
The departure leaves open the role of vice chairman and president, a position Kelly vacated in February. Convene doesn’t plan to find a new vice chairman and has put aside hiring a new president, Kelly said.
Kelly, who co-founded New York-based Convene with CEO Ryan Simonetti, said he plans to take some time off before his next full-time role.
Besides New York — where it has locations that include 75 Rockefeller Plaza, 780 Third Avenue and One Liberty Plaza — the company has space in Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. In August, it inked its first international deal, taking on 100,000-square feet at 22 Bishopsgate in London. At the under-construction tower, Convene will offer 50,000 square feet for meetings and conferences and an additional 50,000 square feet for flexible office space. [CO] — Mary Diduch