WW’s ousted CEO gets executive coaching services in exit package

Executive coaching and outplacement services are becoming increasingly common in exit packages, according to Andrew Challenger, senior vice president of outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.

Exit packages vary in cost depending on the role, but the amount WW offered Sistani is “well within the range of typical packages,” Challenger said in an email.

Sistani’s exit package also covers $50,000 of her legal fees and a month’s pay at her current salary as she hands the reins to board member and interim CEO Tara Comonte. Sistani’s total compensation in 2023 was $8.9 million, according to company filings.

Of the nearly 650 American and Canadian companies surveyed in 2022 by the management consulting firm Mercer, about 80% offered some type of outplacement services to employees. Of these firms, 93% offered senior executives coaching. In comparison, 78% offered coaching to rank-and-file employees. 

When executives are hired, their employment agreements often come with provisions for certain separation circumstances, such as if they’re terminated without cause. Some companies, like Shake Shack Inc. and Paramount Global, don’t specify the potential cost of such offerings. Others, like Hertz Global Holdings Inc., Advance Auto Parts Inc. and toymaker Hasbro Inc., have capped the value of outplacement services at $25,000, according to company filings.

Outplacement packages for executives typically include a dedicated career coach, who helps the outgoing executive figure out their next move, as well as a resume coach, according to Karel van der Mandele, senior vice president of outplacement firm Right Management. Top executives will often also get a dedicated leadership coach and a battery of leadership assessments.

A 12-month outplacement package is common at the c-suite level, van der Mandele said, and can extend into the first 90 days of the executive’s next role at another company. The amount that WW is paying for Sistani’s coaching is typical, he added, though the cost of some celebrity executive coaches’ services may run upwards of $100,000 over the course of a year.

WW, also known as WeightWatchers, struggled to retain customers amid the meteoric rise of weight-loss shots like Ozempic. The company announced job cuts in August as it looked for ways to trim costs.