Key Management Leader At Yoast SEO Steps Down

A former Yoast co-owner steps down as the company transitions to Newfold Digital management.
Marieke van de Rakt, a former co-owner of Yoast, followed her spouse, Joost de Valk, in leaving the prominent Yoast WordPress SEO Plugin company. This action inaugurates a new era under the control of Newfold Digital.

Yoast SEO: Marieke van de Rakt
In 2010, Joost de Valk and his wife, Marieke van de Rakt, founded the Yoast SEO plugin, arguably one of the most prominent and significant plugins in the world.
Marieke van de Rakt held multiple positions at Yoast, including Managing Director, Chief Executive Officer, Creative Marketing Manager, and most recently, Chief Growth Officer.
She was a part of the company during its rapid expansion from a bootstrapped plugin to a multimillion-dollar enterprise with over 140 employees.

Her departure follows the transfer of Yoast to Newfold Digital, the foremost provider of web presence solutions, in August 2021.
This achievement marks the beginning of a gradual transition away from the original team of Marieke van de Rakt, Joost de Valk, and his younger sibling, Thijs de Valk, to a team within Newfold Digital.

Bluehost, HostGator, Web.com, and Network Solutions are headquartered at Newfold Digital.

Yoast SEO Maintains Its Company Culture
Although the company is transitioning to new leadership, many of its current executives remain, ensuring that the values fostered by the founding team remain ingrained in its DNA.
Sam Alderson, the head of marketing at Yoast SEO, stated that Yoast will continue to be the same company that people around the world recognise.

Chaya Oosterbroek and Derek Herman will continue in their roles as COO and CTO, respectively, at Yoast.
Sam provided Search Engine Journal with the following insights regarding the prospects of Yoast SEO:
Chaya and Derek continue to lead the company as the executive team.
In addition, we have a robust leadership team supporting them and focusing on the next phase of Yoast.

Each of them is an ardent supporter of WordPress and open source and will advance our “SEO for everyone” mission.
Taco, who is actively immersed in the WordPress community and well-liked there, is a member of this team.

Jono, Yoast’s Head of SEO, who has more than a decade of experience in the SEO industry and is also heavily engaged in the core of WordPress, remains with the company.
As the Head of Branding, I will also strive to advance the Yoast culture and fundamental values.

Marieke leaves us in an exceptional position, and she has been sharing her knowledge with the team since the acquisition.
Everyone is eager to see what the next phase of Yoast will look like.

The official Yoast announcement stated, “While we’ll be sorry to see Marieke go, the fact that she can do so safely and joyfully is a testament to the company’s and brand’s stability.”
Marieke has spent the last few months working with our teams to ensure that her knowledge and vision are effectively transmitted.

Introducing a New Phase for Yoast SEO
Without a doubt, the company culture of fostering open source through contributions to the WordPress core and the development of the world’s foremost SEO plugin will continue.