No music, no intro, this is The Morgan Snyder Show.
I see a lot of things social media. After all, I live there.
I spend the majority of my waking hours managing my client’s accounts, and trying to stay active with my own.
A lot of what you read makes you roll your eyes. One can only take so much cringe…
But every once in a while, you see something that makes you stop scrolling and say, “Okay. This is cool.”
That kind of a post, for me, came in the form of a job ad in my LinkedIn feed.
PayPal is hiring a Head of CEO Content for Alex Chriss. Up to $236,500 a year.
Granted, it’s a huge range, and I’m guessing there will be VERY FEW who can ask for the top, but still, this post is big news for executive writers.
My feed blew up with people talking about this. I’m not surprised. In fact, I think it’s one of the biggest content leadership moves I’ve ever seen. It’s a sign of what’s to come. (fingers crossed)
In light of this big annoucement, I thought it’d be fun to break down why a 31-billion-dollar company is investing a quarter-million dollars into their CEO's personal brand.
Why is Paypal Doing This?
So, why now for PayPal? Let's look at the situation.
The new CEO, Alex Chriss, took over in September 2023. He inherited a company under immense pressure. The stock was down over 75% from its peak. The market was skeptical.
Then in January, he made these “world-shocking” innovation announcements. The market’s reaction? A collective shrug. The announcements were seen as small improvements, not as big everyone was hoping for.
Seemed like there was a massive gap between the internal strategy at PayPal and the public's perception of it. A bridge had to be built. And who is the best person to build that bridge? The most visible, most influential person in the entire company: the CEO.
This isn’t a one-off. The 2024 Edelman Trust Barometer confirms what we all feel in our gut: trust in institutions, in the media, in government, is in the toilet. But you know who people do trust more and more? The leaders of companies.
CEOs are becoming the most reliable sources of information. PayPal knows this. They know that in a world where viral tweets can affect your stock price, you cannot afford to be reactive. You have to own the narrative.
This isn't just a defensive move against negative press. It’s about proactively shaping investor confidence.
Just look at Adobe. Last month, their stock took a hit after a vague corporate announcement about their AI strategy.
It was full of jargon, and the market got nervous.
But then CEO Shantanu Narayen got on his personal LinkedIn and started posting specific examples of creators using their new AI tools, making the strategy tangible and real.
He told a human story that the press release couldn't. That’s narrative control. That's the job PayPal is hiring for.
Being on the Offensive
This is about offense, too—building a competitive advantage, especially when it comes to the war for talent.
A few years ago, the idea of a CEO having a personality was a liability. Today, it’s a talent magnet. When a leader shares behind-the-scenes struggles and values, he humanizes the brand. The best people want to belong to something bigger. They want to work for a person they believe in.
And this scales down, too. It’s not just for the billionaires.
Just look at what John Hu is doing at Stan, the creator store platform. They just made the Forbes' Billion Dollar Startup list.
Is the product good? Yes.
But a huge part of their growth is John’s own brand.
He is relentlessly authentic online, sharing his wins, his doubts, the lessons he’s learning.
He’s the CEO AND the company’s most compelling case study.
Top engineers and marketers see that and they want to work for him.
Now, contrast that with the ghostCEOs. Think about any of the big, legacy companies. Can you name their CEO? Do you know what they stand for, what their vision is? Probably not.
Their narrative isn’t out in the open. And when a crisis hits—layoffs, a bad quarter—that vacuum gets filled by angry employees and skeptical journalists. There’s no pre-existing well of trust to draw from.
In 2025, being invisible is the same as being vulnerable.
This is exactly what PayPal is trying to solve. They’re in a multi-front war against Apple Pay, Google Pay, Stripe, Block...you name it. They can't win by just being another faceless corporation. They need to reposition themselves, and putting Alex Chriss front and center makes that shift more relatable, more memorable, and more human than any corporate messaging ever could.
This Writer Better Be Freaking Awesome
So, they’re hiring a master storyteller for a quarter of a million dollars a year to shape the CEO's voice.
To tell his story. To make him a visible, credible leader. Will other companies follow suit?
I did find a similar, quieter role pop up for a general manager in Microsoft’s AI division. The title was different, but the job was the same: make the leader the voice of the strategy.
And I know what some of you are thinking. “Great, Morg. But that's PayPal. That's Microsoft. I don't have a quarter-million-dollar budget for my personal brand.”
I know. I don’t either. I think it’s interesting to look at is a shift in priority.
Really it’s a shift in how business is done. We are entering an era where the CEO isn't just a leader of a company, they are a content channel.
A media empire in their own right. You are either a signal, or you are noise.
If you’re a regular listener of the show, you know that you don't need a huge budget to do it.
Like I mentioned earlier this week, my most successful 100-day run on social media ever came from posting less, and just being more interesting. From using humor. From having a personality. It led to more conversations, more relationships, and more clients.
PayPal is placing a massive bet that the voice of their leader is one of their most valuable assets.
If a 31.8 billion-dollar company has decided it’s essential to invest in their CEO's personal brand to stay competitive, it’s probably something that most companies should look at.
Final Note
Before you go, a reminder: my book, Keep It Light, is free to read on Amazon Unlimited. It’s a year’s worth of content starters for the busy executive. Take an idea, steal a line—it’s yours. If you like it, please give it 5 stars, along with this podcast. It tells other people that this is worth listening to.
My friends: Keep writing, keep pushing, and I’ll see you next time.