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TikTok<\/a> Chief Operating Officer V. Pappas is stepping down after five years with the short-video company owned by China’s ByteDance<\/a>, according to an email seen by Reuters on Thursday.<\/p>\n In an email to staff, Pappas said they would be taking on an advisory role for the company during the transition.<\/p>\n “Given all the successes reached at TikTok, I finally feel the time is right to move on and refocus on my entrepreneurial passions,” said Pappas, who uses the pronoun they.<\/p>\n ByteDance Chief Executive Shou Chew also announced Thursday in a memo to employees shared with Reuters that Zenia Mucha, previously a 20-year veteran at Walt Disney<\/a>, will join TikTok as chief brand and communications officer.<\/p>\n Adam Presser, TikTok’s chief of staff, will become head of operations and oversee content, user operations and distribution, Chew said.<\/p>\n TikTok has faced scrutiny worldwide over security concerns due to its Chinese ownership.<\/p>\n U.S. lawmakers last week introduced new legislation to protect Americans’ user data from being used by U.S. adversaries.<\/p>\n Last month, TikTok sued Montana after it became the first state to ban the app state-wide.<\/p>\n \u00a9 Thomson Reuters 2023<\/em><\/p>\n