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SurveyMonkey's CEO Dies While Vacationing With Wife Sheryl Sandberg

Posted by timothy on from the short-life dept.

McGruber writes: Dave Goldberg, the chief executive of SurveyMonkey and spouse of Facebook COO Sheryl K. Sandberg, died on Friday night. He was 47. 'We are heartbroken by this news,' Facebook said in a statement. Mark Zuckerberg, a friend of the family, said that Mr. Goldberg died while on vacation abroad with Ms. Sandberg. Goldberg built Surveymonkey into a provider of web surveys on almost every topic imaginable, with 500 employees and 25 million surveys created. News reports said it was valued at nearly $2 billion when it raised a round of funding last year.

67 of 176 comments (clear)

  1. Ms or Mrs? by JamesA · · Score: 1

    > and spouse of Facebook COO Sheryl K. Sandberg
    > vacation abroad with Ms. Sandberg

    1. Re:Ms or Mrs? by Richard_at_work · · Score: 1, Informative

      Mrs or Ms is a personal choice for the woman, and should be respected - so if she is being referred to as Ms its usually because that is how she has requested to be known, or because a publication wants to play it safe when not knowing.

    2. Re:Ms or Mrs? by worf_mo · · Score: 2

      TFS could have gotten her name right in the title, though.

    3. Re:Ms or Mrs? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      If you do not change your last name after getting married, it is common to keep Ms., instead of using Mrs. Both are correct:

      Mrs - married
      Miss - not married
      Ms - married or not married

    4. Re:Ms or Mrs? by McGruber · · Score: 2

      TFS could have gotten her name right in the title, though.

      I don't know how I screwed that up but I did -- "Susan" was the name I put in the title of my submission.

    5. Re:Ms or Mrs? by AchilleTalon · · Score: 1

      Why not calling everyone Mr ? Since it no longer means anything or drop the title for everyone.

      --
      Achille Talon
      Hop!
    6. Re: Ms or Mrs? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Sanberg? Goldberg?

      And people still think the media isn't run by Jews?

    7. Re:Ms or Mrs? by worf_mo · · Score: 1

      Don't worry, can happen. I'm sure Sigmund Freud would have an explanation for this.

    8. Re:Ms or Mrs? by shadowrat · · Score: 1

      not only that but in the title her name is susan and in the summary her name is sheryl.

    9. Re: Ms or Mrs? by bledri · · Score: 1

      Sanberg? Goldberg?

      And people still think the media isn't run by Jews?

      No, but the Internet is still populated by angry trolls that blame others for their miserable lives.

      --
      Some privacy policy Slashdot.
  2. So? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    n/t

  3. isnt..... by ganjadude · · Score: 1

    isnt survey monkey the ads that were all over everything back in the early 2000s that always led to malware??? or am i thinking of a different group

    --
    have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same
    1. Re:isnt..... by sribe · · Score: 1

      isnt survey monkey the ads that were all over everything back in the early 2000s that always led to malware??? or am i thinking of a different group

      Yes, you are thinking of a different group. SurveyMonkey is an online app for designing and administering and analyzing surveys.

    2. Re:isnt..... by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 2

      I'm sorry, I have a cold.

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    3. Re:isnt..... by KingAdrock · · Score: 2

      That was Punch The Monkey.

  4. Survey: How Does This Make You Feel? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    A) Sad
    B) Happy
    C) Indifferent
    D) None of the Above

  5. Predictable by Frosty+Piss · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Dude was fat and lead a stressful life. Under these conditions, such things happen.

    This is not a slight or an insult, it is a statement of fact about the general lifestyle of Americans like myself: Diet, exercise, and stress reduction, unless you want to go at 45, 50 or 60 (and 60 is the new 45) ...

    --
    If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
    1. Re:Predictable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Plus he's living with a wife that wants to ban words.

      Can you even imagine getting into an argument with her?

      I mean, he died while on vacation. With her. That's high stress.

    2. Re:Predictable by Frosty+Piss · · Score: 1

      You, of course, are a dynamo who powered through college, got a job with an amazing start-up, and is on the cutting edge of something.

      No? Did I read your resume wrong?

      --
      If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
    3. Re:Predictable by eulernet · · Score: 2, Informative

      He doesn't seem overweight for me.

      I don't believe he led a stressful life.
      But I'm sure he never listened to his own body, because he was completely obsessed with his job.
      Heart attacks have clear symptoms, and if you are a "normal" person, as soon as you have an alarming symptom, you go immediately check your health with a doctor.
      He probably over-exhausted his body, working 12 to 16 hours every day, never listening to his body, and having a weak heart.
      This reminds me of Karoshi: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K...

    4. Re:Predictable by koan · · Score: 1

      dynamo who powered through college, got a job with an amazing start-up, and is on the cutting edge of something.

      Reductio ad absurdum? Straw man? So my point only matters if I have met the above criteria?

      Silly kid...

      This is what you desire? To me that seems the most empty meaningless thing you could do with your life.

      --
      "If any question why we died, Tell them because our fathers lied."
    5. Re:Predictable by NoKaOi · · Score: 2

      I don't believe he led a stressful life.

      ...

      He probably over-exhausted his body, working 12 to 16 hours every day

      Um......

    6. Re:Predictable by metlin · · Score: 4, Informative

      He doesn't seem overweight for me.

      While I feel for the family, to say that he is not overweight shows just how much society's perception of being overweight has changed.

      Take a look at this picture, for instance.

      And take a look at the body fat visual chart for comparison.

      With the overhanging belly, he is easily 35-40% at least. While the majority of people today are fat (especially in the US), that is not healthy. If anything, until recently, 20-25% used to be average.

      Above 25-30% is the fat territory, and that's when you start increasing your risk for heart attacks, diabetes, and strokes. Mr. Goldberg may have had a lot of things going for him, but he is most certainly more than a little overweight.

      Assuming he's ~6 feet, I would argue that he is probably ~30-40+ lbs overweight. That is not at all healthy. I'm not arguing everyone should have abs, but there's a happy medium here. Mr. Goldberg is very clearly on the unfortunate side of the medium.

    7. Re:Predictable by jittles · · Score: 1

      He doesn't seem overweight for me.

      While I feel for the family, to say that he is not overweight shows just how much society's perception of being overweight has changed.

      Take a look at this picture, for instance.

      And take a look at the body fat visual chart for comparison.

      With the overhanging belly, he is easily 35-40% at least. While the majority of people today are fat (especially in the US), that is not healthy. If anything, until recently, 20-25% used to be average.

      Above 25-30% is the fat territory, and that's when you start increasing your risk for heart attacks, diabetes, and strokes. Mr. Goldberg may have had a lot of things going for him, but he is most certainly more than a little overweight.

      Assuming he's ~6 feet, I would argue that he is probably ~30-40+ lbs overweight. That is not at all healthy. I'm not arguing everyone should have abs, but there's a happy medium here. Mr. Goldberg is very clearly on the unfortunate side of the medium.

      I'm 6'3. I can easily be 50 pounds overweight and not look like that guy. If he is that tall, he's got to be closer to 70-80 pounds overweight. Granted, if you look at BMI charts they think I should weigh about 20 pounds less than I do when I think I look fit and trim.

    8. Re:Predictable by quenda · · Score: 1

      He doesn't seem overweight for me.

      That says a lot about the society we live in now.
      Goldberg was clearly obese. But that would only take a few years off his otherwise 80-year life expectancy. Unlikely to be relevant.

    9. Re:Predictable by Threni · · Score: 1

      No, if you're obese you risk a lot more than "a few" (what is that? 2? 3? 5?) years. It puts extra stress on just about every part of your body especially, crucially, your heart. 1 in 5 americans die from obesity related illnesses. People eating obviously unhealthy foods watching the news and worrying about Al Queda when there's a 9/11-sized death toll every day from what they're eating.

    10. Re:Predictable by Jack+Griffin · · Score: 1

      While I feel for the family, to say that he is not overweight shows just how much society's perception of being overweight has changed.

      I remember teasing fat kids at school back in the 80s. In a school of 1800 kids there were about 4 fat kids, and by fat I mean not slim. These days it seems everyone is fat and you have to be morbidly obese to stand out. Even on TV where it was the domain of the slim and beautiful, it is now ok for people to be fat. You don't really notice how normalised it has become until you go away to a non-western country and time warp back to the 80's, then come back and look in shock at an entire nation of fat fucks.

  6. Some random CEO passed away? Oh noes! by YrWrstNtmr · · Score: 2

    If it were Gates/Jobs/Ellison/Woz/McNealy/Bezos/Dell....OK. That warrants a thread here.
    But the CEO of some random online survey company?

    Oh wait....Facebook related....gotcha.

    1. Re:Some random CEO passed away? Oh noes! by roninmagus · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Not really random; SurveyMonkey is THE goto survey company online, as far as valuation.

    2. Re:Some random CEO passed away? Oh noes! by DamonHD · · Score: 3

      Someone like many of us, and/or with a life many of us would aspire to, of an age similar to the likely median here (indeed I am a newly-minted 47-year old tech CEO, though not in his league nor in the Valley), white collar, dies suddenly.

      It's shocking.

      And though most deaths in the news can be dismissed as "would never happen to me because $HUGE_DIFFERENCE", this is less easy to dismiss, even if it turns out ultimately to be just bad luck.

      Don't be so airily heartless: this is some genuine human interest for nerds, even if maybe no huge shakes in the big scheme of things.

      Rgds

      Damon

      --
      http://m.earth.org.uk/
    3. Re:Some random CEO passed away? Oh noes! by amiga3D · · Score: 1

      Hey, it warranted a reply from you. He must be important.

    4. Re:Some random CEO passed away? Oh noes! by YrWrstNtmr · · Score: 1

      No, it gathered a clickbait post here, so it is fair bait for ridicule.
      I'd never heard of him, nor the company.

      If the CEO of my former employer, that operates in sort of the same space, but is probably quite a bit larger, were to pass away...I would not expect to read of his demise in here.
      But this particular guy is Facebook related, so Dice must genuflect properly.

      I fully commiserate with the family and company. But really?

    5. Re:Some random CEO passed away? Oh noes! by tgv · · Score: 1

      > as far as valuation.

      Ah, you a worthy of front page attention by being the visionless CEO of some unimportant and technologically totally uninteresting company as long as enough drool comes from the mouth of Goldman-Sachs analysts?

      At least you're honest, I suppose.

    6. Re:Some random CEO passed away? Oh noes! by metamatic · · Score: 1

      ROGER CARASSO died last year while on vacation. I think that is more worthy of a thread on Slashdot.

      --
      GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
  7. Re: Some rich guy? by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    And why about the rich ones?

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  8. Re:Old Slashdot chuggin' along by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I'm more confused by the summary that reads more like an advert than anything resembling mourning.

  9. Come on, Slashdot, at least get her name right! by AdamHaun · · Score: 5, Interesting

    SurveyMonkey's CEO Dies While Vacationing With Wife Susan Sandberg

    Dave Goldberg, the chief executive of SurveyMonkey and spouse of Facebook COO Sheryl K. Sandberg, died on Friday night.

    Her name is Sheryl. It's fairly well-known. How do you screw this up when the correct name is in the first sentence of the summary?

    --
    Visit the
    1. Re:Come on, Slashdot, at least get her name right! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

      He probably died after calling her Susan.

    2. Re:Come on, Slashdot, at least get her name right! by Lost+Penguin · · Score: 4, Funny

      Just don't call her Shirley....

      --
      I am the unwilling control for my Origin.
    3. Re:Come on, Slashdot, at least get her name right! by roccomaglio · · Score: 1

      He confused it with the NPR lady. Not really that surprising two minor celebrities with very similar names.

    4. Re:Come on, Slashdot, at least get her name right! by Darinbob · · Score: 1

      Never heard of Sheryl. Susan Stanberg is too close to Susan Stamberg who is well known. which is why a lot of news sites got it wrong I guess. But a COO? Who knows the name of any COO, I don't even know the name of the COO in my company... A non-celebrity, even within facebook I suspect.

    5. Re:Come on, Slashdot, at least get her name right! by AdamHaun · · Score: 1

      She's better known for her book Lean In and the associated social movement, which encourages women to actively pursue their careers. Her name has come up on Slashdot before.

      --
      Visit the
  10. *shrug* by koan · · Score: 1

    Karma.

    --
    "If any question why we died, Tell them because our fathers lied."
  11. Sheryl or Susan? by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 2

    The summary says Sheryl and the title says Susan. Susan Sandberg is an NPR reporter famous for the cranberry relish recipe and a cute story that goes with it.

    --
    sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
    1. Re:Sheryl or Susan? by 140Mandak262Jamuna · · Score: 1

      Really? thanks for the correction.

      --
      sed -e 's/Chuck Norris/Rajnikant/g' joke > fact
  12. let it be a warning by kencurry · · Score: 1, Insightful

    To all: life is short, so life it to the fullest every day. RIP Mr. Sandberg.

    --
    sigs are for losers (except to point out that sigs are for losers)
    1. Re:let it be a warning by jinchoung · · Score: 1

      this is an absurd sentiment and always has been.

      if you live to the fullest every day, you'd have nothing left for tomorrow nevermind retirement.

  13. Re: Some rich guy? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Insightful

    You think Surveymonkey was a contribution to society?

  14. the article title makes the death sound suspicious by crispytwo · · Score: 1

    I think it is strange that someone is vacationing with their spouse now.

  15. Note to Self by Tau+Neutrino · · Score: 4, Funny

    After reading the comments here, and noting the level of caring, consideration and sympathy for a family going through very difficult circumstances, I've concluded I should never die.

    --
    Lemmings are silly; dinosaurs are extinct.
    1. Re:Note to Self by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I intend to live forever. So far, so good.

      - Steven Wright

  16. Re: Some rich guy? by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    They're a bit like religion. Yes, there are some good aspects, but in total, it's more of a hassle than the benefits warrant.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  17. Re:Obituary or feminist propganda? by TechyImmigrant · · Score: 1

    I think he leaned in a bit to far and fell.

    --
    I should use this sig to advertise my book ISBN-13 : 978-1501515132.
  18. Asshole by vanye · · Score: 4, Insightful

    What a bunch of assholes you all seem to be.

    Someone dies. A spouse, father and son, and everyone's reaction seems to be along the lines of "good riddance". Two children are going to grow up without a father and your best attempt at humanity is "ohh another 1%-er died - so what"

    Is this news - no, but it is social interest. Its a reminder to live whatever life you have to the best you can, because you never know when you'll die.

    So get out of your parent's basement and do something today that makes people proud to know you.

    richard - 48, overweight, stressed, 2%-er

    1. Re:Asshole by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      A million other people died today as well. Why are we talking about this guy?

      Because sycophants love to idolize the rich.

    2. Re:Asshole by tgv · · Score: 1

      Closer to 300,000, I think.

  19. Investors by ArcadeMan · · Score: 1

    SurveyMonkey ... recently valued by investors at $2 billion.

    Valued by investors with shares of SurveyMonkey, no doubt.

    --
    Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins
  20. Re:the article title makes the death sound suspici by Fnord666 · · Score: 2

    I think it is strange that someone is vacationing with their spouse now.

    His mistress must have had a previous engagement.

    --
    'The tyrant will always find pretext for his tyranny.' - Aesop's Fables
  21. Re:And those that will die as wage slaves? by nbauman · · Score: 1

    Okay then, please tell me all the nice things you have to say about Hitler.

    He was a good public speaker.

  22. Re:Lean In by Proudrooster · · Score: 1

    Someone called Dateline NBC.... maybe it was a reaction to a drug. Death by viagra? Drug reactions are usually what suddenly kill rich folk like e.g. (Bruce Lee, Michael Jackson, Jim Belushi) The rich can afford better doctors and more drugs.

  23. Re:And those that will die as wage slaves? by amiga3D · · Score: 1

    When I can't say anything nice I simply say nothing at all.

  24. Cause of Death by gimmeataco · · Score: 1

    I'm not asking for a full autopsy report, but I'm tired of "famous person dies from undisclosed cause." Was it natural causes or something else? I know this may not be the case here, but I hate when people celebrate a person who dies in a less than noble manner (example: celebrity role model dieing from drug overdose)

    1. Re:Cause of Death by Midnight_Falcon · · Score: 2
      I've been asking this question since seeing his death announcement -- coverage in the NYTimes and elsewhere has been nothing short of propaganda for him with zero mention of the reason for his death. Honestly, SurveyMonkey needs to go away..consumers are over-surveyed already; and it is the poster child for annoying, spammy messages for surveys that require a lot of time; I don't think this guy needs a state funeral.

      So what happened? Extremely mega-rich (we're talking top percentile of the 1% here) people don't tend to just die suddenly in their mid-40s for no reason. Drugs? Murder? No one is saying anything; and I find this quite strange.

    2. Re:Cause of Death by Midnight_Falcon · · Score: 2
      Taking some time to google this, many others have the same question. The internet's working theory: It was suicide.

      While this is pure speculation, it makes a lot of sense in the context of how shady the revelation of his death has been. Had it really been suicide, it completely discredits Sheryl Sandberg's "Lean In" book and much of her preaching. In addition, it shows a lot of the propaganda about him being such a nice guy and caring for the kids wasn't on point...no loving father offs himself for selfish reasons before his children are of age.

      There's also a deleted tweet that seems to indicate the couple was in DC, not in some undisclosed location "abroad," at the time of death. It makes sense to lie about this so people don't go getting records from DC about cause of death, autopsy, etc.

  25. Whenever a 1 percenter dies by sproketboy · · Score: 1, Funny

    A kitten smiles.

  26. Re:Color me Old Fashioned. by neminem · · Score: 1

    Good for her. Why should she? Maybe it made sense when women were expected to stay at home, but these days, just getting married doesn't in any way remove any part of a woman's identity any more than it does a man's, so why should one lose their last name and not the other? (When we got married, we were totally going to hyphenize, until we actually looked into how much effort it'd be, and decided to just both keep our original names, at least until/unless we ever have kids. Note: I'm male.)

  27. Re:And those that will die as wage slaves? by amiga3D · · Score: 1

    I know, he's really a lot nicer now.