--- description: LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner explained why he decided to sell his company to Microsoft in a note to employees. title: LinkedIn CEO: Here's Why I Sold the Company to Microsoft image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9b3edbe9b87e1ae/69888024cd1bbad8ae6ffb02/linked-in-ceo-weiner.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Acquisitions](/tag/acquisitions/) ## Acquisitions Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # LinkedIn CEO: Here's Why I Sold the Company to Microsoft  by [Lisa Eadicicco](/author/lisa-eadicicco/)  ## Lisa Eadicicco Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 13, 2016 1:42 PM CUT  Jeff Weiner, chief executive officer of LinkedIn Corp., speaks during a Studio 1.0 interview in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016. Jeff Weiner, chief executive officer of LinkedIn Corp., speaks during a Studio 1.0 interview in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Thursday, Feb. 25, 2016.David Paul Morris—Bloomberg/Getty Images  by [Lisa Eadicicco](/author/lisa-eadicicco/)  ## Lisa Eadicicco Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 13, 2016 1:42 PM CUT Microsoft [announced Monday](http://news.microsoft.com/2016/06/13/microsoft-to-acquire-linkedin/#sm.000005mdjdo5fycvlvbslc6wkdxsh "undefined") that it would [acquire professional networking site LinkedIn](http://time.com/4366072/microsoft-linkedin-acquisition-buys/ "undefined") for $196 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at $26.2 billion. In an [email to LinkedIn employees](https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/linkedin-microsoft-changing-way-world-works-jeff-weiner?publis "undefined"), LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner explained why he decided to sell the company to Microsoft. Weiner mentions Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella’s leadership as a driving factor. “The Microsoft that has evolved under Satya’s leadership is a more agile, innovative, open and purpose-driven company,” Weiner wrote. “It was the latter point that first had me thinking we could make this work, but it was his thoughts on how we’d do it that got me truly excited about the prospect.” **Read more**: [All the Apps Microsoft Has Bought Over the Past 2 Years](http://time.com/4366072/microsoft-linkedin-acquisition-buys/ "undefined") Weiner shared some ideas for how LinkedIn’s services could be integrated into Microsoft’s products, such as weaving LinkedIn’s graph into Outlook, Calendar, Office, Windows, and other Microsoft apps. The LinkedIn CEO also said the company would remain a fully independent entity within Microsoft. See Weiner’s full letter below, which the CEO posted to LinkedIn on Monday: --- > “” --- ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4366106/linkedin-microsoft-why/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4366106/linkedin-microsoft-why/"},"headline":"LinkedIn CEO: Here's Why I Sold the Company to Microsoft","datePublished":"2016-06-13T13:42:55.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:50:05.989Z","description":"\"Essentially, we’re both trying to do the same thing but coming at it from two different places\"","url":"https://time.com/4366106/linkedin-microsoft-why/","keywords":["Acquisitions","Tech","Microsoft","LinkedIn"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9b3edbe9b87e1ae/69888024cd1bbad8ae6ffb02/linked-in-ceo-weiner.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lisa Eadicicco","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/lisa-eadicicco/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf9b3edbe9b87e1ae/69888024cd1bbad8ae6ffb02/linked-in-ceo-weiner.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"LinkedIn Corp. 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