Hootsuite founder Ryan Holmes is back as interim CEO, replacing Irina Novoselsky

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Novoselsky took the helm in 2023, when the dynamics of the social media world were dramatically changing after Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter and Hootsuite was facing a wave of competition and profitability struggles.

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The company carried out several rounds of layoffs in recent years but was rebounding by pushing artificial intelligence tools and other offerings available after Hootsuite’s 2024 purchase of analytics firm Talkwalker.

However, Novoselsky’s tenure was seen through a more critical lens after the public learned three months ago that Hootsuite has been providing services to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) since August 2024.

The DHS oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE has angered many people because of its recent immigration clampdown in the state of Minnesota and the January deaths of two U.S. citizens in federal agent-involved shootings.

News of Hootsuite’s involvement with DHS sparked protests outside the company’s headquarters and demands that Hootsuite cancel its contracts and publicly apologize.

Novoselsky held strong and kept the contract, though she admitted in January that “what we are watching unfold right now is wrong” and called the loss of life “devastating.”

Now that she’s leaving, she says “the focus for Hootsuite’s next chapter is clear: accelerating product development at the intersection of AI and social.”

Under Novoselsky, Hootsuite poured attention into AI-based software that clients can use to generate captions, post ideas and hashtags, freeing up social media managers for other tasks.

However, social media companies like Facebook, have been integrating such tools into their own platforms, reducing some of the value Hootsuite offers.

Yet the firm doesn’t appear to be straying from AI as a focus area. Holmes said in his Monday post that the company will be investing even further in the technology “to help both our customers and ourselves move faster and work smarter.”

“We’ve built a real foundation: a strong enterprise business, powerful data and listening capabilities, early traction in AI, and a more focused, disciplined company,” he said in a statement to The Canadian Press.

“Now it’s time to build on that foundation. I’m excited to be back and defining the next AI-driven era of Hootsuite.”

It’s unclear whether Holmes wants the CEO job for the long haul and what he will do about the DHS contract.

Novoselsky said earlier in the year that Hootsuite has worked with government organizations across countries and administrations for more than 15 years, including the U.S. government.

“Our use-case with ICE does not include tracking or surveillance of individuals using our tools. Any claim otherwise is false and prohibited under our terms of service, which we actively enforce,” she said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2026.

Nono Shen, Wolfgang Depner and Tara Deschamps, The Canadian Press