What Airbnb’s New Guard Faces Ahead of IPO

As Airbnb prepares to go public, its strengths and weaknesses are coming into focus. A previously shorthanded executive team has been reinforced with veterans from Amazon, creating new power centers inside the company, as our new org chart shows. The company’s home-sharing business has become more popular with lucrative business travelers. A strong third quarter has the company on pace to meet its forecast for the year, although it will not meet its “stretch” goal for room nights, an important measure of occupancy, according to a person briefed on the figures.

Yet some new initiatives have fallen short of expectations. Airbnb, valued on paper at $31 billion, also has struggled to grow its base of hosts, people familiar with the matter say. In addition, new regulatory restrictions on short-term rentals in many cities have slowed the company’s growth. And while Airbnb has said it will be profitable for the second straight year, it faces a growing threat from Booking.com.