The marketing manager of Samsung in the United States suddenly leaves the company after an internal investigation

According to a Samsung report, Samsung conducted an internal investigation into its US marketing activities and fired several employees. The Wall Street Journal. Time is running out, as Marc Mathieu, Samsung's marketing director for nearly four years, left the company last week.

Mathieu's name may not be familiar, but he was instrumental in pushing Samsung to invest in the YouTube creator community and led the company for several difficult times. In particular, he was involved in the disastrous reminder of the Galaxy Note 7 in 2016. Mathieu also helped launch the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus the following year – phones that have done much to restore the company's reputation.

Most recently, he has led collaborations with YouTubers like Casey Neistat to "humanize" the company. "The creators are today, in a way, the marketers and the advertisers of our products," he said last year.

According to WSJ, Samsung was investigating whether its marketing staff had violated the company's policy regarding contracts with business partners. This is the kind of audit that allegedly sought bribes or other forms of corruption between Samsung staff and marketing partners. But the type of violation found by the audit is unclear.

the WSJ observes that marketing employees often accompany their partners during sponsored entertainment events, such as the Super Bowl or the Oscars, and that such behavior may create a conflict of interest. This behavior could call into question "whether marketers are directing their resources to the best performing marketing channels," the publication says.

Samsung declined to say whether the audit had taken place or whether Mathieu's departure was related to the investigation.

In a statement sent to The edge, society has downplayed any wrongdoing. "Organizational changes have recently been made to our marketing division," said one representative. "We have a strong management team in the US that remains focused on continuing to provide North American customers with the products and experiences they expect from the Samsung brand."

Mathieu and Samsung said last week that the former executive was turning to other opportunities, although Samsung has yet to appoint a replacement.

According to WSJIn its report, the audit caused significant troubles within Samsung. The publication notes that some staff members were dismissed without compensation on March 15 after the audit (although Mathieu's departure was previously announced). Employees reportedly said Samsung's findings were trivial and unfairly treated.