And another one bites the dust.
According to the U.K.’s Daily Mail, Josh Kettler — a man hired out of the corporate world as the Duke of Sussex’s chief of staff — resigned after just three months on the job with Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex.
Kettler, who was brought on to “guide” Harry “through his next phase,” quit just as the Sussexes were to depart their California home for a “quasi-royal” tour of Colombia.
“Josh Kettler is no longer working for them,” a source told the Daily Mail on Monday.
The Daily Mail said that Kettler’s departure had been sudden and came “amid much intrigue.”
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Kettler becomes at least the 18th staff member to leave the royal couple’s employ since Prince Harry and Meghan Markle wed in 2018.
Nine or more of those staff have left since 2020, when the couple decamped from Merrie England to California.
To be fair, there may not be much “intrigue” about the departure.
“What may be most telling is that the entire time I worked there, I don’t think I heard a single current or former employee on their staff say they would take the job again if given the chance,” a former employee of the Sussexes told the paper.
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“These aren’t employees they had just found off the streets,” the source added.
“Many of them are people who had previously excelled working for demanding bosses in high-performance companies and environments.”
Indeed, Kettler — who is believed to be an American — came from the corporate world, where he had previously been employed by a medical equipment manufacturer.
Kettler had guided Harry through a successful-ish tour of Nigeria (as successful as Prince Harry’s shindigs go these days, anyhow), as well as a visit to London for the 10th anniversary of the Invictus Games, Harry’s charitable sporting event for wounded and ill veterans.
And good luck replacing him, given the fact that, as the word gets out about the Sussexes, they seem to have trouble attracting decent recruits.
Four months ago, it was reported that the Duchess of Sussex hadn’t succeeded in finding a CEO for her lifestyle/cooking brand despite several interviews.
A book two years ago exposed that aides who worked for Meghan were “broken” and “terrified” of her, as well.
The account indicated that Prince William sought out an aide that Meghan had reduced to tears and comforted her after the incident.
“Good for Prince William, because my understanding is he has been the one who was backing up the disadvantaged, bullied staff from the word go,” said Lady Colin Campbell, a royal expert who has written several biographies about the women behind the British throne.
The staff even gave itself a grim nickname for having to work with Meghan: “The Sussex Survivors Club.”
Amazingly, the Sussexes seem to be more unlikable behind the scenes than they are in front of the camera, which is a feat that takes some effort. And if they think they look bad now, just wait until their PR staff quits en masse, which should happen sometime within the next few months if history holds.
