Recode has led reporting on some of the growing pains at HQ Trivia and Kroll's record as a boss, both at HQ and Vine, the looping video app he also cofounded.
Recode reported that Jeremy Liew, a board member at HQ's publisher Intermedia Labs, investigated. "I found a good deal of negative sentiment about Colin and the Vine team and some discomfort with his behaviour, but I did not find evidence that warrants his removal from the company," he concluded.
HQ Trivia closed the $15 million raise in March, Axios reported , valuing the company at $100 million.
But Kroll was upfront about his shortcomings. In a statement released to Axios following HQ's $15 million raise, he admitted that he was fired from Vine for "poor management."
Kroll said: "It was a painful experience, but an eye-opening one that served as a catalyst for professional development and greater awareness in the office. I now realize that there are things I said and did that made some feel unappreciated or uncomfortable. I apologize to those people."
And on the day of his death, Kroll's own father, Alan Kroll, said he could be a "tough boss." Alan told The New York Times that his son was bruised by reporting about his management style, which could have stemmed from Colin's strong work ethic.
"He had this hard Midwest drive about him," said Alan, who raised his three sons in Detroit. "He couldnt understand people that couldnt keep up. I tried to explain to him that not everyone could do that." Ultimately, Alan concluded: "He was a young guy working on really creative stuff."
And Kroll was evidently popular with a number of HQ employees.
"He poured his heart and soul into his work and was incredibly proud of what his team accomplished. I will forever be grateful for his friendship, his leadership, and his belief in me," tweeted HQ Trivia quiz host Scott Rogowsky.
SEE ALSO: The cofounder of HQ Trivia and Vine has died at the age of 34