Prior to joining Facebook, Sandberg worked at Google , where she was credited for building the search advertising division into a massively lucrative cornerstone of the web giant's business.

She has been tasked with stoking similar revenue growth at Facebook, which made $3.7 billion last year.

At the same time, Facebook hopes the promotion of one of corporate America's most high-profile women will go some way to soothe concerns over its own gender issues, especially given Sandberg's advocacy on the subject.

Before Facebook went public February, the California State Teachers' Retirement System, the second-largest largest pension fund in the United States, openly urged on the company to diversify its board to include women, calling the makeup of the all-male panel at the time "disappointing."

Facebook faced embarrassment as recently as last week, when the Wall Street Journal published advance excerpts of a memoir by Katherine Losse, an early employee who recounted being harassed and propositioned by male co-workers until Sandberg intervened when she joined the company.