30 Notable IT Executive Moves: January 2024

Mimecast, Cisco, Logically, Xerox, IBM and Trellix were among the tech companies making key executive hires and moves during January 2024.

A new Mimecast CEO. A new Cisco channel chief. And a new chief marketing officer at Logically.

Marc van Zadelhoff, formerly with Devo; Rodney Clark, formerly with Johnson Controls; and MJ Patent, with Logically for about a year; are just some of the biggest executive moves last month.

[RELATED: 30 Notable IT Executive Moves: December 2023]

January Tech Exec Moves

Xerox, IBM and Trellix were among the other tech giants to make executive moves during the month as companies invest in resources for sales, technology and partners.

Those executives were:

All the hiring comes despite multiple tech giants cutting their employee rosters amid growing inflation, the possibility of a recession in the near future and tightening IT budgets after high demand for technology during the height of the pandemic.

Read on for more of the 30 notable IT executive moves from January 2024.

Marc van Zadelhoff

Marc van Zadelhoff became CEO of Mimecast in January, succeeding co-founder and CEO Peter Bauer.

Van Zadelhoff joined the London-based security vendor after more than three years with Devo, accordingto his LinkedIn account. He left Devo with the CEO title.

His resume includes about a year with LogMeIn as chief operating officer, according to his LinkedIn. He left LogMeIn in 2020.

Van Zadelhoff also cofounded IBM Security and served as general manager and CEO of the $2.5 billion, 8,000-person business unit, according to a Mimecast statement on his hiring.

About 95 percent of Mimecast’s revenue is from solution providers, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

MJ Patent

Logically promoted MJ Patent to the role of chief marketing officer, according to her LinkedIn account.

Patent has been with the Dublin, Ohio-based company – a member of CRN’s 2023 MSP 500 – for about a year. She previously served as the company’s marketing vice president.

Her resume includes more than two years with Tech Data, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Tech Data in 2020 with the title of head of global marketing for global lifecycle management.

Jacques-Edouard Gueden

Jacques-Edouard Gueden became chief channel and partner officer at Xerox in January.

Gueden has worked at the Norwalk, Conn.-based print and digital document products vendor for more than 30 years, according to his LinkedIn account. He previously served as executive vice president and president of Xerox in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). He started at Xerox in 1989.

About 15 percent of Xerox’s revenue comes from solution providers, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Rodney Clark

In January, Rodney Clark started his new role as global channel chief and senior vice president of partnerships and small and medium business at Cisco.

Clark joined the San Jose, Calif.-based networking vendor after about a year with Johnson Controls, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Johnson with the title of chief commercial officer.

His resume includes more than 24 years with Microsoft. He left the tech giant in 2022 with the title of corporate vice president of global channel sales and channel chief.

Ketaki Rao

Ketaki Rao came to IBM in January as vice president of product performance management and software-as-a-service (SaaS) transformation.

Rao joined the Armonk, N.Y.-based tech vendor after about two years with Data.ai, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Data.ai with the title of chief product officer.

Her resume includes about two years with Salesforce. She left Salesforce in 2021 with the title of head of identity and consumer rights for Customer 360 Audiences.

IBM has about 55,000 channel partners worldwide and 12,000 in North America, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Akash Sah

In January, Akash Sah became chief procurement officer at Consolidated Communications.

Sah came to the Mattoon, Ill.-based company – No. 42 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after more than three years with Brinks Home, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Brinks with the title of chief strategy officer.

His resume includes more than a year with Bossa Nova Robotics. He left the company in 2020 with the title of head of manufacturing operations.

Maryse Schlesinger

Maryse Schlesinger joined Zscaler in January, taking on the role of vice president for the global deal desk.

Schlesinger came to the San Jose, Calif.-based security vendor after more than a year with Chainalysis, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Chainalysis with the title of vice president of global revenue operations.

Her resume includes more than five years with Splunk. She left Splunk in 2022 with the title of senior director of sales operations and deal operations.

Zscaler has about 1,900 channel partners worldwide and about 900 in North America, accordingto CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Yuneeb Khan

Yuneeb Khan became the new chief financial officer of Trellix in January, according to a company statement.

In this role, he “will lead the company's worldwide finance organization, which includes enterprise controllership, financial planning and analysis, global compliance, tax, treasury, and investor relations.”

Khan joined the Plano, Texas-based security vendor after about a year with Quotient Technology, according to his LinkedIn account. Quotient was acquired last year by Neptune Retail Solutions. Khan left Quotient with the title of CFO and chief operating officer.

Trellix has about 7,500 channel partners worldwide, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Janae Bennett

Janae Bennett became global vice president of digital sales for IBM subsidiary Red Hat in January, according to her LinkedIn account.

Bennett came to the Raleigh, N.C.-based open source tools vendor from parent company IBM, where she has served as global vice president of digital sales development for about two years.

Her resume includes more than 11 years with Citrix. She left the vendor in 2021 with the title of director of sales development and commercial inside sales.

About 80 percent of Red Hat’s revenue comes from solution providers, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Desiree Motamedi

Desiree Motamedi joined Salesforce in January, becoming chief marketing officer of the Next Gen Platform.

As part of this role, she will “champion the development of data-driven, audience-centric messaging that amplifies Salesforce's vision” as a “vanguard of trusted Data, AI, and CRM,” according to a LinkedIn post.

Motamedi came to the customer relationship management tools vendor after more than two years with Shopify, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Shopify with the title of vice president and global head of product marketing.

Her resume includes more than six years with Facebook and Facebook parent company Meta. She left Meta in 2021 with the title of senior global marketing director of Workplace.

Salesforce has about 11,000 partners worldwide, according to the vendor.

Marie-Astrid Dehoux Hervet

ServiceNow gained a new vice president of global technology workflow sales and go-to-market (GTM) with the hiring of Marie-Astrid Dehoux Hervet in January.

Dehoux Hervet joined the Santa Clara, Calif.-based digital workflows vendor after more than 22 years with Microsoft, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Microsoft with the title of Americas general manager for Modern Work and Surface.

ServiceNow has about 2,000 channel partners worldwide, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Oliver Parker

Oliver Parker returned to Google Cloud in January as vice president of artificial intelligence.

Parker joined the Mountain View, Calif.-based tech giant after more than a year with Okta, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Okta with the title of senior vice president and general manager.

He previously worked at Google Cloud as a VP for about four years, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Google in 2022.

His resume includes more than 18 years with Microsoft. He left Microsoft in 2018 with the title of GM for health care.

Ashish Dhawan

Ashish Dhawan joined NetApp in January as senior vice president and chief revenue officer of the cloud business.

Dhawan came to the San Jose, Calif.-based data infrastructure tools vendor after more than five years with Amazon Web Services, according to his LinkedIn account. He left AWS with the title of managing director and worldwide head of sales for enterprise workloads.

His resume includes more than eight years with Juniper Networks. He left the vendor in 2018 with the title of vice president of sales for Asia Pacific, Japan and China.

NetApp has about 13,000 channel partners worldwide and about 1,000 in North America, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Elizabeth McIlhany

Elizabeth McIlhany became chief product officer at Pax8 in January.

McIlhany has worked at the Greenwood Village, Colo.-based distributor for about two years, previously serving as senior vice president of product, according to her LinkedIn account.

Her resume includes more than a year as vice president of product management with Dreamstage, according to her LinkedIn account. She left the company in 2022.

Pax8 has about 24,000 channel partners worldwide and about 20,000 channel partners in North America, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Brett Hannath

Brett Hannath returned to Intel in January, taking on the role of corporate vice president and chief marketing officer.

Hannath came to the Santa Clara, Calif.-based chipmaker after about eight years with McAfee and Trellix, a security vendor formed through the merger of FireEye and McAfee Enterprise in 2021.

During his time with McAfee, the security vendor was owned by Intel. Hannah also worked at Intel for about six years previously, leaving Intel in 2006 with the title of group manager of business development and alliances, according to his LinkedIn account.

Jessica Couto

Jessica Couto joined LastPass in January, taking on the role of vice president of global channels and alliances.

Couto came to the Boston-based password management vendor after about two years with Imperva, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Imperva with the title of vice president of North America channels.

Her resume includes about two years with Vectra AI as vice president of channels for the Americas. She left Vectra in 2021.

LastPass has about 850 channel partners in North America, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs.

Jim O'Dorisio

In January, Jim O'Dorisio became senior vice president and general manager of Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s storage business.

O'Dorisio joined the Houston-based tech vendor after about three years with Iron Mountain, according to his LinkedIn account. He left the company with the title of senior vice president and GM.

His resume includes about 14 years with Dell Technologies and EMC. Dell closed on its EMC acquisition in 2016. O'Dorisio left Dell in 2017 with the title of vice president and chief operating officer for business and technology operations.

HPE has about 80,000 channel partners worldwide, according to CRN’s 2023 Channel Chiefs. It has about 10,000 in North America.

Stephen Hilton

Stephen Hilton became chief operating officer of Capgemini’s Cloud Infrastructure Services (CIS) business in January, according to his LinkedIn account.

Hilton joined the France-based company – No. 3 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after about two years with Gainwell Technologies. He left Gainwell with the title of chief of operations.

His resume includes about a year with DXC Technology. He departed the company in 2018 with the title of executive vice president.

Chris Turner

ITsavvy hired Chris Turner in January as vice president of government sales.

Turner came to the Oak Brook, Ill.-based company – a member of CRN’s 2023 MSP 500 – after more than four years with Panasonic, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Panasonic with the title of senior territory account manager for public safety for New England

His resume includes more than 13 years with Insight. He left the company in 2019 with the title of business development director.

Drew Morefield

In January, DXC Technology hired Drew Morefield as vice president and global sales leader for security.

Morefield came to the Ashburn, Va.-based company – No. 10 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after about eight years with Capgemini, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Capgemini with the title of head of the global cyber portfolio.

His resume includes about a year with GuidePoint Security. He left GuidePoint in 2016 with the title of regional partner for Texas and Louisiana.

Cindy Gruensfelder

Cindy Gruensfelder became president of Leidos’ defense systems sector in January.

This business consists “of more than 4,700 highly skilled professionals” who deliver “advanced systems in the areas of aerospace, airborne, land, and sea,” according to Leidos.

Gruensfelder joined the Reston, Va.-based company – No. 11 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after more than 30 years with Boeing and McDonnell Douglas, according to her LinkedIn account.

She left Boeing with the title of vice president and general manager of missile and weapon systems (MWS). Boeing and McDonnell Douglas merged in 1997.

David Posey

SHI hired David Posey in January as vice president of sales for strategic accounts in the Central U.S.

Posey came to the Somerset, N.J.-based company – a member of CRN’s 2023 MSP 500 – after more than a year with Riverbed Technology, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Riverbed with the title of sales director.

His resume includes more than five years with Zones. He left Zones in 2021 with the title of regional vice president of sales.

Rohit Nagarajan

Rohit Nagarajan became president and chief revenue officer of SoftwareOne in January, according to a company statement.

He will report to CEO Brian Duggy and lead “SoftwareOne’s global revenue operations, with a focus on driving sales and marketing excellence, ensuring a seamless customer experience and identifying strategic growth initiatives,” according to the statement.

Nagarajan came to the Switzerland-based company – a member of CRN’s 2023 MSP 500 – after about 10 years with SAP, according to his LinkedIn account. He left SAP with the title of president for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) North.

John Bergeron

CACI hired John Bergeron in January, placing him in the role of senior vice president of technology innovation and labs for CACI’s National Security and Innovative Solutions (NSIS) business.

Bergeron came to the Reston, Va.-based company – No. 20 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after about a year with Teledyne FLIR, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Teledyne with the title of vice president of global services.

His resume includes more than 15 years with Raytheon Technologies, according to his LinkedIn account. He left the company in 2022 with the title of vice president of product support.

Ashish Kognolkar

Ashish Kognolkar became vice president of technology solutions at EPAM Systems in January.

Kognolkar joined the Newtown, Pa.-based company – No. 21 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after about a year with Innova Solutions, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Innova with the title of senior vice president and chief growth officer for areas including retail, energy, manufacturing and technology.

His resume includes more than nine years with Tech Mahindra. He left the company in 2023 with the title of SVP and group head of CloudNXT.

Mike Schaffer

Conduent hired Mike Schaffer in January as vice president of revenue operations, according to his LinkedIn account.

Schaffer joined the Florham Park, N.J.-based company – No. 22 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after more than four years with Upwork. He left Upwork with the title of vice president of sales operations.

His resume includes about five years with ADP, according to his LinkedIn account. He left ADP in 2019 with the title of vice president of sales operations.

Jay Elms

In January, Jay Elms joined CyrusOne, taking on the role of senior vice president of global strategic sales, according to his LinkedIn account.

In this role, he “will lead CyrusOne’s strategic sales team and build deeper relationships with hyperscalers to support their growth and need for sustained innovation,” according to a company statement.

Elms came to the Dallas-based company – No. 40 on CRN’s 2023 Solution Provider 500 – after about six years with NTT Global Data Centers Americas. He left NTT with the title of vice president of global sales.

Samir Patel

Samir Patel returned to Netrix in January, taking on the role of vice president “with a renewed focus on enhancing customer and employee experiences while driving the company towards market leadership,” according to a LinkedIn post.

Patel came back to the Bannockburn, Ill.-based company – a member of CRN’s 2023 MSP 500 – after less than a year with Workstorm, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Workstorm with the title of chief commercial officer.

His previous Netrix tenure lasted about 10 years. He left in 2023 with the VP title, according to his LinkedIn account.

Matt Bynum

In January, Matt Bynum took on the role of senior vice president of managed services at Verinext.

Bynum joined the Blue Bell, Pa.-based company – a member of CRN’s 2023 MSP 500 – after about two years with AWS, according to his LinkedIn account. He left AWS with the title of solutions architecture leader.

He previously worked at Verinext predecessor company Veristor Systems for about two years, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Veristor in 2022 with the title of VP of services. Veristor and Anexinet merged in 2022 and rebranded to Verinext in 2023.

Jeff Winnett

Jeff Winnett became vice president and head of global channel sales at Fusion Connect in January.

Winnett joined the Atlanta-based company – a member of CRN’s 2023 MSP 500 – after about six years with RingCentral, according to his LinkedIn account. He left RingCentral with the title of VP of partner sales for North America and Australia.

His resume includes less than a year with Honeywell. He left the company in 2017 with the title of head of global channel sales and commercial excellence leader for software solutions, according to his LinkedIn account.