30 Notable IT Executive Moves: November 2015

Start It Off

As 2015 inches toward a close, solution providers and vendors alike have been busy shuffling their executive ranks. November involved some blockbuster moves, including the retirement of a top storage president and the poaching of rival leaders by Google, Intel and others. The month also saw companies adopting new channel chiefs and financial leadership, while executing some shocking terminations.

Take a look at who was in, and who was out, last month.

Diane Greene

In a blockbuster executive addition that caused ripples in the tech space, Google announced Nov. 19 that it had added VMware co-founder and one-time CEO Diane Greene to lead its cloud services business, as part of the acquisition of her startup, Bebop Technologies. Partners at the time said the addition shows Mountain View, Calif.-based Google is still serious about the enterprise market. With strong roots in the cloud market, Greene is best known for co-founding Palo Alto, Calif.-based VMware and serving as CEO from 1998 to 2008. In addition to being named senior vice president for Google's enterprise businesses, Greene will remain on the company's board of directors, a position she has held for three years. In the newly created position, Greene will be responsible for running Google for Work, including the Google Cloud Platform.

Rob Salmon

Last month, one of NetApp's top executives revealed that he would be retiring from the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based storage vendor. Rob Salmon, president in charge of the company's go-to-market operations, said that he would retire from the company April 29 (the end of NetApp's fiscal year) to spend more time with his family. The division that Salmon runs includes the company's support for channel, alliance and service partners. The announcement comes on the heels of the June departure of CEO Tom Georgens. Salmon is a longtime executive of the Sunnyvale, Calif.-based company, with more than 22 years at the vendor in a variety of sales and operations roles.

Murthy Renduchintala

Intel doubled down on its Internet of Things push last month with the addition of former Qualcomm exec Murthy Renduchintala. Previously serving as executive vice president of Qualcomm Technologies and co-president of Qualcomm CDMA Technologies, where he led the vendor's chip business, Renduchintala will now be responsible for leading Intel's new Client and Internet of Things Business and System Architecture Group. The new group will include the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company's Platform Engineering, Client Computing, IoT, Software and Services, and Design and Technology Solutions groups. Renduchintala spent 10 years at Qualcomm, with particular experience in system-on-chip, mobile and IoT technologies.

Tom LaRocca, Sean Maxwell

Mountain View, Calif.-based Symantec lost two more top channel executives in November. Tom LaRocca (pictured), vice president of channel programs and sales, and Sean Maxwell, vice president, global sales strategy and field enablement, were both let go by the vendor. Their responsibilities were taken on by John Thompson, vice president of worldwide partner sales, and Todd Jones, vice president of global sales operations, Symantec said. The departures come on the heels of the departure of Adrian Jones, executive vice president and general manager of global sales and operations, and just months before the company's Jan. 1 close date of its split from storage business Veritas. A source said the departures are only two of more to come, as the security vendor works to reorganize its worldwide channel group.

Ralph Loura

As Hewlett-Packard completed its division into two publicly traded companies, it lost one of its top executives. The chief information officer of the company's enterprise business, Ralph Loura, left the company one day after the split completed. Palo Alto, Calif.-based HP declined to comment at the time, but Loura told CRN in an email that although a lot had changed at the vendor, he still loved the people, products and culture.

"I had an impact while there [and] I helped design the new op model for IT, and designed myself out of it because it was what the new company needed (move from a federated model with group CIOs, to a unified/centralized model with a single CIO)," he wrote to CRN at the time. He did not say what his next plans are.

Dean Darwin

After more than a decade with the company, Dean Darwin, F5 Networks senior vice president of worldwide marketing, has left, the executive said last month in a blog post. In his previous role, Darwin served as senior vice president of the company's Worldwide Partner Organization. Before joining Seattle-based F5, Darwin held roles at Cisco, RadioFrame Networks and NetApp. In his blog post, Darwin said he was looking for some time off and to "figure out the next chapter of my life.’ F5 said a replacement has not yet been named for Darwin and marketing teams will report to Chief Operating Officer Julian Eames in the interim.

Pete Peterson

Longtime Tech Data sales and channel veteran Pete Peterson jumped to Brocade Communications last month as the company's new vice president of worldwide channel sales, in a move partners called a "big deal’ for the vendor. Peterson has been charged with building out San Jose, Calif.-based Brocade's channel programs and managing its go-to-market strategy. In an interview with CRN about the move, Peterson said he plans to leverage the channel more successfully and work to build stronger relationships with partners. Peterson spent more than 22 years at Clearwater, Fla.-based Tech Data, most recently as senior vice president of global business development.

Marten Mickos

Former Hewlett-Packard cloud exec Marten Mickos took a new role last month as CEO of HackerOne, a San Francisco-based security startup that pays hackers a bounty to find security vulnerabilities.

"HackerOne brings together responsible hackers and responsible corporations to eradicate vulnerabilities in systems on the Internet," wrote Mickos in a blog post explaining why he took the new job. "HackerOne makes a platform that companies can use to access a global community of hackers searching for vulnerabilities. In addition to representing a cause, HackerOne is also a rapidly growing business.’

Mickos joined HP 13 months ago when the vendor bought open-source startup Eucalyptus, where he was CEO. He then served as senior vice president and general manager of HP's Cloud Business, before handing over the reins of the division to focus on building ties with the startup community.

Lucas Moody

After leading security teams at multiple big-name technology companies, Lucas Moody landed a new role last month as chief information security officer at Santa Clara, Calif.-based Palo Alto Networks. He most recently served as director of information security operations and engineering at Intuit, and has also held security leadership positions at eBay, KPMG and Oracle. In his new role, Moody will be responsible for protecting the security vendor from threats and contributing to product development.

"We are pleased to welcome Lucas to the team; he is an extremely capable and experienced cybersecurity professional who understands the growing imperative to approach security with a next-generation, breach prevention mindset, and we're an even stronger organization with him leading our information security efforts," Steffan Tomlinson, CFO and executive vice president, said in a statement at the time.

Tyson Macaulay

Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Fortinet nabbed a former Intel Security executive to fill a new role as chief security strategist and vice president of consulting services. Tyson Macaulay, formerly chief technology officer for telecommunications strategy at Intel Security, joined the company last month to help Fortinet take a more "holistic approach" to data security.

"In order to fully protect businesses of all sizes from today's security threats, companies need to take a proactive approach to deliver a seamless threat posture across their infrastructure," said Holly Rollo, chief marketing officer, in a statement. "Our enterprise business is growing and Tyson will play a critical role in helping our customers future-proof their cyber security strategies to help them stay ahead of threats and protect their business."

Godfrey Sullivan

As Splunk reported its third-quarter earnings, the San Francisco-based machine data software provider also revealed that President and CEO Godfrey Sullivan, pictured, would be retiring. The change was effective Nov. 19. He was replaced by Doug Merritt, who previously served as senior vice president of field operations. Sullivan has been CEO of the company for seven years, including leading it through its IPO in 2012. Before joining Splunk, Sullivan held leadership positions at Hyperion Solutions, Autodesk and Apple. Merritt joined Splunk last year from Cisco, where he was senior vice president of product and solution marketing. He has also held top positions at Baynote and SAP.

Romil Bahl

Falls Church, Va.-based CSC revealed in an 8-K filing that Romil Bahl, executive vice president and general manager of global industries, had resigned. The change was effective Nov. 13, the company said. Bahl joined the solution provider in April 2014. Before that, he held roles at PRGX Global and Infosys. CSC did not say if it had a replacement for the executive.

Hadi Nahari

As part of a dual executive appointment Nov. 11, Brocade said it had hired Hadi Nahari as vice president and security chief technology officer. He will be responsible for developing the company's security product strategy and ecosystem.

"Cybersecurity is becoming one of the top concerns of our enterprise and service provider customers, and we're excited to have Hadi join us to deliver a pervasive product security architecture that extends beyond traditional perimeter-based defense," Ken Cheng, chief technology officer and senior vice president of corporate development and emerging business, said in a statement at the time.

Nahari joins San Jose, Calif.-based Brocade from Nvidia, based in Santa Clara, Calif., where he served as chief security architect of mobile and software platforms. He has also held security roles at PayPal, MontaVista Software, Motorola, NetScape and the U.S. government, the company said.

David Meyer

The second executive move by Brocade on Nov. 11 was to name David Meyer as a Brocade Fellow. The promotion recognizes Meyer's contributions to both the company and the industry, a statement by CTO Ken Cheng said at the time. Meyer has been with the company since 2012, serving as chief scientist and service provider CTO. He joined Brocade from San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco, where he spent 12 years as a distinguished engineer.

Nina Hargus

Filling a vacancy open since June 2015, EMC named a new, permanent chief marketing officer last month in Nina Hargus. Effective Nov. 9, Hargus became responsible for leading the Hopkinton, Mass.-based company's marketing efforts for the EMC Information Infrastructure group. She will report to Jeremy Burton, president of products and marketing, who has been filling the role in the interim. Before her new appointment, Hargus served as CMO of VCE.

"Nina has had a long and successful career at EMC and VCE, and brings with her the advantage of having seen the company from many different vantage points,’ Burton said in a statement at the time. "That diverse range of experience and proven track record of execution make her a great fit for this role. I'm thrilled to have her leading the team.’

Adrian Lajtha

System integrator giant Accenture said last month that its chief leadership officer, Adrian Lajtha, would retire from the Dublin-based company early next year. Responsibilities for his role will be split, with Chief Human Resources Officer Ellyn Shook picking up responsibilities for leadership development, succession planning, inclusion and diversity and human capital strategy and Chief Strategy Officer Omar Abbosh assuming responsibilities for corporate citizenship. Shook will now be chief leadership and human resources officer. Lajtha has been with the company for 36 years, serving in the chief leadership officer role for the past seven. He helped the company launch its first human capital strategy and the Skills to Succeed program.

Tony Chang

Tintri, a VM-Aware storage company based in Mountain View, Calif., said Nov. 12 that it had added Tony Chang as executive vice president of engineering. Chang joined Tintri from NetApp. He has also held roles at LogLogic and Foundstone. CEO Ken Klein said in a statement at the time that he was "thrilled" to add Chang to the team.

"Tony's background is perfectly suited to Tintri's trajectory -- he's delivered products that led organizations through periods of hyper growth and that supported multi-billion dollar sales goals. His deep expertise in storage, cloud and infrastructure technologies positions Tintri to help more customers scale through simplicity and choice," Klein said.

Dan Wensley

Passportal, a CRN Emerging Vendor for 2015, named its channel chief to its top role last month, with the appointment of Dan Wensley as president. Wensley most recently served as strategic adviser and acting channel chief. In that role, Wensley helped the password management startup more than double its partner base to about 600. Partners praised the move, saying that Wensley had the channel chops to help the company, based in Calgary, Alberta, expand further.

Swami Nathan

RMM platform vendor Continuum has a new vice president of engineering as of last month, naming Swami Nathan to the role. Nathan comes to the Boston-based company from V2Solutions, where he served as vice president. Based in Mumbai, Nathan is responsible for leading the company's engineering staff. He has also held positions at IMC Global Services, Information Management Consultants and Symphony Services.

Colin Black

Next-generation endpoint security startup Crowdstrike expanded its executive lineup last month, naming Colin Black as the company's first chief information officer. In the new role, Black will be responsible for leading the expansion of the Irvine, Calif.-based company's flagship Falcon Platform as well as supporting the company's internal systems as it continues to grow. With more than 25 years of experience in the security market, Black has held positions at Kratos Defense, Security Inc., Cymer and Mindspeed Technologies.

Jukka Alanen

Black Duck Software appointed former Symantec executive Jukka Alanen last month to the role of vice president of business development and corporate strategy. Alanen joins the automated security for open source software startup from Arxan Technologies, where he was also vice president of business development and corporate strategy. Before that, he was vice president of business development and alliances for Symantec. In his new role, Alanen will be responsible for developing and leading the Burlington, Mass.-based company's partnerships and alliances.

Bekim Protopapa

Cloud-recovery company Unitrends named a new senior vice president of sales for the Americas last month, appointing Bekim Protopapa to the role. Protopapa joins the Burlington, Mass.-based company from Mimecast, where he was general manager for North America. He has also held executive positions at Cymtec Systems and Logitec International.

"He's a strong leader with a proven track record of motivating and managing top performing employees," Kevin Weiss, president and CEO, said in a statement at the time. "Additionally, Bekim has extensive experience in building and managing channel sales organizations. Given his work ethic, leadership skills and expertise, I have no doubt that he'll make an immediate impact on our channel-driven sales."

Casey Hofmann

Mobile communications company Spectralink got new financial leadership in November, naming Casey Hofmann as its new chief financial officer. Hofmann joins the Boulder, Colo.-based company from American Recreation Products and Exxel Products, where she was also CFO. Before that, the company said, she held multiple financial leadership roles in the manufacturing and consumer sectors. The appointment was effective Nov. 16.

Don Norsworthy

StarTek, No. 85 on the CRN 2015 SP 500 list, named Don Norsworthy as its new chief financial officer at the end of November. He replaces Lisa Weaver, who was set to retire Dec. 1 to pursue other opportunities. Norsworthy joins the Greenwood Village, Colo.-based outsourcing giant from Accent Marketing Services, where he served as CFO and executive vice president until it was acquired by StarTek earlier this year. He has also held top financial roles at CKS Packaging, Integrity Solution Services and Portrait Corp. of America.

"Don brings over twenty years of executive financial experience" to the company, said Chad Carlson, president and CEO, in a statement at the time. "His expertise in leading and restructuring organizations will bode well as we look to reduce operating costs and increase capacity utilization across our sites. Don's specific experience in the BPO/contact center arena will also enable him to immediately contribute and lead our finance organization as we seek profitability and a return to free cash flow."

John Apps

John Apps has joined smart storage array vendor Drobo as the company's new vice president of operations, the company said Nov. 11. Apps will be responsible for helping the Santa Clara, Calif.-based company improve its supply chain efficiency. He joins Drobo from OCZ Storage Solutions, where he was senior vice president of information technology.

"Drobo makes truly unique products that bring simplicity to personal and small to medium business storage," Apps said in a statement at the time. "That is why I am excited to join the talented team at Drobo, and I look forward to being a part of the success that lies ahead."

Tom Wong

In its second executive move in November, Drobo named Tom Wong as vice president of sales. Wong will be responsible for accelerating the company's sales growth. He has held roles at OCZ Storage Solutions, STS International and First International Computers of America.

"It is a great opportunity to be working with a world class company like Drobo and the talented people within," Wong said in a statement at the time. "I look forward to be part of the continuous growth and am particularly excited to be a part of the sales force behind the new Drobo B810n, which is poised to change the way small to medium-sized businesses manage their data storage in a much more efficient and effective way."

Arvind Godbole

Syntel, No. 36 on the CRN 2015 SP 500 list, said Nov. 10 that CFO Arvind Godbole would be retiring. He will be replaced in the interim by Anil Agrawal, currently general manager of finance, until a permanent replacement is found. Godbole has been with Troy, Mich.-based Syntel since 2001, when he joined the company as corporate controller. He has been CFO since 2006.

"On behalf of Syntel's leadership team and Board of Directors, I would like to thank Arvind for his years of dedicated service to the Company," said CEO and President, Nitin Rakesh, in a statement at the time. "Arvind has been an important part of Syntel's growth story, and he has made significant contributions to Syntel's success over more than a decade of financial leadership."

Paul Napier

Fairfax, Va.-based ManTech International Corp. is expanding its proposal operations with the appointment of a new leader for its proposal center in Herndon, Va. The solution provider, No. 24 on the CRN 2015 SP 500, named Paul Napier as executive director of proposal operations. He joins the company from Northrop Grumman Information Systems, where he was director of proposals.

"ManTech has had an impressive growth record for 2015, with over $2 billion in wins so far," said L. William Varner, president of ManTech's Mission, Cyber and Intelligence Solutions group, in a statement at the time. "We have assembled a team of industry-recognized growth professionals in our business development organization [who are driving this growth]. We are thrilled to be adding Paul to this team. His reputation for winning and building successful teams makes Paul a perfect fit to lead our organization's proposal operations."

Roger Shannon

Adtran named Roger Shannon as its new CFO and senior vice president of finance Nov. 11. Shannon will be responsible for driving finances, investor relations, accounting, legal affairs and contracts for the Huntsville, Ala.-based telecom equipment company. He joins Adtran from Steel Technologies, where he was CFO and treasurer. Shannon replaces interim CFO Michael Foliano, who will return to his previous role responsible for manufacturing, supply chain and logistics.

Bob Gagnon

Bob Gagnon joined privileged account management company Thycotic last month as vice president of channel sales. With the announcement, Washington, D.C.-based Thycotic also announced the launch of the Thycotic Rewards Program, which provides deal registration and sales incentives for the company's channel partners. Gagnon brings a strong channel legacy to the new role, including channel leadership roles at Unitrends, AppAssure and AVG.