30 Notable IT Executive Moves: October 2025
Microsoft, Diversified, Smartsheet, Verizon, SAIC, Kyndryl, F5 and Sage were among the tech companies making key executive hires and moves in October 2025.
New CEOs at Microsoft, Diversified, Smartsheet, Verizon and Science Applications International Corp. were among the biggest executive moves of October 2025.
Taking those spots, respectively, are Judson Althoff, who’s been with the vendor for about 13 years; Paul Lidsky, previously with Core BTS; Rajeev Singh, formerly of Accolade; and Jim Reagan, previously with Leidos.
[RELATED: 30 Notable IT Executive Moves: September 2025]
October 2025 Tech Executive Moves
Kyndryl, F5 and Sage were among other tech giants to make significant executive moves during the month as companies invested in talent for overseeing sales, technology and partners. Those executives, respectively, were:
- Phillip Taylor, formerly with PwC
- Michael Montoya, formerly with Blue Voyant
- Gretchen O’Hara, formerly with Splunk
The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago put the October unemployment rate at 4.36 percent, a slight uptick from its September estimate of 4.35 percent. Numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics have been delayed while the federal government is shut down.
Read on for more of the 30 notable IT executive moves in October 2025.
Paul Lidsky
Diversified hired Paul Lidsky as its new CEO in October.
Lidsky had been chairman of the board of the Plano, Texas-based company–a member of CRN’s 2025 MSP 500–since 2023, according to his Linkedin account.
His resume includes about six years with Core BTS, serving as CEO for about three years until 2022 and serving on the board until 2024. Nomura Research Institute bought Core BTS in 2021 and rebranded it as NRI earlier this year.
He also worked at Datalink for about 19 years, including about eight years as president and CEO. Insight bought Datalink in 2017.
Judson Althoff
In October, Microsoft promoted Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer Judson Althoff, who also oversees Microsoft’s partner organization, to the role of CEO over its commercial business.
As EVP and CCO of the Redmond, Wash.-based tech giant, Althoff also oversaw Microsoft’s Small, Medium Enterprises and Channel organization that was revamped earlier this year.
Althoff has been with Microsoft for about 13 years, according to his LinkedIn account. As EVP and CCO, he was “responsible for the sales strategy, execution, and revenue growth of the company’s commercial business, including enterprise, public sector, small and medium businesses, services, developer and partner communities in more than 120 regional and national subsidiaries globally.”
His resume includes about 11 years with Oracle, leaving in 2013 as senior vice president of worldwide alliances and channels and embedded sales.
Microsoft has about 500,000 partners worldwide with top channel goals for 2025 including an increase of the overall percentage of company revenue that comes through the channel, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Rajeev Singh
Rajeev Singh joined Smartsheet in October as its newest CEO, succeeding Sunny Gupta.
The Bellevue, Wash.-based work management platform provider brought on Singh after he led Accolade for about 10 years as CEO, according to his LinkedIn account. He led the virtual primary care company through its sale to Transcarent earlier this year.
His resume includes more than 20 years with Concur Technologies, which was sold to SAP in 2014. At Concur, Singh held the titles of president and chief operating officer.
Smartsheet has more than 750 partners worldwide, according to the vendor. That includes CRN 2025 Solution Provider 500 members Paragon Micro, Long View and CBTS.
Jim Reagan
In October, Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC) named Jim Reagan interim CEO, succeeding Toni Townes-Whitley.
Reagan has served on the board of the Reston, Va.-based solution provider for about three years, according to his LinkedIn account. He previously worked at Leidos for about six years, leaving Leidos in 2021 as an executive vice president and chief financial officer.
His resume includes about three years with Vencore. He left the defense contractor in 2015 as senior vice president and CFO. In 2018, Vencore combined with KeyPoint Government Solutions and DXC Technology’s U.S. public sector business to form Perspecta, later bought by Peraton in 2021.
Phillip Taylor
In October, Phillip Taylor joined Kyndryl, taking on the role of partner, vice president and power and utilities leader.
Taylor came to the New York-based company–No. 11 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–after about three years with PwC, according to his LinkedIn account.
He held the title of managing director at PwC and served as the “point Partner responsible for helping senior executives efficiently optimize their utility’s performance and maximize their assets while reducing cost to deliver best in class customer satisfaction and shareholder value.”
His resume includes about a year as president at E Source. He left the company in 2023.
Rashmi Sharma Bagree
Wipro promoted Rashmi Sharma Bagree to the position of chief financial officer for its global cybersecurity business in October.
Bagree has been with the Bangalore, India-based company–No. 17 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–for about four years, according to her LinkedIn account. She previously served as a head of finance and a senior manager during her time with Wipro.
Her resume includes about eight years with Infosys and the EdgeVerve subsidiary Infosys formed in 2014. She left EdgeVerge as a senior member and assistant financial controller.
Gretchen O’Hara
Gretchen O’Hara became executive vice president of strategic partnerships and business development at Sage in October.
O’Hara came to the Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K.-based business management software vendor after about three years with Splunk, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Splunk with the title of vice president of worldwide partners and alliances. Cisco completed its acquisition of the observability vendor in 2024.
Her resume includes more than 20 years with Microsoft, leaving the vendor in 2022 as vice president of U.S. AI and sustainability strategy.
Sage’s top channel goals for 2025 include increasing the overall percentage of company revenue that comes through the channel, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Michael Montoya
F5 brought on a new chief technology operations officer in October–Michael Montoya.
Montoya has served as a member of the Seattle-based security vendor’s board of directors for about four years, according to his LinkedIn account. Before taking on the CTOO job, he worked at Blue Voyant for about a year as chief operating officer.
His resume includes about five years as chief information security officer at Equinix, leaving in 2024.
F5’s top channel goals for 2025 include increasing partners' customer satisfaction ratings, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Kris Lande
Kris Lande became chief marketing officer at OutSystems in October.
Lande joined the Boston-based low-code platform provider after about 13 years with Salesforce, according to her LinkedIn account. She left Salesforce with the title of senior vice president of marketing and community.
In this role, she led “a cross-functional team of 250 people that includes product marketing, developer marketing, learning content, content marketing, events, creative, and demand generation campaigns.”
Her resume includes about six years with Escapia as director of marketing. HomeAway acquired the vacation rental software company in 2010, the year she left.
OutSystems has a partner program that includes CRN 2025 Solution Provider 500 members Tata Consultancy Services, Accenture and Capgemini.
Ric Smith
Ric Smith joined Okta in October, taking on the role of president of products and technology.
In this role, he leads “global product, engineering, and technology strategy” with a focus “on securing human and AI identity, protecting the AI agent lifecycle, and advancing the next phase of Okta’s growth,” according to his LinkedIn account.
Before joining the San Francisco-based identity platform provider, Smith worked at SentinelOne for about five years. He left SentinelOne with the title of president of product, technology and operations.
His resume includes about five years with Medallia, leaving the company in 2021 as senior vice president of engineering. Private equity firm Thoma Bravo bought Medallia that same year.
Okta is part of CRN’s 2025 Partner Program Guide.
Dan Schulman
Dan Schulman took on the top spot at Verizon in October, succeeding Hans Vestberg as CEO.
Schulman joined the New York-based telecommunications vendor after previously serving as president and CEO of PayPal for about nine years, according to his LinkedIn account. He left that role in 2023.
Along with multiple stints on company boards, his resume includes about five years as group president of enterprise growth for American Express. He left AmEx in 2014.
Verizon’s top channel goals for 2025 include improving partner profitability and increasing the amount of net-new accounts coming through partners, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Jeff York
In October, Jeff York joined Salesforce, taking on the role of senior vice president of product finance.
The San Francisco-based enterprise applications vendor hired York after he spent about 22 years with Microsoft, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Microsoft with the title of vice president of global partner investments for the Global Partner Solutions group.
In this role, he “led Microsoft's multi-billion-dollar investment portfolio in the partner ecosystem, focusing on driving strategic cloud growth priorities.”
Other roles he held at Microsoft include chief financial officer and general manager of business applications and CFO of Microsoft Portugal, according to his LinkedIn account.
Salesforce has more than 16,000 partners worldwide.
Karthik Narain
Google Cloud brought on Karthik Narain in October as chief product and business officer.
Narain joined the Mountain View, Calif.-based artificial intelligence and cloud vendor after about 11 years with Accenture. He left the solution provider with the title of chief technology officer, according to his LinkedIn account.
His resume includes about 10 years with HCLTech, leaving in 2015 as vice president and head of the solution provider’s high tech and automotive verticals.
Google’s top channel goals for 2025 include increasing the amount of professional services going through partners, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Geoff Barrall
Quantum recruited a new chief product officer in October–Geoff Barrall.
The Centennial, Colo.-based data management vendor brought on Barrall after about two years as chief product officer with Index Engines, according to his LinkedIn account.
His resume includes about three years as vice president and chief technology officer of Hitachi Vantara. She left the company in 2021.
Quantum has about 2,600 channel partners worldwide, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Ken Marks
Ken Marks joined Kentik in October as vice president of global partners and alliances.
Marks came to the San Francisco networking products vendor after about a year as chief revenue officer of Cynomi, according to his LinkedIn account.
His resume includes about four years as vice president of worldwide channels and managed security services providers (MSSPs) at SentinelOne. He left the security vendor in 2024.
Kentik’s top channel goals for 2025 include increasing the overall percentage of company revenue that comes through the channel, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Prakash Arunkundrum
HP hired Prakash Arunkundrum as chief strategy and transformation officer in October.
The Palo Alto, Calif.-based computer maker hired Arunkundrum after he spent about 10 years with Logitech, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Logitech with the title of president of its end-to-end enterprise and small and midsize business (SMB) segment.
His resume includes about a year as a principal with A.T. Kerney, where he worked on strategy and operations for high-tech industries. He left the consulting firm in 2015.
HP’s top channel goals for 2025 include increasing the amount of net-new accounts coming through partners, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Chet Kapoor
In October, Amazon Web Services brought on Chet Kapoor as vice president of cybersecurity.
The Seattle-based cloud vendor recruited Kapoor after he served as CEO of DataStax for about six years, according to his LinkedIn account. IBM bought DataStax this year.
His resume includes about 10 years as CEO of Apigee, leading the company up until its 2016 acquisition by Google. He continued on at Google as a vice president until 2019.
Amazon has about 130,000 partners worldwide, according to CRN’s 2025 Channel Chiefs.
Jeff Comstock
Nice brought on a new president of product and technology in October–Jeff Comstock.
Comstock came to the Hoboken, N.J. provider of AI-powered cloud platforms after about 25 years with Microsoft, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Microsoft with the title of corporate vice president of Dynamics 365, overseeing the customer experience portfolio.
Other titles he held at Microsoft include D365 general manager for field service and remote assist capabilities, and principal development manager for Dynamics’s supply chain management and manufacturing capabilities.
Nice has a partner program that includes CRN 2025 Solution Provider 500 members Infosys, Cognizant and Accenture, according to the vendor.
Steve Rai
In October, OpenText recruited Steve Rai into the role of chief financial officer and executive vice president.
The Waterloo, Ontario-based security vendor and distributor brought on Rai after he worked at BlackBerry for about 10 years, according to his LinkedIn account. He served as CFO of BlackBerry for about five years and left as an adviser.
His resume includes about seven years with PMC-Sierra, leaving in 2014 as corporate controller. The semiconductor maker was acquired by Microsemi in 2016.
Ronald White
Guidehouse hired Ronald White as chief information officer in October.
The McLean, Va.-based solution provider brought on White after he worked at Avanade for about 10 years, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Avanade with the title of global CIO.
His resume includes about seven years with O-I Glass. He left the bottle and jar manufacturing company in 2015 with the title of chief process improvement officer and vice president. During his time with O-I, he led a “program targeting 3 [percent] productivity improvement in 78 diverse factories securing buy-in across all levels.”
Subhayu Sarkar
Subhayu Sarkar became vice president and leader of Cognizant’s North America SAP business in October.
In this role, he is responsible for the business’ go-to-market “strategy, pipeline generation and management, topline growth (revenue and order booking), profitable bottom line and customer satisfaction,” according to his LinkedIn account.
Sarkar came to the Teaneck, N.J.-based company–No. 7 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–after about six years with LTI and its successor LTIMindree, leaving with the title of VP and leader of the SAP transformation practice for large enterprise deals.
His resume includes about three years with Deloitte. He left Deloitte with the title of managing director with a focus on the ‘digital operate’ business for enterprise performance.
Shubham Tripathi
Virtusa hired a senior vice president and go-to-market (GTM) leader for its AI labs in October–Shubham Tripathi.
Tripathi joined the Southborough, Mass.-based company–No. 22 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–after about two years with GlobalLogic, according to his LinkedIn account. He left GlobalLogic with the title of vice president of AI, data and customer GTM.
His resume includes about 13 years on and off with Infosys and the EdgeVerve subsidiary Infosys formed in 2014. He left EdgeVerve in 2023 with the title of associate vice president of business development and GTM for digital platforms and products.
Marc Cerro
HCLTech brought on Marc Cerro in October as senior vice president of private equity, overseeing go-to-market (GTM), strategy and execution.
The Noida, India-based company–No. 14 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–hired Cerro after he worked at EPAM Systems for about three years, according to his LinkedIn account. He left EPAM with the title of vice president of the global Google Cloud partnership.
He worked at Google itself for about five years, leaving in 2023 with a role in strategic health plan partnerships for Fitbit health solutions (FHS).
Anthony Pappas
DXC Technology promoted Anthony Pappas to the role of chief marketing officer in October, six months after Pappas joined the solution provider as vice president of business leadership.
Pappas joined the Ashburn, Va.-based company–No. 14 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–after more than 20 years with DMI and his own company, Pappas Group, according to his LinkedIn account.
He left DMI with the title of president of the brand marketing and customer experience division. In 2014, DMI acquired the Pappas Group creative agency he founded in 2003.
Keith Duffy
Insight hired Keith Duffy in October, tasking him with the role of senior vice president for Americas infrastructure and solutions.
Duffy joined the Chandler, Ariz.-based company–a member of CRN’s 2025 MSP 500–after about 26 years with Cisco, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Cisco with the title of vice president of Americas software and services sales.
In that role, he led “a diverse team of over 300 professionals in driving Cisco's Americas software, services and strategic engagement business” and oversaw “strategic initiatives for 83,000 major customers, contributing to over $10 billion in annual revenue.”
He also worked at Dell for about five years, leaving in 2000 with the title of public sector sales manager.
Chad Duncan
Chad Duncan joined RapidScale in October as head of consulting and cloud transformation, reporting to chief revenue officer Maureen Power Sweeny.
The Raleigh, N.C.-based company–No. 153 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500 and a subsidiary of Cox Business–hired Duncan after he worked at Accenture for about 32 years, according to his LinkedIn account.
At Accenture, he served as a managing director and oversaw technology strategy and advisory for financial services clients, according to a RapidScale statement. He led a portfolio with over $130 million in annual revenue at Accenture.
Gabriel Paul Chindada
Gabriel Paul Chindada joined Marlabs in October as senior vice president of data and analytics.
Chindada came to the New York-based company–No. 180 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–after about 12 years on and off with Cognizant, according to his LinkedIn account. He left Cognizant with the title of data and AI competency leader, with a focus on “building Solutions, Accelerators and Offerings around (the) Salesforce suite of products.”
His resume includes about a year with Medline Industries as an applications manager.
Mike Kessler
CACI brought on Mike Kessler in October, tasking him with the role of vice president of leadership.
Kessler joined the Reston, Va.-based company–No. 21 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–after 14 years with BAE Systems. He left BAE with the title of VP of talent development and learning, according to his LinkedIn account.
His resume includes about four years with Fannie Mae, leaving in 2011 as director of human resources.
Michael Nowak
Centaris recruited a new chief revenue officer in October–Michael Nowak.
The Sterling Heights, Mich.-based company–a member of CRN’s 2025 MSP 500–hired Nowak after he worked at BCM One for about six years, according to his LinkedIn account. He left the company with the title of general manager of enterprise solutions.
He joined BCM One in 2020 through the acquisition of nexVortex. He worked at NexVortex as vice president of sales. During his time with the company, he “created, implemented, and executed sales strategy that achieved 42 consecutive quarters of growth.”
Jonathon Nisenboum
AllCloud promoted Jonathon Nisenboum to the role of North America president in October.
In this role, he leads the “consulting organization with a focus on expanding our footprint, strengthening strategic partnerships, and delivering exceptional client outcomes,” according to his LinkedIn account.
Nisenboum has been with the Denver-based company–No. 133 on CRN’s 2025 Solution Provider 500–for about three years, previously serving as senior vice president of delivery for North America.
His resume includes about two years with Salesforce, leaving in 2022 as an engagement director. He joined Salesforce through the 2021 acquisition of Acumen Solutions, where he served as a senior solutions architect.
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