Arrivals & Departures: Marketo founder steps aside for new ceo

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Sydney, November 2 – Global marketing software company Marketo Inc, a leading provider of marketing software & solutions, has hired Steve Lucas as its new chief executive officer, “underscoring (says the company) our commitment to accelerating growth and innovation”.

Lucas joins Marketo from his role as President, Enterprise Platform & Analytics, at SAP Denver USA.

Marketo founder and current ceo Phil Fernandez will step down on November 1, following more than 10 years in which he led the business through its launch, a successful IPO, and acquisition by Vista Equity Partners.

Lucas brings a proven track record of leading multibillion-dollar businesses through worldwide growth of cloud, mobile, database, and analytics solutions. In his most recent role at SAP, he drove innovative strategies to accelerate offerings from inception to market within the company’s enterprise platform and analytics solutions.

He previously held global leadership positions across SAP’s Business Analytics Database & Technology, Business Objects, and Corporate Strategy & Market Development organisations. Lucas also drove early force.com growth and ecosystem expansion at Salesforce.com as senior vice president, Platform Marketing & Force.com, before returning to SAP.

“I am excited to join the company as Marketo accelerates its growth through enterprise expansion, its unprecedented next-generation marketing platform, and its robust partner ecosystem,” said Lucas. “I look forward to leading this incredible organisation and enabling anyone using these market-leading solutions to innovate faster and accelerate their digital transformation through marketing, all with a firm commitment to Marketo’s unique culture that champions diversity, inclusion, and social responsibility.”

Phil Fernandez said: “I founded Marketo with a bold vision that marketers would take on a powerful new role within their organisations, owning customer engagement and digital transformation.

“I am confident that the Marketo team under Steve’s leadership will maintain and extend our commitment to innovation, integrity, and customer success, as well as to the thousands of successful, passionate individuals who are the heart of the Marketing Nation.”

Vista Equity Partners (and Marketo director) Martin Taylor said: “I want to welcome Steve to the leadership team as Marketo ceo and thank Phil for his instrumental role pioneering a new industry and building Marketo into a world-class brand that serves nearly 5000 customers and more than 650 partners around the globe.”

About Marketo
Marketo provides the leading engagement marketing software and solutions designed to help marketers develop long-term relationships with their customers – from acquisition to advocacy. Marketo is built for marketers, by marketers and is setting the innovation agenda for marketing technology.

Marketo puts Marketing First. Headquartered in San Mateo, CA, with offices around the world, Marketo serves as a strategic partner to large enterprise and fast-growing small companies across a wide variety of industries. To learn more about Marketo’s Engagement Marketing Platform, LaunchPoint® partner ecosystem, and the vast community that is the Marketo Marketing Nation®, visit www.marketo.com.

About Vista Equity Partners
Vista Equity Partners, a US-based private equity firm with offices in Austin, Chicago and San Francisco, with over US$26 billion in cumulative capital commitments, currently invests in software, data and technology-based organizations led by world-class management teams with long-term perspective.

Vista is a value-added investor, contributing professional expertise and multi-level support towards companies realizing their full potential. Vista’s investment approach is anchored by a sizable long-term capital base, experience in structuring technology-oriented transactions, and proven management techniques that yield flexibility and opportunity in private equity investing. For more information, please visit www.vistaequitypartners.com.


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