March 2026 Leadership Moves: Google Cloud Partner Chief Departs & More

As the first quarter of 2026 comes to a close, organizations around the channel have made significant moves to their leadership teams. Key figures have been appointed, promoted, or departed from their positions to make way for new faces.

Take a look around at some of the signature moves that enterprises have made as they propel their business strategies forward.

Google Cloud Partner Program Chief departs

Colleen Kapase, Google Cloud’s global partner program leader, has abruptly departed the cloud giant and is being replaced by Microsoft’s former worldwide channel sales head, David Smith.

She reportedly has left the organization to “pursue opportunities outside of Google Cloud.”

Smith has spent nearly three decades at Microsoft, holding high-profile roles including vice president of worldwide channel sales, vice president of U.S. partners, and general manager of worldwide SMB sales.

C-suite moves include Xerox, Arctic Wolf, and others

Xerox appoints Louie Pastor as CEO

The Xerox Corporation’s Board of Directors has named Louie Pastor as CEO, following Steve Bandrowczak’s stepping down from the position.

Pastor most recently served as President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Xerox, leading enterprise transformation, global service delivery, revenue operations, marketing and communications, and Xerox’s people and technology organization.

“On behalf of the Board and the entire Xerox team, I want to thank Steve for his leadership during a pivotal period for the company, including the successful acquisitions and integrations of Lexmark and ITsavvy,” said Scott Letier, Chairman of the Xerox Board of Directors. 

“Louie brings a strong combination of operational discipline, strategic insight, and deep familiarity with Xerox. Throughout his time with the company, he has played a central role in advancing our strategy, strengthening our operating model, and driving enterprise-wide transformation. The Board is confident that Louie’s leadership and focus on execution will position Xerox well as we continue to build momentum and delivery on our strategic and financial objectives.”

Arctic Wolf names Will May as CRO

Security operations provider, Arctic Wolf, is naming Will May as CRO to lead the company’s global go-to-market organization and oversee its sales and customer-facing teams.

May brings with him over 15 years of go-to-market leadership experience across high-growth software and cybersecurity companies. 

He recently served as CRO at Pendo.io, leading its global go-to-market functions across sales and related customer-facing teams. He also held leadership positions at ClickUp, Zscaler, and AppDynamics.

“Will is a proven leader with a strong track record of building and scaling world-class go-to-market organizations,” said Nick Schneider, president and CEO of Arctic Wolf. “He understands how to lead through growth, align teams with customer needs, and build durable revenue engines in dynamic markets. His experience across high-growth software and cybersecurity companies, paired with his thoughtful, people-centered leadership style, makes him an outstanding addition to Arctic Wolf as we expand our platform, our global reach, and our impact.”

Caylent names Valerie Henderson as CEO

Caylent has appointed Valerie Henderson as CEO, leading the company’s next era of AI growth and AI-first services.

Henderson will lead the AWS Premier Tier Services Partner’s evolution from delivering cloud projects to operating intelligent systems. She has previously served as Caylent’s CRO since 2021 and was promoted to President in January 2023.

“Val is an extraordinary leader, and I couldn’t be more excited about this next chapter for Caylent,” said outgoing CEO Lori Williams. “The foundation we’ve built together through our people, our culture, our deep AWS expertise, and our commitment to innovation is stronger than ever. Val’s vision, relentless drive, and genuine care for customers and employees make her the perfect leader to take Caylent forward.”

Henderson brings nearly two decades of experience with expertise in scaling go-to-market organizations and driving strategic partnerships.

“I am incredibly honored to step into this role and lead Caylent into what I believe will be the most transformative chapter in our history,” said Henderson. “We have built something truly special – a team of world-class technologists, an unrivaled partnership with AWS, and a first of its kind agentic delivery model that is redefining what a services partner can be. Our customers trust us to solve their hardest problems, and I am committed to raising the bar every single day for them, for our team, and for our partners.”

Eaton names David Foster as Executive Vice President and CFO

Intelligent power management company Eaton has announced that David Foster will be re-joining the company as the organization’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (CFO).

Foster previously retired from Eaton in 2022 after a 29-year career with the enterprise. During that time, he held roles across the company’s finance organization, as well as in FP&A, Controllership, Corporate Development, Treasury, and Mergers, Acquisitions, and Divestitures. Before retiring, he was the senior vice president, Finance and Planning, for the Industrial Sector.

“Dave brings a wealth of experience to Eaton – with a deep understanding of our operations and a unique understanding of our markets and customers at a critical time of unprecedented demand and growth,” said Eaton CEO Paulo Ruiz. “With proven experience of finance excellence, portfolio management, and the ability to build organizational capability and discipline at scale, I am pleased to welcome him back to our team.”

Prove appoints Adi Marom as CCO

Industry veteran Adi Marom has been appointed Chief Customer Officer (CCO) at PRove, a digital identity company. 

Marom will be tasked with overseeing the company’s global customer experience and services strategy, along with focusing on enhancing client outcomes, strengthening long-term partnerships, and ensuring that customer insights directly inform Prove’s product roadmap.

“With Adi joining our team, we’re strengthening how we engage and grow with our customers,” said Rodger Desai, Founder and CEO of Prove. “AI is accelerating, fraud is getting more sophisticated, and identity has become a critical part of how companies operate online. That means we have to help customers get value from our platform faster and continue evolving wit them. Adi brings the experience and leadership to help us do exactly that.”

According to the company, a key priority for Marom will be accelerating time to value by scaling Prove’s support, onboarding, and implementation capabilities to enable customers to bring identity infrastructure into production in days rather than weeks or months.

Marom brings over two decades of experience leading customer success, strategic account management, and operational strategy across identity, fraud prevention, and financial crime technology. She has held leadership roles at organizations such as Socure, NICE Actimize, and Amdocs.

Wallarm names new CEO, CRO, and COO

Security organization, Wallarm, has announced a new executive leadership team for its next stage of growth, introducing a new CEO, CRO, and COO.

As the organization seeks to extend its focus beyond API security to securing AI transformation, the following appointments have been made:

• Shayne Higdon will be elevated from COO to CEO
• David Cramer will step into the COO role
• Bill Berryman will be named CRO

Higdon will oversee Wallarm’s expansion, focusing on scaling the company’s global presence and advancing its vision. He provides over two decades of experience guiding enterprise software companies through growth, expansion, and digital transformation. He has held prior leadership roles at Quest Software, BMC Software, Jamf, and HighRadius.

Cramer brings more than 20 years of operational leadership, previously serving as General Counsel at Quest Software and Dell Software.

Berryman is a 30-year veteran in the industry, most recently serving at BMC, leading the team responsible for over $355 million in annual SaaS revenue.

“Wallarm was built on deep technical conviction, and that foundation has never been stronger,” said Ivan Novikov, Co-Founder, Wallarm. “With Shayne, Bill, and David now leading operations and growth, I’m able to focus entirely on the research and innovation that will define the next generation of API and AI security. This intentional evolution positions Wallarm for its next decade of innovation and growth. I’m proud of what this team has done – and even more excited about what comes next.”

SecurityBridge promotes Holger Hügel to CTO

Cybersecurity command center for SAP, SecurityBridge, has announced the promotion of Holger Hügel to Chief Technology Officer (CTO).

The appointment of Hügel comes after Jesper Zerlang’s transition to CEO earlier this year. SecurityBridge founders Christoph Nagy and Ivan Mans, will step back from their CEO and CTO roles, respectively, but remain closely involved in shaping the company’s strategic direction.

Hügel previously served as director of product management and brings over 25 years of experience in SAP and IT operations. He will oversee SecurityBridge’s SAP security platform technological development and strategic innovation. Prior to joining SecurityBridge in 2023, Hügel held leadership roles at SECUDE, SmartShift, and Realtech.

“I’m excited to continue advancing the SAP security vision established by the company’s founders,” said Hügel. “There is significant innovation potential ahead of the platform, and I look forward to working with our team to further strengthen how organizations secure their SAP environments.”

Kai hires Alfredo Hickman as new CISO

Agentic AI cybersecurity platform, Kai, has tapped Alfredo Hickman as the organization’s first CISO, bringing him over from Obsidian Security where he held the same role. 

Hickman brings close to 20 years of cybersecurity leadership experience and prior to Obsidian, he led security product engineering at Rackspace Managed Security, as well as serving in roles at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and U.S. Defense Department.

“Alfredo represents the next generation of security leadership, which is deeply technical, mission-driven, and unafraid to rethink assumptions,” said Galina Antova, co-founder and CEO of Kai. “He brings a proven track record of building world-class security programs and the expertise to help shape the future of AI-driven security from the inside. His decision to join is a powerful endorsement of what we’re building.”

At Kai, Hickman will be tasked with overseeing the security of Kai’s systems and data while enhancing customer trust as the company scales.

Insight taps Jack Azagury as President and CEO

Insight Enterprises’ Board of Directors has elected Jack Azagury as President and CEO, succeeding Joyce Mullen who announced her retirement in October 2025.

Azagury most recently was appointed Senior Advisor to TowerBrook and Chair of the Board of BRG, a global advisory firm, and EisnerAmper, an audit, tax, and advisory firm.

Further, Azagury spent 29 years at Accenture, serving as group chief executive for consulting, leading its global consulting team, its 42 industries and enterprise functions, and serving on its Executive and Global Management committees.

“We are in a pivotal moment for our industry and for insight,” said Tim Crown, Insight co-founder and Chairman of the Board. “AI is redefining what it means to be a technology partner, and our clients expect us to lead that charge. Jack brings exactly the kind of forward-looking perspective and operational track record we need to accelerate our transformation and scale our capabilities. Throughout his career, he has established a reputation of innovation anchored in digital transformation, and he will be instrumental in our continued evolution as the leading AI-first Solutions Integrator.”

Quorum Cyber appoints Joe Strathmann as COO

Quorum Cyber has named Joe Strathmann as Chief Operating Officer (COO) and will be tasked with operationalizing Microsoft Security for customers on a global scale for the Microsoft-first cybersecurity services provider.

“We are delighted to welcome Joe to Quorum Cyber at an important stage in our journey,” said Federico Charosky, CEO of Quorum Cyber. “He joins at a time when the company is rapidly evolving its operating model, focusing on delivering stronger productivity, clearer ownership of security outcomes, and outstanding customer experience. Drawing on his experience running security operations at global scale, he will focus on bringing the organizations close to the customer, while unlocking the power of AI in delivering frontier-grade security capabilities.”

Strathmann has more than 25 years of experience in IT services and cybersecurity, previously holding senior operational leadership roles at Secureworks and Rapid7.

Under Strathmann’s leadership, Quorum Cyber will boost the operational foundation of its services to allow customers to experience cybersecurity as a coordinated security operations capability.

“Too often organizations are forced to navigate multiple teams when dealing with cyber risk,” said Strathmann. “The model we’re building brings intelligence, incident response, advisory expertise, and SOC operations together along with our deep expertise in Microsoft security tool sets, so customers experience security as one coordinated capability with clear ownership of the outcome. When threats emerge, they know exactly who is responsible and how their security is being managed.”

JumpCloud names Roland Palmer as CISO and Shianne Sampson as CRO

JumpCloud has made two moves to bolster its executive bench by adding Roland Palmer as the company’s new Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) & VP of Security and Shianne Sampson as Chief Revenue Officer (CRO).

Palmer was tasked with leading JumpCloud’s global security strategy and protecting its large, global employee and customer base. He brings over 20 years of experience to the role, most recently serving as VP of Security and Compliance at Sumo Logic for eight years.

“Trust is the bedrock of intelligent, secure IT,” said Greg Keller, co-founder and chief technology officer, JumpCloud. “Roland’s track record of building transparent, proof-driven security programs is world-class. He doesn’t just manage risk; he integrates it into the fabric of the product. His leadership ensures that as we innovate, we are providing the most secure and compliant foundation possible for our customers.”

Sampson as CRO, meanwhile, will lead JumpCloud’s global revenue growth and expand their mission of intelligent, secure IT.

She brings over two decades of experience of her own, most recently serving as CRO at Eventbrite. She also brings deep expertise in scaling complex SaaS platforms through leadership roles at New Relic and Zenefits.

“Shianne is a rare leader who combines deep operational rigor with a profound commitment to people and leadership development,” said Rajat Bhargava, CEO, JumpCloud. “As we define the future of intelligent, secure IT, her ability to build durable, repeatable engines for growth is precisely what JumpCloud needs. Shianne doesn’t just manage revenue; she builds the systems that make sophisticated security simple and accessible for our customers.”

Hirebotics promotes Matthew Bush to CEO

Provider of collaborative robot (cobot) solutions for the metal fabrication industry, Hirebotics, has promoted co-founder Matthew Bush to CEO.

Bush succeeds co-founder Rob Goldiez, who will be retiring after a decade.

Bush and Goldiez launched Hirebotics in 2015, with Bush overseeing electro-mechanical product development, manufacturing operations, and customer success initiatives.

“This transition comes at a time of strong momentum for Hirebotics, and the opportunities ahead of us are tremendous,” said Bush. “Skilled welders are in short supply, the cobot market continues to see rapid growth, and the fabrication shops of every size need tools that help them do more with the talented people they do have. Our no-code, app-based approach to cobot applications is solving that problem every day, and we’re just getting started.”

Prior to helping found Hirebotics, Bush held multiple senior leadership positions at several IDX Corporation companies and The Scott Fetzer Company.

Channel leaders join Qlik, Smart Communications, and more

Michael Gray joins Qlik as Senior VP of Global Channels & Alliances

Qlik recently announced that former Arctera and Veritas channel and sales executive Michael Gray will be joining the organization as Senior Vice President of Global Channels & Alliances.

In a LinkedIn post, Qlik CRO Brian Hamel said Gray will lead the company’s global channels and alliances organizations, focusing on driving alignment, increasing partner impact, and enabling partner-led growth.

“With his extensive experience in developing high-impact global partner programs, I know that he’s going to make a huge impact here,” said Hamel. “We’re incredibly lucky to have Michael on board and I’m looking forward to seeing what we’ll build together.”

Mariane Louvet named AppDirect’s new Director of Provider Management

Channel veteran Mariane Louvet is joining AppDirect as its new Director, Provider Management, leading the strategy and evolution of its provider ecosystem.

This news comes as the organization expands its direct and indirect cloud provider distribution across North America and after the recent acquisition of Tackle.io. Louvet will be charged with guiding provider relationships, aligning with internal teams, and fortifying the marketplace through program development and partnership engagement.

“Mariane has experienced our ecosystem as both a competitor and provider partner for over eight years, so her decision to join AppDirect is powerful validation,” said Renee Bergeron, COO at AppDirect. “Independent software vendors and technology providers gain multiple market routes with our ecosystem, including one of the largest global networks of marketplaces and hyperscaler marketplaces enabled by our Tackle acquisition. With a proven track record in the channel, Mariane will help us continue extending that ecosystem across North America, giving providers the network they need to grow and scale.”

Louvet has over 20 years of experience in the channel, leading and scaling cybersecurity, cloud MSP, MSSP, telco, and provider programs at enterprises such as Symantec, Forcepoint, Pax8, and 1Password. 

Terra Security hires Anna Sarnek as VP of Business & Strategy

Terra Security has named Anna Sarnek as Vice President of Business & Strategy to boost the organization’s ecosystem-led growth.

Over the past year, Sarnek has served as a strategic advisor to Terra, helping shape the organization’s strategic direction, growth trajectory, and ongoing partnership with AWS. She brings more than 15 years of experience across cybersecurity, enterprise IT, and cloud partnerships.

“Anna has been instrumental in building Terra behind the scenes since last May,” said Shahar Peled, co-founder and CEO of Terra Security. “She brings a deep understanding of our product, customers, and partners, which will help her scale the company thoughtfully and strategically. More importantly, she shares our conviction that AI-native security represents an entirely new category, one where Terra is uniquely positioned to lead.”

Sarnek previously led Cyber startup and Venture Capital Business Development at AWS, managing key cyber investor and priority founder relationships to help early and growth-stage companies build foundations for scale.

Smart Communications hires Satish Shenoy as SVP, Global Alliances and Partners

Provider of cloud-based enterprise customer communications and engagement technology, Smart Communications, has appointed Satish Shenoy as Senior Vice President, Global Alliances and Partners.

Shenoy will be tasked with leading the company’s global partner strategy to expand its ecosystem of technology partners, independent software vendors (ISVs), global systems integrators (GSIs), and service providers.

Shenoy also brings with him two decades of experience building and scaling high-performing partner ecosystems for SaaS and technology companies operating in regulated industries and more. He most recently served as Global Vice President of AI GTM & ISV Partnerships at SS&C Blue Prism. 

“Partners are a critical growth lever for Smart Communications as we continue to scale our platform globally,” said Dave Towers, CRO, Smart Communications. “Satish brings deep expertise in building high-performing ecosystems that connect technology partners, service partners, and sales teams around shared outcomes. His leadership will help expand our global reach, strengthen our partner relationships, and accelerate the value we deliver to customers.”

Wildix names Jeff Winnett as GM

Wildix, a provider of AI-powered business solutions, has announced the appointment of Jeff Winnett as GM for the Americas.

Winnett will be overseeing the company’s regional growth strategy, market leadership efforts, and partner ecosystem development across North, Central, and South America.

He brings with him more than 30 years of experience in communications and channel sales leadership, most recently serving as VP and Head of Global Channel Sales at Fusion Connect.

“Jeff is a proven leader who knows how to help partners win and how to scale responsibly,” said Steve Osler, Co-founder and CEO at Wildix. “His experience building channel-first growth engines will strengthen our presence in the Americas and help more businesses adopt secure, practical communications that improve day-to-day operations.”

Additionally, Winnett will focus on expanding partner recruitment, strengthening enablement, and helping solution providers deliver measurable outcomes for mid-market and small business customers across the Americas.

GTM, sales, and marketing moves from around the channel

Freshworks appoints Ian Tickle as CRO

Freshworks is promoting Chief of Global Field Operations Ian Tickle to CRO, a move that will unify its global sales organizations.

Tickle will be charged with overseeing all sales, customer success, and customer experience functions. He has served as the Chief of Global Field Operations at AI-powered software providers and led the field sales group for Europe prior to that.

“By unifying our sales organization under a single leader, we believe we can accelerate growth and deliver exceptional value to our global customer base,” said CEO Dennis Woodside. “Ian has a proven track record and played a significant role in Freshworks outperforming for the last five consecutive quarters, underscoring his ability to consistently drive high-impact results.”

Prior to his time at Freshworks, Tickle served as President and CRO at Domo and Vice President EMEA, SaaS Solutions, at Oracle.

This move will also result in Chief Integrated Customer Growth Officer Mika Yamamoto departing the company.

WSO2 appointed Thibaut Rouffineau as CMO

WSO2 has named Thibaut Rouffineau as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), with the intention to accelerate their GTM efforts across its core industries: banking and financial services, telecommunications, government, and healthcare.

“I am excited to join WSO2 at such an important stage in its journey,” said Rouffineau. “The company’s rich portfolio and refreshed branding strategy clearly positions it to address the realities organizations face as they move from AI pilots to real, outcome-driven agent deployment. WSO2 has a unique opportunity to help enterprises build the digital foundations required for intelligent, trusted, and scalable agent-driven experiences, and I look forward to working with the global team to elevate the brand and accelerate growth worldwide.”

Rouffineau brings over two decades of marketing leadership experience. Prior to joining WSO2, Rouffineau served as Vice President of Marketing at Canonical Ltd., leading global marketing initiatives supporting open-source, cloud, and platform innovation.

Coframe appoints Bo Mohazzabi as VP of GTM

Coframe recently acquired HaystacksAI, an AI-powered growth and sales intelligence startup, and will install that company’s founder and CEO as Vice President of Go-to-Market (GTM) at Coframe.

The new VP of GTM, Bo Mohazzabi, will lead sales, growth, and customer strategy while helping shape the product roadmap.

Prior to founding Haystacks, Mohazzabi was on the original account executive team at Optimizely, drove expansion into new industries at Amplitude, and joined LinkedIn’s co-founder at KarmaCheck to lead GTM.

“Bo has done this before – twice – at companies that defined how modern teams think about experimentation and behavioral analytics,” said Josh Payne, CEO and founder of Coframe. “He knows what it takes to build great AI products and help enterprises adopt cutting-edge technology. But we’re not just getting a GTM leader. We’re getting a founder who built an AI company from scratch and chose Coframe as the place to build the best AI growth agent in the industry.”

ScanSource names Mark Morgan as President of Specialty Technologies

Mark Morgan has been appointed President of Specialty Technologies at ScanSource, a technology distributor, and will focus on delivering customized, converging solutions to a growing ecosystem of channel partners.

Morgan first joined the organization in 2003 as VP of Sales for the Barcode and Mobility business, and has held other leadership roles, including VP of Sales for the former Communications business, President of Intelisys, and President of Global Strategy.

“Mark has played a central role in ScanSource’s growth and transformation for more than two decades. He brings together strategy, sales, and operational strength in a way that makes him the right leader for our Specialty Technologies business. Mark’s perspective and leadership will help us continue delivering a more connected sales experience for our partners across hardware, cloud, and services,” said Mike Baur, Chairman and CEO, ScanSource, Inc. “I would like to thank Tony Sorrentino for his 26 years of valuable service, as he has decided to resign from the company.”

NiCE names Nigel Lindsay-Smith as ANZ business lead

Nigel Lindsay-Smith will be stepping in as the new Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) business lead for NiCE, a global AI-powered platform that automates and optimizes customer services.

Lindsay-Smith will be charged with expanding NiCE’s enterprise presence in the ANZ region and with helping organizations move from fragmented customer service models toward more intelligent, autonomous, integrated systems. Additionally, he’ll be focused on expanding NiCE’s partner ecosystem across ANZ while working with systems integrators and strategic technology partners to support customer experience transformation programs.

“NiCE presents an incredibly exciting opportunity in the ANZ market,” said Lindsay-Smith. “The combination of Cognigy’s market-leading conversational AI with NiCE’s world-class CCaaS capabilities creates a powerful proposition for organizations looking to transform customer experience at scale. I’m energized by NiCE’s vision, the strength of the local and global teams, and the opportunity to deliver real value for customers across the region.”

Lindsay-Smith most recently served as Senior Vice President for Asia Pacific and Japan at LivePerson. Prior to that, he served in senior leadership positions at Adobe and Salesforce.

Pipefy adds Rodrigo Paiva as VP of U.S. Sales

Pipefy has announced that Rodrigo Paiva has been named VP of U.S. Sales, bringing over 25 years of global sales leadership experience in the U.S., Latin America, and international B2B sales management.

Paiva has held senior leadership and sales leadership roles with Oracle, Microsoft, Gartner, H2O.ai, Qubo, and LTIMindtree.

“Rodrigo joins us at a definitive turning point,” said Alessio Alionço, founder and CEO of Pipefy. “As AI-driven business orchestration becomes the backbone of modern enterprises, our focus for 2026 is clear: to set the standard in the U.S. market. To accomplish our goals, we need leaders with deep experience in global AI companies and Paiva’s track record is exactly what we seek to execute at speed and capture the massive opportunity ahead of us. Together, we’re ensuring that Pipefy isn’t just a participant in the U.S. tech ecosystem, but a leader defining its future.”

The appointment of Paiva exemplifies Pipefy’s 2026 strategy, which focuses on strengthening its presence in the U.S. to help enterprises seeking operational efficiency.