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March 13, 2020

Big Data Career Notes: March 2020 Edition

In this monthly feature, we’ll keep you up-to-date on the latest career developments for individuals in the big data community. Whether it’s a promotion, new company hire, or even an accolade, we’ve got the details. Check in each month for an updated list and you may even come across someone you know, or better yet, yourself!


Jules Beck

Syniti tapped Jules Beck for the role of president of its Europe and Africa region. Jules is credited with the growth of several businesses, including Axon Solutions, H.P. Enterprise Global SAP business, and ServiceNOW. At ServiceNOW, he held the role of vice president and general manager.

“At the heart of every business’ digital transformation is the business of data,” Jules said. “Mastering data and data understanding in the context of business have been Syniti’s single focus since its inception. I am thrilled to lead the charge and partner with our customers and partners for the new decade.”

Mike Berry

NetApp announced the addition of Mike Berry as the executive vice president and chief financial officer. Berry comes from McAfee, LLC, where he held senior leadership positions. At McAfee, he was responsible for the company’s financial planning, accounting, tax and treasury, and operations.

“I am very excited to join NetApp as it continues the evolution to a leadership position in cloud data services,” Berry said. “I believe NetApp is in a unique position to capitalize on the future technology trends given its market leadership, focus on innovation, and strong financial foundation. I look forward to working with George and the whole NetApp team to further the value creation for our shareholders, customers, and employees.”

Aslam Jamal

Informatica announced the addition of Aslam Jamal to the role of vice president of Channels for EMEA and LATAM. Jamal will take over the management and growth of the company’s alliances and partnerships. He has over 20 years of holding leadership positions at ForgeRock and Cisco.

“Informatica is undergoing strong growth as it works with its leading channel and ecosystem partners to help fuel its customers’ data-driven, AI-enabled digital transformations,” Jamal said. “My focus at Informatica will be to build on our strong channel alliances ecosystem to deliver incremental revenue, market share, and differentiation. There’s a promising growth trajectory ahead, and I’m excited to help shape Informatica’s next phase of growth with our partners.

Aaron Katz

Elastic N.V. announced the transition of Aaron Katz from the role of chief revenue officer to an advisory role to Elastic’s CEO and founder, Shay Banon. According to Elastic, the change is a mutual agreement. Katz will remain in his advisory role until August 1, 2020.

“It has been a privilege leading Elastic’s go-to-market efforts over the past six years. I have never been more encouraged by the value our solutions offer to our customers, partners, and community at large,” Katz said. “I remain committed to ensuring a successful transition over the next several months.”

Tom Levey

DataRobot appointed Tom Levey to the newly created role of chief go-to-market officer. Levey is responsible for managing the global go-to-market practices and sales of the company. Before DataRobot, Levey served as the VP of sales at AppDynamics.

“AI is the next frontier that will radically transform software, and DataRobot is uniquely positioned to capitalize on this revolution,” said Levey. “DataRobot offers a real, proven approach for harnessing AI in ways that deliver actual business value. I’m honored to join such a dynamic team of innovators, and I look forward to bringing DataRobot’s unprecedented power to more organizations worldwide.”

Nellie Manktelow

Ground Labs appointed Nellie Manktelow as its chief executive officer. Manktelow has over 12 years of experience working at European banks in Singapore, Hong Kong, and London. Before Ground Labs, she was the director of business management at the Royal Bank of Scotland.

“I am truly honored to take on the role of CEO at Ground Labs and to help lead our company as we look to increase global employee headcount and deliver stronger revenue growth for our existing product line,” Manktelow said. “We have a lot of exciting momentum right now as we continue investing heavily in the development of our next-generation product line, which will fuel revenue growth come 2021 and onward. I couldn’t think of a more thrilling time for Ground Labs.”

Dean Neese

Kinetica tapped Dean Neese for the role of chief financial officer. Neese is responsible for overseeing Kinetica’s economic activities while driving initiatives for growth. Neese’s 30-year career includes executing over 30 acquisitions, joint ventures, divestitures, and IPOs across the globe. He’s also taken leadership roles in two Series E investment rounds. Before Kinetica, Neese held the position of CFO at Qubole and Shape Security.

“Data is the business world’s most valuable asset, and Kinetica can help transform the world’s largest organizations into data-driven companies,” Neese said. “I’m excited to join a blue chip executive team at a rapidly growing company in an explosive and exciting industry, and look forward to building the next true category disruptor.”

Satish Ramakrishnan

Reltio announced the addition of Satish Ramakrishnan for the role of executive vice president of engineering. Under this role, he is responsible for software delivery, implementing processes for accelerating development, and managing overall engineering operations. Before Reltio, Ramakrishnan held senior leadership positions at CableLabs and UpRamp.

“Born in the cloud, Reltio has always been a market-leading innovator,” Satish said. “Our multi-cloud approach empowers our customers to deliver the best experiences on the public cloud of their choice while being able to choose best-of-breed capabilities from any cloud provider. My team will continue to ensure that we are at the forefront of technology and build not what is convenient to us, but what is best for our customers. We are building on ten years of experience in managing services and collaborating with cloud providers to gain infrastructure efficiencies and pass on those benefits to our customers.”

To read last month’s edition of Career Notes, click here.

Do you know someone that should be included in next month’s list? If so, send us an email at [email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you.

Datanami