ConnectWise today announced more changes to its key executive leadership team, appointing a new chief customer officer, a new CFO, and a newly created role of chief strategy and transformation officer. The moves, according to the company, are designed to advance a partner-first strategy and operational execution.
These appointments come on the heels of several key leadership departures in February. These included CTO Raghu Bongula; Jake Varghese, executive vice president and GM; Ameer Karim, executive vice president and GM, cybersecurity and data protection; Rafael Marty, SVP of product management; and Gregg Lalle, SVP and GM, IT Nation.
And earlier this month, ConnectWise announced a new Partner Communities business unit that integrates three ConnectWise programs: IT Nation, Service Leadership, and Partner Advisory Councils (PACs). Peter Kujawa is now leading this initiative as EVP of Service Leadership and IT Nation, reporting directly to ConnectWise CEO Manny Rivelo. Previously, Kujawa was VP and GM of Service Leadership.
MSP Success asked Rivelo if he would characterize these latest leadership team appointments, as well as other recent appointments and departures, as a complete reorganization.
“This is a strategic enhancement of our leadership team to better execute our partner-first strategy and drive long-term growth,” Rivelo responded by email. “We are investing in leadership that aligns with our vision for the future, bringing in talent that will help us execute faster and more effectively on our mission to help MSPs run, grow, and transform their businesses. Everything we’re doing, whether it’s changes in the leadership team, more focus, or increased investment, comes down to focus and execution. Our goal is to ensure we continue moving in the right direction, focusing on improving partner experience and accelerating innovation.”
ConnectWise’s New Executive Team Members
Effective today, Mari-Frances Bentvelzen joins ConnectWise as chief customer officer, replacing Alan Komet. Komet, who’s held that position just shy of two years, will transition into the newly created role of chief strategy and transformation officer. He will continue to report to Rivelo. In this capacity, Komet will lead a new Transformation Office focused on accelerating strategic initiatives such as platform migrations, payments adoption, pricing and packaging, corporate development, and long-range planning.
“Alan’s leadership as CCO has strengthened our customer programs,” Rivelo says. “His transition enables an even greater focus on operational excellence and organizational agility while supporting Mari in deepening partner relationships and enhancing service delivery.”
Bentvelzen, who will also report directly to Rivelo, most recently served as CCO at WEX. There, she led a global team of over 3,000 and drove transformational customer engagement and revenue growth. Before that, she held senior leadership roles at SAP Concur.
“Mari’s mission is to enhance our partner-first strategy, improve the partner experience, and ensure we are delivering on our promise to help MSPs grow and transform their businesses,” Rivelo says. “She brings a proven track record in customer success, commercial strategy, and operational excellence and has demonstrated her ability to drive significant customer engagement and build lasting partnerships. This experience is critical as we continue to reinforce our partner-first strategy.”
Driving the Financial Strategy
In addition, ConnectWise appointed Dan Madden as CFO, replacing Rik Thorbecke, who has been CFO for less than a year.
Madden, who joins ConnectWise on April 7, has over 25 years of financial leadership across both public and private-equity-backed companies. Madden has held CFO roles at Medallia, Edifecs, Ellie Mae, Revel Systems, and Cepheid. Earlier in his career, he held senior finance roles at Symmetricom, Tellabs, and McKesson.
Rivelo says Madden “will be instrumental in driving our financial strategy and operations to support ConnectWise’s sustainable growth and innovation goals. We’ve listened intently to our partners and colleagues, and we’ve evolved the organization to address our next stage of MSP growth and to drive the best partner experience possible.”
Creating a Culture of Execution
MSP Success asked Rivelo, who replaced former CEO Jason Magee last September, if he is working to reshape the culture at ConnectWise, which for the first time last year ceded its No. 1 position in RMM/PSA market share to Kaseya.
“We are focused on fostering a culture that prioritizes execution and partner success, building a culture that embraces agility, innovation, and a strong focus on delivering value to our MSP partners,” Rivelo says. “This includes ensuring we are aligned in our goals and constantly measuring every element of the business that drives success. We’re seeing strong organic growth, particularly with the ConnectWise Asio Platform, and we want to solidify that momentum by creating a culture that supports rapid innovation and partner-centricity. Ultimately, we want to create an environment where our team is empowered to deliver the best possible solutions and experiences for our partners.”
