 "Freshworks founder Mathrubootham steps down as CEO, Woodside takes charge")
Girish Mathrubootham has stepped down as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Freshworks to become the executive chairman of the Nasdaq-listed software as a service (SaaS) company.
Dennis Woodside, the company’s president, is the new CEO. "As I pass the baton to Dennis and move into my new seat as Executive Chairman, I look forward to continuing to serve Freshworks, focusing on our long-term product vision and AI (artificial intelligence), spending more time with our teams in India, and being a trusted advisor to Dennis," said Mathrubootham.
Mathrubootham founded Freshworks in Chennai in 2010 and has made it a leading SaaS company headquartered in San Mateo, Califorina. Mathrubootham steered Freshworks through an initial public offer (IPO) on Nasdaq in September 2021, making it the first India-born SaaS firm to trade on a US exchange. Under his leadership, the company has grown to serve more than 67,000 customers globally. It has some 4,900 employees work in 13 global locations, said a company statement.
“When I first proposed this next step to the Freshworks board, we were starting to chart the next phase of our company’s journey. We brought Dennis on board to partner with me on crafting an ambitious growth plan, and my hope was that he could eventually lead the team of talented employees around the world to execute it, which would allow me to spend more time on the long-term product vision, innovation and AI strategy,” said Mathrubootham. “Dennis has a deep understanding of Freshworks’ business, customers and our employees, and a strong track record of building and scaling large global teams – he is the right leader to become our next CEO. I’m thrilled to announce this transition.”
Woodside joined Freshworks as president in September 2022. He has “accelerated” Freshworks’ investments in enterprise grade products and increased focus on mid-market and enterprise customers, said the statement.
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Woodside was previously the chief operating officer of Dropbox, helping the file hosting provider’s revenue grow from $250 million to $1.3 billion and ultimately raising it more than $1 billion in a successful IPO in 2018. Before that, Woodside held sales and strategy leadership roles at Google from 2003 to 2014, including serving as CEO of Motorola Mobility after Google acquired the company in 2012. Before working for Google, Woodside was a consultant at McKinsey & Co.
As executive chairman, Mathrubootham will “remain highly engaged” with products, customers and employees. He will work on Freshworks’ long-term vision and consult with Woodside on strategic decisions. “The transition frees him up to spend more time with our product teams in India, and our customers globally, and stay engaged with other external stakeholders,” said the statement.
“As I step into the role of CEO, I am deeply honoured to build upon Girish's remarkable legacy,” said Woodside. “What he has created is truly special. Our mission and strategy remain the same. We stand before extraordinary opportunities and have the right foundation to make it possible – a winning combination of our strong focus on delighting customers and our product portfolio and innovation. I’m committed and excited to continue our journey of growth."