Avaya has added a former Vonage employee to its C-Suite, as well as a new CPO and CMO.
Amy O’Keefe is taking over as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Omar Javaid is the new Chief Product Officer, and Josh Mueller has become Avaya’s Chief Marketing Officer (CMO).
Avaya’s CEO Alan Masarek has been waiting for the conclusion of Chapter 11 proceedings before introducing any key hires at a senior level and putting his new CCaaS-focussed business strategy into effect.
Alan Masarek, CEO at Avaya, said: “As Avaya enters a dynamic new chapter, the extensive industry and management experience of these executives will help us rapidly build on the leadership position we have established in customer experience.
“We operate in a very competitive technology industry, and seasoned executives like Amy, Omar, and Josh could choose to work anywhere.
Their decision to join Avaya is strong affirmation of the company’s potential and validates that we have set Avaya on the right path for our customers, partners and employees.
Avaya’s New Leaders
The shake-up in C-Suite leadership positions comes as no surprise; it has been on the company’s to-do list since entering the 90-day Chapter 11 bankruptcy period.
Both Javaid and Mueller have previously held leadership positions at Vonage, where Masarek was previously CEO, perhaps reflecting Masarek’s desire to have a trusted senior team going forwards.
The most noteworthy recruit in the line-up is CFO Amy O’Keefe, who has not held a position at Vonage but has 30 years of experience driving business growth and maximizing profitability.
Most recently, she served as CEO of WW International (previously Weight Watchers International, where she was instrumental in the company’s ‘ rationalization and realignment’ strategy.
Previously, she has been CFO at Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare, Savant Systems, and D&M Holdings, as well as divisional CFO at Black & Decker.
The new Chief Product Officer, Omar Javaid, joins Avaya from Qualcomm, where he was the SVP & GM.
Javaid was previously the President of the Nexmo API platform unit and Chief Product Officer at Vonage.
He has also been on the board at TV Guide International, an SVP and GM at TiVo, and in leadership roles at Google, Motorola, and Hewlett-Packard.
The new CMO and General Manager of Hardware at Avaya, Josh Mueller, will take charge of worldwide marketing activities and Avaya’s hardware business, including supply chain, procurement, and devices.
In his last position, Mueller served as SVP and GM of the Portable Business Unit at National Instruments.
Before that, he was Chief Digital Officer at Vonage, CMO at Dun & Bradstreet, and in marketing leadership roles at Dell Technologies.
The three new senior staff will attend Avaya ENGAGE, where over 3,000 Avaya customers, partners, and associates will come together to revel in the latest customer experience conversations.
ENGAGE, which started yesterday, is being held at the Walt Disney World Dolphin Resort and includes around 90 keynotes, and breakout sessions will be given on building great CX and discussing upcoming CX technologies.
Earlier this month, analysts discussed the difficult climate CX vendors are facing right now that could lead to further bankruptcies, as with Avaya and Lifesize.
