PeopleStrong, Freshworks announce top-brass appointments

Gurugram-based human resources (HR) solutions provider PeopleStrong has appointed former OYO executive Vineet Pandita as its deputy chief technology officer (CTO). 

The appointment, a statement said, is part of the company’s effort to invest in technology driven innovations for the Asian market.

“We are in a high growth phase, and I believe we have hit critical mass at just the right time, as organisations globally realise the true potential of HR and work technology in transforming employee experience and talent analytics,” Sandeep Chaudhary, chief executive officer (CEO) of PeopleStrong, said.

In November 2019, the company had appointed former AON Hewitt CEO Chaudhary as president. In January 2021, he was elevated to the post of CEO. 

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Before OYO, Pandita had a short stint at Amazon. He served as the director of technology development and senior manager of technology at MakeMyTrip for six years.

“Our next phase of growth is pivoted around our product and global expansion,” Vishal Saha, CTO of PeopleStrong, said.

The company added that looks to achieve three-fold growth in the next two years through its HR solutions.

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Separately, Chennai-based helpdesk software provider Freshworks announced the appointment of software-as-a-service (SaaS) veteran Stacey Epstein as its chief marketing officer (CMO).

Epstein brings with her 25 years of experience. She has worked with companies such 

as Servicemax and Successfactors at senior marketing roles. Epstein also served as advisor/board member at email marketing firm Litmus, startup accelerator Y Combinator and management solutions company Brightidea.

"With more than 50,000 customers leveraging our modern and highly intuitive solutions, Freshworks has been quietly disrupting several enterprise SaaS categories," Epstein said.

Freshworks recently surpassed $300 million in annual recurring revenues.

"Stacey is a talented leader who has built well-known brands from early stage through successful exits including both IPOs and multi-billion dollar acquisitions. She'll play a huge role in our next phase of growth," Girish Mathrubootham, CEO of Freshworks, said.

In six years, Epstein took SuccessFactors, a $10 million revenue generating company, to one that was acquired by SAP for $3.4 billion.