Freshworks appoints Dennis Woodside as CEO, Girish Mathrubootham moves to a new role

US-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) firm Freshworks announced on Wednesday that its chief executive officer (CEO) Girish Mathrubootham will transition to the role of Executive Chairman. Meanwhile, Dennis Woodside, who is currently the President, has been appointed as the new CEO.

Before joining Freshworks, Dennis Woodside held several roles, including Chief Operating Officer at Dropbox and the CEO of Motorola Mobility. He also served on the Board of ServiceNow for more than four years.

Mathrubootham wrote about the changes in a company blog post.  “Today, I am announcing a new chapter in our company's story and my career. I have decided to step down as CEO of Freshworks and transition into the role of Executive Chairman. This decision was not made lightly and comes with a deep belief in our collective vision and the future of our company,” said Girish Mathrubootham in a statement to the employees. 

Commenting on Woodside’s appointment, he said, “We have worked together for more than 18 months now, and watching Dennis gain a deep understanding of the Freshworks business, his love and admiration of our work and people in India, his ability to attract top talent and build world-class teams, and the operational excellence that he brings to Freshworks make me confident that he is the right leader to take on the CEO role.”. 

Freshworks, founded in 2010 in Chennai, specializes in customer relationship management (CRM), IT service management (ITSM), and e-commerce marketing tools. With a client base of over 60,000 businesses as of October 2023, Freshworks became the first India-born SaaS firm to be listed on the Nasdaq through an IPO in September 2021.

In September 2022, Freshworks announced the appointment of Dennis Woodside as its new President, responsible for leading the company's global business operations and strategy. Woodside's previous experience includes serving as the Chief Operating Officer of Dropbox, where he played a key role in significant revenue growth and a successful IPO. He also held various sales and strategy leadership positions at Google, including serving as the CEO of Motorola Mobility after Google's acquisition of the company in 2012.

The SaaS firm has recently undergone several management changes, leading to a top-level reshuffle. In the fourth quarter, Pradeep Rathinam, the firm's Chief Revenue Officer, left the company, and Abe Smith was appointed as the new global field operations leader. Additionally, Mika Yamamoto has been appointed as the Chief Customer and Marketing Officer (CCMO), and Johanna Jackman has taken on the role of Chief People Officer (CPO). These appointments reflect the firm's commitment to strengthening its leadership team.

Freshworks has reported consolidated revenue of $165.1 million, marking a 20% year-on-year growth. The non-GAAP operating profit has also seen a significant increase, reaching $21.8 million compared to $3.9 million in the first quarter of 2023. This growth can be attributed to the successful integration of generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) into the company's product portfolio.

In February, the company decided to cancel the CEO Performance Award of six million stock units that were originally allocated to founder and CEO Girish Mathrubootham in 2022. This decision was made due to changes in performance targets caused by challenging macroeconomic conditions.

As a result of this change, Mathrubootham will now have more time to focus on the long-term product vision, innovation, and AI strategy. The company's statement emphasized that this transition will allow him to dedicate more time to working with the product teams in India, engaging with customers globally, and maintaining relationships with external stakeholders.

In addition to his role at Freshworks, Mathrubootham, along with Eka Software founder Manav Garg, announced the launch of their new venture fund called 'Together' in 2021. This fund aims to support early-stage software product companies either based in India or founded by Indians.

Outside of his professional endeavours, Mathrubootham is also passionate about coaching football. He has invested Rs 100 crore in building a football academy in Mahabalipuram, which is now known as the Home of FC Madras.