Singapore – Freshworks, a software development firm, has recently announced the appointment of Dennis Woodside as the new chief executive officer and president of the company.
This strategic appointment follows the transition of Girish Mathrubootham, founder and outgoing CEO, to his new role as executive chairman. Girish will retain his position as chairman of the Board of Directors, of which Woodside will also continue to be a member.
As the new CEO, Woodside brings extensive leadership experience, having served as the chief operating officer at Dropbox. Among his notable accomplishments are helping the company grow revenue from US$250m to US$1.3b and ultimately raising over US$1b in a successful IPO in 2018.
Before joining Freshworks, he was also able to hold several positions at Google from 2003 to 2014. This includes a CEO role at Motorola Mobility, following Google’s acquisition of the company in 2012.
Prior to his time at Google, Dennis further worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Co. He currently sits on the board of the Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula in California.
Additionally, he previously served on the boards of the American Red Cross from 2016 to 2022 and ServiceNow from 2018 to 2022.
Dennis assumed the role of president at Freshworks in September 2022. Since then, he has ramped up the company’s investments in enterprise-grade products and focused on growing its mid-market and enterprise customer segments.
Commenting on the appointment initiative, Girish Mathrubootham, founder and outgoing chief executive officer at Freshworks, said, “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.”
“Dennis has a deep understanding of Freshworks’ business, customers, and 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,” added Girish.
Since its inception in 2010, Girish has transformed Freshworks from a startup in Chennai into a prominent SaaS company headquartered in San Mateo. The company’s products are designed to help businesses of all sizes delight both employees and customers.
In September 2021, he also led Freshworks through a successful IPO on Nasdaq, marking it as the first India-born SaaS firm to be listed on a US exchange. Under his stewardship, the company has expanded its reach to serve over 67,000 customers worldwide.
Dennis, on the other hand, said, “As I step into the role of CEO, I am deeply honoured to build upon Girish’s remarkable legacy. 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,” he further emphasised.
