- How has your career path brought you to your current role as VP of Finance and Business Operations at ZEDEDA?
My career path reflects a blend of deep financial expertise and strategic leadership, which directly aligns with ZEDEDA’s current needs as it scales. I have a strong foundation in core finance and operations, including FP&A, modeling, and budgeting. I’ve also led strategic initiatives such as go-to-market strategies, long-term planning, and M&A. I thrive in high-growth environments, having worked with companies at various stages, from early-stage startups to successful IPOs and M&A deals. - As an operations and finance leader, what interests you about the edge computing space, and how will you apply your experience from other industries?
Edge computing is a fascinating field. While it’s new to me, the more I learn, the more I realize it’s far bigger than just cloud computing. It’s a massive market with trillions of dollars in potential and ZEDEDA is a clear leader, essentially creating the market for edge orchestration. My experience in enterprise software and SaaS models means I can bring the rigor ZEDEDA needs at this stage of its growth. I’m also excited to help expand and shape the edge computing market itself.Edge computing focuses on decentralization, efficiency, cost management, and scalability—all areas where I’ve excelled in previous roles. I bring efficiency through automation, tools, and processes. I’m focused on cost management and building the right infrastructure for long-term, scalable growth, not just Band-Aid solutions. - What specifically attracted you to ZEDEDA, and what excites you most about the company’s vision, mission, and position in the edge computing space?
What attracts me most is the company’s leadership, culture, and the consistency in their messaging. Throughout my interviews, everyone I talked to gave similar answers to my questions. That tells me the company’s leadership is in sync, which is crucial. CEO Said Ouissal’s vision for the company was also a major draw. I’m equally impressed with ZEDEDA’s market position – we’re the leaders who are creating the edge computing market, and that’s a fascinating place to be. - How does ZEDEDA measure the efficiency and effectiveness of its finance and operations functions, and what key performance indicators (KPIs) should be incorporated in the future?
Right now, our efficiency and effectiveness, particularly in finance and operations, is what you’d expect for a young company. But we’re also experiencing rapid growth that is outpacing our internal scaling, so it’s critical for our processes to catch up. That’s precisely why I’m here – to navigate the realities and complexities of accelerated growth.To gauge our progress, we’ll establish key performance indicators (KPIs), but it’s crucial to keep them realistic as we grow. We won’t overburden ourselves trying to hit every KPI. Initially, I’ll focus on basic metrics like ARR, MRR, gross margin, and cash flow. We’ll also track the ROI on investments in areas like automation and process improvements.Another immediate priority is implementing an “actual versus budget” process. This visibility is essential for leaders to make informed decisions. - How does your vision for finance and operations align with ZEDEDA’s roadmap?
ZEDEDA has an aggressive roadmap, and my vision for Finance and Operations is centered on supporting the organization during this phase of growth and beyond. We’re at the point where we need to scale the company. Scaling means implementing backend processes and strengthening our infrastructure, so these things don’t hinder our growth. I’ll be focused on aligning, organizing and automating a number of processes to save the sales organization significant time, allowing them to focus on what they do best: sell. This is just one example of how I plan to scale the company and increase efficiency, which aligns perfectly with the company’s mission. - From a financial and operational perspective, what strategic initiatives or areas of investment will have the greatest impact on achieving this growth objective for the company?
I’m currently focused on optimizing our accounting processes, particularly our closing process. We’re implementing enhancements to ensure even greater accuracy and timeliness in managing expenses and payments. This initiative is especially important as we prepare for our upcoming audit.I also see an opportunity to improve efficiency and give employees more time back by upgrading our travel and expense tool. We’re exploring new solutions that will streamline those processes and eliminate unnecessary steps. - How do you see your team collaborating with product and other departments to ensure optimal operational efficiency and alignment with ZEDEDA’s overall business objectives?
Developing shared goals is essential. If I implement KPIs, it’s not just my team or me doing it, we all have to work towards them together. For example, when developing KPIs for revenue growth, the product team brings in the right product for our customers, and the sales team sells those products. My role is to work with our Product team to figure out the best way to price the product and what factors require our consideration, including cost-plus pricing. That’s a shared goal we will all work towards.Building the price list, working with sales on enablement, ensuring they have the right tools—these all involve developing shared goals and KPIs. Finance and operations also need to be involved in working with the product team on the product roadmap.We all need to be open and collaborative, giving each other feedback. Continuous feedback loops and communication between department heads are crucial. - What do you see as the biggest opportunities for ZEDEDA in the current and future market landscape, and how will you and your team capitalize on these opportunities?
ZEDEDA occupies a unique space in the edge computing market, which is a convergence of IT and operational technology. We’re bringing these two together, providing a framework to run and orchestrate software on any device, while also monitoring it. To further build on our existing strategic partnerships and OEM relationships, I see great potential in expanding how we integrate our solution into these and future products. I can help by working closely with our partners and our Product and Sales teams to evaluate our pricing and terms of service, and working with our Marketing team to create collateral that showcases the value of our combined offerings. As we grow our OEM network, it will be important to diligently track key performance indicators and ensure mutually beneficial outcomes, especially as we scale to 20 or more partners. - What are your plans for recruiting and retaining talent as you build your team?
I definitely plan on doing more hiring. We’ve recently hired a senior FP&A manager, and as I identify more areas where we need to fill gaps, I’ll hire additional people. I’m not worried about recruiting talent here in Silicon Valley; there are plenty of qualified people looking for jobs. But what’s more important is retaining those employees once they’re hired.Compensation isn’t the only factor in retention; the culture and environment we create are crucial. I want to foster an environment where people are constantly challenged, learning, and growing. If we can do that, we’ll be able to retain our employees. - How do you foster a culture of continuous improvement within your team and ensure everyone is engaged and contributing to ZEDEDA’s success?
It comes down to challenging your team and fostering their growth. I plan to introduce automation and other efficiencies. We’ll likely have manual steps in place initially, but we’ll have to identify and eliminate them by bringing the right tools.I also believe in empowering my employees. I already have a couple of directors on board, and I plan to give them significant ownership of their areas. I’m always available for guidance, but the responsibility lies with them. They need to feel accountable and like they’re an integral part of the company and team. That’s the kind of culture I want to build.
