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Seismic has appointed David Laker as Chief Revenue Officer, succeeding Hayden Stafford, who is retiring from the role and will remain with the company as a strategic go-to-market advisor.
Laker joins Seismic from Guidewire, where he served as Chief Commercial Officer after previously holding the role of Chief Sales Officer. Earlier in his career, he held senior sales and go-to-market leadership roles at Oracle, Salesforce and SAP.
At Seismic, he will oversee the global revenue organisation, including sales, pre-sales, revenue operations, sales development and value teams. The appointment comes as the software company continues to integrate Highspot following the recent merger of the two businesses.
Stafford is stepping down after nearly five years with Seismic. During his tenure, annual recurring revenue increased from USD $250 million to USD $600 million, a period that also included the Highspot merger.
Chief Executive Officer Rob Tarkoff said Stafford would continue to support the business in an advisory role during the leadership transition.
"Hayden helped build a strong business and GTM team, and I'm grateful he'll continue supporting Seismic as a strategic GTM advisor," said Rob Tarkoff, Chief Executive Officer of Seismic. "Dave understands firsthand the challenge our customers are solving by using AI, data and human expertise to improve revenue execution. He has spent his career building global organisations and brings both the operator's and the customer's perspective to Seismic. That perspective will help us stay focused on what customers need and where we can help them achieve more."
Laker brings more than three decades of experience working with large enterprise customers and leading international sales organisations. His background includes leadership across enterprise, strategic account and industry-focused businesses.
Customer Perspective
Laker said his experience as a customer of both Seismic and Highspot shaped his view of the business he is joining.
"Having been a customer of both Seismic and Highspot, I know the difference these platforms can make for a GTM team," said Laker. "When you invest in your people, you want to see that investment show up in how they work with customers and the results they deliver. Seismic helps teams bring the right knowledge, judgment and guidance to every customer engagement. I'm excited to build on what Hayden and the team have accomplished and help all our customers drive impact."
Seismic serves 2,500 organisations and more than 3.5 million users worldwide. The company is headquartered in San Diego and has offices across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.
The leadership change puts a veteran software sales executive in charge of Seismic's commercial organisation as it looks to expand following a major merger and a period of strong recurring revenue growth.
Stafford will remain involved with the business as a strategic advisor.