Industry veteran and sales executive Sheen Khoury recently joined OpsRamp as Chief Revenue Officer, from his previous stint at Virtana (Virtual Instruments). He has successfully built the go-to-market strategy and teams at industry leaders Vyatta (acquired by Brocade), Aerohive Networks (IPO), NetScaler (acquired by Citrix), Good Technology, and Exodus Communications (IPO). We interviewed Sheen about his perspectives on the tech industry, CIO challenges and IT operations management (ITOM).
OpsRamp: As a serial sales executive, describe this journey and the major changes which you have witnessed in the enterprise tech industry.
SK: I began my career at the pioneering stage of the Internet when people were wondering how to describe a domain and how email works. The mission critical delivery of apps has been the theme of my career all along. Beginning in the mid-1990s, I worked for the world leader in Internet data centers, a company called Exodus Communications. During that time I saw the transition of the enterprise to the Internet and the webification of enterprise applications. In the early to mid-2000’s, I worked at NetScaler where we provided an industry-changing approach to application delivery. Then we had the big wave of virtualization and software-defined infrastructure. This dramatically changed how infrastructure was delivered and set the stage for the founding of AWS. In the last five years, the needs in ITOM have gone beyond human comprehension. There are thousands of application and infrastructure services being managed by IT which require automation and orchestration. And now, we are squarely in the space of AIOps as a technology platform to dramatically enhance management, utilization and performance of apps in a hybrid environment.
The mission critical delivery of apps has been the theme of my career all along."
OpsRamp: Do you have a particular philosophy or approach in enterprise sales which has been instrumental to your success over the years?
SK: My philosophy is you lead with a highly-powered, diverse team with bifurcation across your target markets and infuse a highly leveraged channel model across your targeted service providers, system integrators, VARs and OEMs. Knowing the partnerships OpsRamp had underway was one big reason that I was super excited to be here. At the end of the day if I am talking to a CIO, I am there to help him or her deliver their applications. In our space, that’s about ensuring the infrastructure that delivers the applications is healthy, reliable and predictable.
OpsRamp: How and why did you choose OpsRamp as your next career opportunity?
SK: After living through the massive shift in the IT market over the past five years and seeing IT leaders drive AIOps into their digital transformation strategy to ensure applications can be delivered using a hybrid data center strategy, I am thrilled to join a company that built a world-class SaaS platform associated with this movement. In the last three-and a-half years working in this space, I’ve seen a demand for a modern ITOM solution that allows IT to execute the organization’s digital transformation strategy. This has become my personal passion.
OpsRamp: Given what’s going on in the world right now, how would you describe the challenges which CIOs and leaders of infrastructure and operations are facing now and into 2021?
SK: In today’s digital transformation journey, it’s critical that senior IT management understand the significant value of driving automation and efficiencies within their hybrid infrastructure and application delivery platforms. Today’s enterprises face challenges in core areas, as stated by Gartner. Those include: insufficient IT resources, lack of digital skills and creating the proper business culture for rapid change. Given the current economic climate and pressure to deliver greater customer value, IT leaders who make the right technology investments now will ensure the agility, visibility and intelligence necessary to drive marketplace growth.
OpsRamp: When not working, what is your first choice of something to do to relax or enjoy?
SK: There are several things. My wife and I are foodies and we love great wines. Family is always first! I love to hike, cycle, travel, and flyfish and I am trying to improve my golf game, and my own journey. Unfortunately, there is not yet an automated solution!!
