Avaya CEO Alan Masarek to Retire, Company Names Successor

At the end of the year, Avaya CEO Alan Masarek will retire, at which time the company's current board chair, Patrick Dennis, will become Avaya's third CEO in two years.

That leadership transition will become effective Sept. 1, 2024.

You may recall when Masarek, the former Vonage boss, came on the Avaya scene in 2022, coming out of retirement following the ouster of Jim Chirico, who served as the company's chief executive for nearly 15 years.

The unified communications provider's newest leader brings almost 30 years of experience to the table. In addition to his role on the Avaya board, Dennis has been serving as the CEO of cybersecurity firm Venafi, which will soon become a part of CyberArk following a pending acquisition.

In a statement, Dennis said that he is honored to lead Avaya on the next phase of its journey. He wants to build on the "solid foundation" laid by Masarek, who joined the company two years ago to help it emerge from its second Chapter 11 bankruptcy in six years.

“Avaya is now operating from a position of financial strength," said Dennis.

What We Know About the New Avaya CEO

A member of the Avaya board for nearly two years and a former Oracle executive, Dennis was CEO of ExtraHop before he moved to Venafi. His tenure there amounted to seven months.

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Dennis further functioned as Aspect Communications' CEO, a multinational software firm focusing on enterprise-grade customer experience (CX) platforms. That company is now known as Alvaria.

Avaya Experienced Meaningful Change During Masarek's Tenure

Marking the close of eight quarters as CEO, Masarek beefed up significant Avaya alliances with Zoom, RingCentral and others, transforming the company from one formerly associated with on-premises UC to one leading its customers on a cloud journey.

Avaya's Patrick Dennis

Avaya recently has seen vast changes among its senior leadership. That includes Amy O'Keefe, who joined in June as the company's CFO. Last November, Marylou “ML” Maco joined as Avaya's chief revenue and customer experience officer, boasting decades of channel-related experience.

In January, the organization gained a new sales leader in former Verizon and CA Technologies alum Chris Dickson. He recently shared his strategic vision for Avaya channel partner sales at the company's annual Engage event.