Apttus
- Apttus Chief Revenue Officer Raj Verma has left the company, according to a memo obtained by Business Insider.
- Verma was a contentious figure at Apttus, where current and former employees accused him of creating a culture of bullying and fear.
- His departure comes just six months after Apttus was bought by private equity firm Thoma Bravo and nearly a year after founding CEO Kirk Krappe left the company following allegations of sexual misconduct.
- Visit BusinessInsider.com for more stories.
The head of revenue at Apttus, an enterprise tech company that has been rocked by a series of controversies and executive turnover, has left the company without an immediate replacement, according to a memo obtained by Business Insider.
Raj Verma, the Chief Revenue Officer at Apttus, along with Gordon Thompson, senior vice president of sales, engineering and solutions, are no longer at the company, according to the memo sent to staff on Thursday by Apttus’ recently-appointed CEO Frank Holland.
It’s unclear under what circumstances Verma departed, or whether he qualified for any of the $26 million parachute package that rankled some employees when its existence was disclosed in an email to shareholders ahead of the company’s sale to Thoma Bravo in fall.
Verma was a contentious figure within Apttus where he was accused by critics of leading a culture war that rewarded brazen behavior and a "boy’s club" mentality, while ostrasizing female employees and other employees.
His departure comes six months after Apttus was acquired by private equity firm Thoma Bravo, and a year and a half after he first joined the company as its chief strategy officer. He was hired by founding CEO Kirk Krappe, who left Apttus last June following allegations that he sexually assaulted an employee at a company retreat in Cabo.
Verma and Thoma Bravo did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Several current and former insiders described a culture of bullying and fear that permeated the company and attributed it to Verma, Business Insider previously reported. Multiple former employees have also made legal accusations seeking settlements with Apttus related to Verma, people familiar with the matter previously told Business Insider. At least two other former employees have retained counsel to explore lawsuits naming Verma, a person familiar told BI in February.
Here’s the full memo about the departures:
A-Team,
I’m writing today to inform you of two leadership changes: Raj Verma, Chief Revenue Officer, and Gordon Thompson, SVP, Sales, Engineering & Solutions, are no longer with Apttus.
Since joining the company in October 2017, Raj held multiple leadership roles and during his career was responsible for our GTM strategy, sales and customer success functions.
Gordon joined Apttus in early 2014 and, among other achievements, led the creation of a truly world-class SE team. Their combined contributions are significant and I, along with the rest of the ELT, are grateful for all they’ve accomplished on behalf of Apttus and in service of our customers.
As we recruit for these key roles, I will serve as the interim Sales leader and take on day-to-day management of their direct reports. It’s important that we maintain an unwavering focus on delivering for our customers. You can be confident that I’ll work closely with Sales and SE leadership to ensure that’s the case.
My personal thanks to both Raj and Gordon. Please join me in wishing them well as they pursue their next opportunities.
Frank
- Read more from Business Insider’s investigation into the turmoil at Apttus:
- A trip to Cabo, an allegation of sexual assault, and ‘a culture of dishonesty’: Inside the downfall of the founding CEO of $1.9 billion startup Apttus
- Thoma Bravo, Apttus’ new owner, turns to damage control with partners like Salesforce and faces questions over an exec’s $26 million golden-parachute package
- Leadership shuffle continues at Thoma Bravo’s Apttus as PE firm grapples with human resources crisis
- Thoma Bravo wants Apttus to move on, but legal accusations and employee discontent continue with focus on a contentious executive
- Got a tip about Silicon Valley? Email the author at bpeterson@businessinsider.com or direct message on Twitter @beckpeterson. Secure messaging available upon request. You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.
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Source: Business Insider – bpeterson@businessinsider.com (Becky Peterson)