Rich McBee President and CEO, Riverbed

Riverbed Technology, Inc., a portfolio company of Thoma Bravo, announced that Rich McBee has been appointed president and CEO to drive the company’s digital networking and digital experience management businesses.

He is the former president and CEO of Mitel, in business communications.

He is a leader with more than 30 years of experience holding leadership roles driving market expansion, revenue growth and operations excellence at a range of technology companies. He departed Mitel after leading the company through a period of strategic transformation, including driving its industry consolidation strategy, completing a dozen strategic transactions. During his 8-year tenure as CEO, Mitel evolved from a premise-based PBX pioneer to be a leader of public and private cloud unified communications and collaboration solutions.

“Rich is a strong leader and strategist, and has a solid track record of driving business execution and results. Riverbed has experienced strong performance recently and Rich is the right leader to continue our upward momentum, as well as bring the passion and dedication to operational excellence that he is well known for in the industry,” said David Murphy, Riverbed chairman and senior operating partner, Thoma Bravo. “I look forward to working with Rich and the Riverbed executive team as we continue to deliver vs. our strategy and drive growth in two very unique and growing markets: digital networking and digital experience management.“

“Riverbed has a well-respected brand, a history of innovation and a strong customer installed base that is well-earned,” said McBee. “Riverbed’s current technology portfolio and strategy opens up significant market opportunities for our company, as organizations worldwide are looking to capitalize on their digital transformation investments and enhance the digital experience of their users. I’m looking forward to working with our experienced team to accelerate our execution and drive great outcomes for Riverbed, as well as for our partners and customers.“

Orlando Bravo, Thoma Bravo founder and managing partner, said: “Rich McBee has the ideal skills and experience to lead Riverbed through this next phase of growth while driving operational excellence. We are fully committed to Riverbed’s success, and look forward to continuing to deliver great value to Riverbed’s customers and partners, and maximizing the company’s potential in a $20 billion total addressable market.”

Prior to transforming Mitel into a provider of unified communications, McBee served as president of the communications and enterprise group of Danaher Corporation. In this role, he was responsible for annual sales derived from carrier, enterprise, and SMB markets via both direct sales and channel partners. He joined Danaher in 2007 when they acquired Tektronix Communications, where he had worked at since 1998 in a variety of positions including: SVP and GM, communications business unit; SVP of WW sales, service and marketing; and VP marketing and strategic initiatives.

He holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the Chapman School of Business and Economics and graduated from the United States Air Force Academy with a Bachelor of Science in 1986.

The Riverbed board of directors conducted a search for the new CEO.

Prior to McBee’s appointment, Riverbed chairman David Murphy took on the interim role of CEO.