PagerDuty appoints John DiLullo as chief executive officer

PagerDuty has appointed John DiLullo as chief executive officer, succeeding Jennifer Tejada, who has become executive chair of the board.

DiLullo takes over after more than 25 years in enterprise software, cloud and cybersecurity. Most recently, he was chief executive of Deepwatch, and he previously led LiveVox and Lastline.

The change ends Tejada's tenure as chief executive, a role she had held since 2016. She will remain closely involved in her new board role as PagerDuty manages the handover.

During Tejada's time as CEO, revenue grew from under USD $50 million to nearly USD $500 million. PagerDuty also expanded internationally across APAC, EMEA, Japan and the US public sector, and completed its initial public offering in 2019.

PagerDuty now serves more than 35,000 customers, with its software used by more than half of the Fortune 500 and about two-thirds of the Fortune 100.

Leadership transition

The appointment follows a succession process led by Tejada and the board. The transition is intended to support continuity in the company's longer-term strategy while shifting day-to-day leadership to DiLullo.

His background spans infrastructure, communications and cyber defence software. At Deepwatch, he led an operational overhaul, while his earlier roles at LiveVox and Lastline ended in what PagerDuty described as successful outcomes.

Tejada said the handover comes at the right time given recent business trends.

"Leading PagerDuty over the past decade has been an extraordinary journey and the highlight of my career," said Jennifer Tejada, Executive Chair of the Board, PagerDuty. "I've been fortunate to work alongside an incredibly talented, innovative and dedicated team. Together with our customers, including many of the world's most important and innovative companies, we've built a platform that's now essential to the world's mission-critical operations, establishing our global leadership position.

"With retention stabilizing, new customer and expansion business accelerating, continued operating margin expansion and momentum in our AI-first Operations Cloud platform, I am confident this is the right time for this transition, and that John is the right leader to guide PagerDuty through its next phase of growth. In my role as Executive Chair, I look forward to partnering with John, our leadership team and the Board to continue building on our strong momentum."

Business backdrop

PagerDuty sells software that helps companies detect, manage and respond to IT and operational incidents. It has increasingly framed that market around artificial intelligence and the growing complexity of digital systems, as software teams face pressure to maintain services across cloud environments and interconnected applications.

That theme featured prominently in DiLullo's remarks on taking the role. He said the growth of AI-enabled software development and more complex digital estates would increase demand for real-time operations management tools.

"I am honoured to join PagerDuty at such an exciting time in the Company's journey," said John DiLullo, Chief Executive Officer, PagerDuty. "I have long admired PagerDuty's mission and critical role in digital operations as a customer and a partner and am excited by its growing strength in a world transformed by AI."

"I look forward to partnering closely with Jenn, the Board, the leadership team and our employees to further build on this momentum on a strong foundation and lead the Company through its next phase of growth and innovation. We are entering a period where AI-enabled software development and increasingly complex digital environments will significantly expand the need for intelligent, real-time operations management. I believe PagerDuty sits at the centre of this transformation and is exceptionally well positioned to capitalize on the opportunities ahead."

The board also used the announcement to highlight Tejada's role in reshaping PagerDuty from a smaller private company into a listed global software supplier. Zach Nelson, the board's presiding director, said the succession process identified DiLullo as the preferred candidate to lead the next stage.

"On behalf of the Board, I want to thank Jenn for her outstanding vision, leadership and commitment to PagerDuty and our customers," said Zach Nelson, Presiding Director, PagerDuty. "She has led the transformation of PagerDuty from a small, private startup into a definitive global category leader while playing a key role in shaping the evolution of the technology industry overall, building a brand and culture centred on customer success, innovation, collaboration and resilience that has earned PagerDuty global recognition."

"As we celebrate these accomplishments, we are confident this leadership transition positions PagerDuty for success in its next chapter. Following a rigorous and thoughtful succession process, the Board is delighted to welcome John as our CEO. He stood out as a high-energy, experienced leader with a unique combination of technical expertise and go-to-market leadership and is exceptionally well-positioned to lead PagerDuty forward. I've enjoyed working with Jenn in my role as Presiding Director and look forward to our continued collaboration as she transitions to Executive Chair."