[ad_1]
Dialpad Inc., a cloud-based business communications firm, named
Mike Kourey
as chief financial officer as the startup prepares for a possible public listing.
Mr. Kourey began his new role at San Ramon, Calif.-based Dialpad on Sept. 20. He was most recently CFO of Okta Inc., a company that makes products for companies to verify identities and provide access to software, for less than a year. Before that, he served as finance chief at Vlocity Inc., a cloud software firm that was acquired by
Salesforce.com Inc.
last year. Mr. Kourey succeeds Steven Love, who stepped down as CFO in January 2020.
Mike Kourey, CFO of Dialpad
Photo:
Dialpad
Dialpad offers a platform that companies use for services including phone calls, videoconferences, transcriptions and online messaging. Its customers include large companies such as ride-hailing company
Uber Technologies Inc.
and communications and security equipment provider
Motorola Solutions Inc.
as well as smaller businesses. The company, which was founded in 2011 and is not yet profitable, said it has raised $250 million from venture-capital investors including investment firms Iconiq Capital and GV, formerly Google Ventures.
The shift to remote work during the pandemic has been a boon to Dialpad’s business, Chief Executive Craig Walker said, noting that many companies still use on-site desk phones that employees can’t access outside of the office. Dialpad’s competitors include business networking companies such as
Cisco Systems Inc.
and communications platforms such as
RingCentral Inc.,
he said. Dialpad has about $125 million in annual recurring revenue, the company said.
Dialpad wants to be ready for a public listing in the coming year and was looking for a CFO with public-company experience, Mr. Walker said. In addition to serving as CFO of Okta, Mr. Kourey served as a company director during the company’s 2017 public listing.
Mr. Kourey said he is focused on getting Dialpad ready to operate as a public company. That means reducing the time it takes to close the books every quarter and strengthening internal financial controls, he said. The company has 930 employees globally, including 33 in the finance department.
The company is also planning to raise additional venture funding before a public offering to fund its growth, Mr. Kourey said.
Dialpad has expanded in part through acquisitions. The company this month acquired Kare Knowledgeware, a company that uses artificial intelligence to respond to customer service inquiries. Dialpad in March also announced a partnership with
T-Mobile US Inc.
in which the telecommunications giant sells a co-branded version of the Dialpad platform.
Investors representing GV and Iconiq said Mr. Kourey is joining as CFO at a time when the company is performing well. Part of his role as finance chief will be ensuring the company continues to do so, said
Rich Miner,
a Google executive who represents GV and also serves on Dialpad’s board.
Write to Kristin Broughton at Kristin.Broughton@wsj.com
Copyright ©2021 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
[ad_2]
Read More: Business Communications Firm Dialpad Hires Former Okta CFO