Veeam Software has announced three key senior leadership appointments designed to fast-track its growth and accelerate innovation worldwide. Brandt Urban has been promoted to Chief Business Development Officer (CBDO), Tony Colon joins as Chief Customer Officer (CCO), and Michael Rau has been named Vice President of Worldwide Partners.
“We’re entering a new era for data, one that combines the need for data resilience with security, and the ability to unleash the value of that data for AI. As the clear market leader experiencing rapid growth, we are strategically recognizing talent inside Veeam and adding new talent to our senior management team that will help us to not only sustain that growth but accelerate our momentum, said Anand Eswaran, CEO of Veeam. “Brandt, Tony, and Michael bring essential experience and vision that will ensure Veeam is ready for the next phase of our transformative growth and innovation, always keeping our customers and partners at the heart of everything we do.”
Brandt Urban, Chief Business Development Officer (CBDO)
Brandt Urban has been promoted to Chief Business Development Officer at Veeam, reporting directly to CEO Anand Eswaran. In this critical new role, Brandt will lead corporate development, mergers and acquisitions, strategic partnerships, and corporate strategy. Prior to this appointment, Brandt served as Senior Vice President, Worldwide Cloud Sales at Veeam, where he played a pivotal role in driving cloud sales growth and enhancing the company’s global cloud strategy. Brandt will work closely with product and Go-to-Market teams to translate strategy into execution, expanding Veeam’s value proposition and accelerating growth through targeted ventures, alliances and acquisitions. With nearly three years of proven leadership at Veeam and prior senior roles at Microsoft, Genesys, RingCentral, and HPE, Brandt’s deep expertise and strategic vision will be instrumental in sharpening Veeam’s continued long-term leadership in data resilience and safe AI.
Tony Colon, Chief Customer Officer (CCO)
Tony Colon steps into the newly established role of Chief Customer Officer at Veeam, reporting to Veeam CRO John Jester. With more than 20 years of experience leading global customer-facing organizations, Tony will own the entire customer journey, ensuring every interaction from onboarding to renewal is seamless and aligned. Colon will oversee Renewals, Customer Success, Professional Services and Technical Support teams, partnering closely with sales leaders to maximize customer satisfaction, retention, and growth. His leadership at ServiceNow, Cisco, and Salesforce has transformed Customer Success teams into billion-dollar revenue engines, and his focus will be on advancing Veeam’s leadership in data resilience, ransomware recovery, and cyber resilience.
Michael Rau, Vice President of Worldwide Partners
Michael Rau joins as Vice President of Worldwide Partners, reporting directly to Veeam CRO John Jester, and as a member of the Worldwide Sales Leadership team. Michael will lead Veeam’s global partner business, focusing on developing consistent programs, incentives, and solutions across distribution, resell, SaaS, services, and strategic alliances. He will also oversee Veeam’s most critical partnerships, including HPE, Lenovo, Pure Storage, CrowdStrike, Palo Alto, TCS, and Kyndryl. With nearly a decade at F5 and senior roles at Cisco, Michael brings deep technical and partnership expertise that will further differentiate Veeam’s offerings and unlock even greater value for partners.
“At Veeam, excellence isn’t just a goal – it’s our standard in every customer and partner engagement,” said John Jester, CRO of Veeam. “These new strategic appointments underscore our unwavering commitment to innovation and industry leadership. With this strengthened team, we’re not just keeping pace with change; we’re setting a new benchmark for data resilience and customer success worldwide. I have absolute confidence that together, we will drive even greater value for our customers and partners at every step of their journey toward robust data resilience and business continuity.”
“At Veeam, excellence isn’t just a goal – it’s our standard in every customer and partner engagement,” said John Jester, CRO of Veeam. “These new strategic appointments underscore our unwavering commitment to innovation and industry leadership. With this strengthened team, we’re not just keeping pace with change; we’re setting a new benchmark for data resilience and customer success worldwide. I have absolute confidence that together, we will drive even greater value for our customers and partners at every step of their journey toward robust data resilience and business continuity.”
