Braze Hires Former Bazaarvoice Executive as CMO, Former Marketo Chairman and CEO to Join Board of Directors

“As Braze enters our next phase of maturity, we’re bringing on senior leaders who have shown success at every level of high-growth startups,” said Bill Magnuson, cofounder and CEO of Braze. “Sara has great experience leading go-to-market strategy for both private and public companies in digital marketing. Phil is an industry luminary who built one of the most successful marketing technology companies in the world. Both will bring invaluable experience to the team and help take us to the next level.”

Spivey has more than 30 years of marketing and leadership experience with various organizations. At digital marketing company Bazaarvoice, she was responsible for the company’s global marketing programs, including demand generation, product marketing, brand strategy, and communications. Prior to Bazaarvoice, Spivey served as CEO of InReach, a provider of online continuing education management solutions, a role preceded by her tenure as chief marketing officer for software company Convio. She also formerly served as the vice chairman of the board of Girlstart, an organization focused on increasing girls’ interest and engagement in STEM, and as a board member of the Austin Chamber of Commerce. Spivey will be based out of Braze’s New York headquarters.

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“Today’s marketing technology landscape is crowded, yet brands don’t have strong customer engagement strategies,” stated Spivey. “I’m excited to help Braze further its mission of helping brands strengthen the relationships with their customers, while helping simultaneously achieving higher lifetime revenue.”

Fernandez is a veteran Silicon Valley entrepreneur, with more than 35 years of experience building and leading breakout technology companies. He retired in 2016 from Marketo, where he served as Chairman and CEO since cofounding the company in 2006. Prior to Marketo, he held various roles at Epiphany, Inc., Metaphor Computer Systems, Red Brick Systems, and Stanford University. Fernandez is currently a special advisor at Shasta Ventures, working closely with entrepreneurs in enterprise SaaS, IoT platforms, and industrial VR and AR applications as they scale and address critical growth decisions. He also serves on the boards of Collibra and PTC.

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“Over the past several years, we have seen a new generation of marketing software emerge to fulfill the promise of true cross-channel engagement, allowing brands and retailers to create deeper and more valuable relationships with their customers,” said Fernandez. “Braze has built a powerful, new platform that powers real-time customer relationships across every touchpoint at scale, positioning the company as the clear winner.”

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