Elastic Names Navam Welihinda Chief Financial Officer
Elastic (NYSE: ESTC) has appointed Navam Welihinda as its new Chief Financial Officer, effective February 28, 2025. Welihinda will serve as the company's principal financial officer and principal accounting officer.
Welihinda joins from Grammarly, where he served as CFO overseeing corporate finance and development. His previous experience includes seven years at HashiCorp as CFO, where he helped scale the company through its IPO and drove profitable growth. He also held finance leadership roles at IBM and investment positions at Insight Venture Partners, American Capital Strategies, and Sierra Ventures.
The appointment aligns with Elastic's focus on its Search AI Platform and continued development in search, GenAI, observability, and security solutions. CEO Ash Kulkarni highlighted Welihinda's expertise in building multi-product, open source businesses and experience with consumption-based products as key assets for Elastic's next growth phase.
Elastic (NYSE: ESTC) ha nominato Navam Welihinda come nuovo Chief Financial Officer, con decorrenza dal 28 febbraio 2025. Welihinda assumerà il ruolo di principale responsabile finanziario e principale responsabile contabile dell'azienda.
Welihinda proviene da Grammarly, dove ha ricoperto il ruolo di CFO supervisando la finanza aziendale e lo sviluppo. La sua esperienza precedente include sette anni in HashiCorp come CFO, dove ha contribuito a far crescere l'azienda durante la sua IPO e ha guidato una crescita redditizia. Ha anche ricoperto ruoli di leadership finanziaria in IBM e posizioni di investimento presso Insight Venture Partners, American Capital Strategies e Sierra Ventures.
La nomina si allinea con l'attenzione di Elastic sulla sua piattaforma di ricerca AI e sullo sviluppo continuo in ricerca, GenAI, osservabilità e soluzioni di sicurezza. Il CEO Ash Kulkarni ha evidenziato l'expertise di Welihinda nella costruzione di aziende open source multi-prodotto e la sua esperienza con prodotti basati sul consumo come asset chiave per la prossima fase di crescita di Elastic.
Elastic (NYSE: ESTC) ha nombrado a Navam Welihinda como su nuevo Director Financiero, con efecto a partir del 28 de febrero de 2025. Welihinda será el principal responsable financiero y contable de la empresa.
Welihinda se une desde Grammarly, donde se desempeñó como CFO supervisando las finanzas corporativas y el desarrollo. Su experiencia previa incluye siete años en HashiCorp como CFO, donde ayudó a escalar la empresa durante su IPO y promovió un crecimiento rentable. También ocupó roles de liderazgo financiero en IBM y posiciones de inversión en Insight Venture Partners, American Capital Strategies y Sierra Ventures.
El nombramiento se alinea con el enfoque de Elastic en su Plataforma de IA de Búsqueda y el desarrollo continuo en búsqueda, GenAI, observabilidad y soluciones de seguridad. El CEO Ash Kulkarni destacó la experiencia de Welihinda en la construcción de negocios de código abierto de múltiples productos y su experiencia con productos basados en consumo como activos clave para la próxima fase de crecimiento de Elastic.
Elastic (NYSE: ESTC)는 Navam Welihinda를 새로운 최고 재무 책임자로 임명하며, 2025년 2월 28일부터 효력을 발휘합니다. Welihinda는 회사의 주요 재무 책임자 및 회계 책임자로 활동할 것입니다.
Welihinda는 Grammarly에서 CFO로 재직하며 기업 재무 및 개발을 감독했습니다. 그의 이전 경험으로는 HashiCorp에서 CFO로 7년간 근무하며 IPO를 통해 회사를 확장하고 수익성 있는 성장을 이끌었습니다. 그는 또한 IBM에서 재무 리더십 역할을 수행했으며 Insight Venture Partners, American Capital Strategies 및 Sierra Ventures에서 투자 직책을 맡았습니다.
이번 임명은 Elastic의 검색 AI 플랫폼에 대한 집중과 검색, GenAI, 가시성 및 보안 솔루션의 지속적인 개발과 일치합니다. CEO Ash Kulkarni는 Welihinda의 다중 제품 오픈 소스 비즈니스 구축 전문성과 소비 기반 제품에 대한 경험이 Elastic의 다음 성장 단계에 중요한 자산이라고 강조했습니다.
Elastic (NYSE: ESTC) a nommé Navam Welihinda en tant que nouveau directeur financier, à compter du 28 février 2025. Welihinda sera le principal responsable financier et comptable de l'entreprise.
Welihinda rejoint Grammarly, où il a occupé le poste de CFO en supervisant les finances et le développement de l'entreprise. Son expérience précédente comprend sept ans chez HashiCorp en tant que CFO, où il a contribué à faire évoluer l'entreprise lors de son introduction en bourse et a favorisé une croissance rentable. Il a également occupé des postes de direction financière chez IBM et des postes d'investissement chez Insight Venture Partners, American Capital Strategies et Sierra Ventures.
La nomination s'inscrit dans l'orientation d'Elastic vers sa plateforme d'IA de recherche et le développement continu dans les domaines de la recherche, de GenAI, de l'observabilité et des solutions de sécurité. Le PDG Ash Kulkarni a souligné l'expertise de Welihinda dans la création d'entreprises open source à produits multiples et son expérience avec des produits basés sur la consommation comme des atouts clés pour la prochaine phase de croissance d'Elastic.
Elastic (NYSE: ESTC) hat Navam Welihinda zum neuen Chief Financial Officer ernannt, der am 28. Februar 2025 in Kraft tritt. Welihinda wird als Hauptverantwortlicher für Finanzen und Buchhaltung des Unternehmens tätig sein.
Welihinda kommt von Grammarly, wo er als CFO tätig war und die Unternehmensfinanzen und -entwicklung überwachte. Zu seinen vorherigen Erfahrungen gehören sieben Jahre bei HashiCorp als CFO, wo er half, das Unternehmen durch den Börsengang zu skalieren und profitables Wachstum voranzutreiben. Er hatte auch Führungsrollen im Finanzbereich bei IBM und Investitionspositionen bei Insight Venture Partners, American Capital Strategies und Sierra Ventures.
Die Ernennung steht im Einklang mit dem Fokus von Elastic auf seine Such-AI-Plattform und die kontinuierliche Entwicklung in den Bereichen Suche, GenAI, Beobachtbarkeit und Sicherheitslösungen. CEO Ash Kulkarni hob die Expertise von Welihinda in der Entwicklung von Multi-Produkt-Open-Source-Unternehmen und seine Erfahrung mit verbrauchsabhängigen Produkten als Schlüsselressourcen für die nächste Wachstumsphase von Elastic hervor.
- Appointment of experienced CFO with proven track record in scaling technology companies
- New CFO brings specific expertise in multi-product and open source businesses
- Previous success in leading company through IPO and driving profitable growth at HashiCorp
- None.
Insights
Elastic's appointment of Navam Welihinda as CFO signals a strategic financial leadership change as the company positions itself for its next growth phase in the competitive Search AI market. Welihinda's background merits investor attention for several key reasons:
His seven-year tenure at HashiCorp—where he helped scale the company through its IPO and drive profitable growth—suggests Elastic may be sharpening its focus on profitability metrics alongside growth. This experience becomes particularly relevant as Elastic expands beyond its Elasticsearch foundation into higher-growth segments including GenAI, observability, and security solutions.
Welihinda's expertise with open-source, multi-product businesses and consumption-based revenue models aligns perfectly with Elastic's business architecture. This specialized background is relatively rare among technology CFOs and could prove valuable as Elastic navigates the complexities of monetizing its expanding product portfolio while competing with larger tech players entering the AI space.
The timing of this appointment warrants consideration. Bringing in a CFO with IPO and scaling experience when the company is already public might indicate preparation for:
- More sophisticated financial operations to support multi-product expansion
- Potential M&A activity requiring experienced financial leadership
- A renewed focus on unit economics and efficient scaling
While C-suite changes below the CEO level typically aren't immediate market movers, Welihinda's appointment represents a meaningful enhancement to Elastic's financial leadership during a critical expansion period in high-growth AI markets.
Former HashiCorp and IBM executive joins Elastic to play key role in driving next phase of growth
Navam Welihinda, Chief Financial Officer at Elastic (Photo: Business Wire)
Welihinda joins Elastic from Grammarly, where he served as CFO and oversaw corporate finance and corporate development. Before Grammarly, Welihinda spent seven years at HashiCorp, including as CFO, where he played a key role in growing the company, including helping it scale to its IPO and driving profitable growth. In addition to scaling technology companies, Welihinda brings broad financial experience, including finance leadership roles at IBM and investment roles at Insight Venture Partners, American Capital Strategies, and Sierra Ventures.
“Elastic has a massive market opportunity ahead of it with our Search AI Platform and everything we continue to do for our customers around search, GenAI, observability, and security,” said Ash Kulkarni, CEO of Elastic. “Navam’s deep expertise in building multi-product, open source businesses, his experience with consumption-based products, and his proven record of driving strong financial performance will be invaluable as we progress to our next phase of growth and continue to build Elastic into a generational company.”
“Elastic has established itself as the leader in Search AI, delivering an extraordinary track record of growth and innovation,” said Welihinda. “The company’s pace of innovation, helping developers and enterprises prioritize innovation and efficiency across their businesses, using GenAI is impressive. I’m delighted to contribute to the ongoing success of our business as we move forward to our next chapter of growth.”
About Elastic
Elastic (NYSE: ESTC), the Search AI Company, enables everyone to find the answers they need in real-time using all their data, at scale. Elastic’s solutions for search, observability, and security are built on the Elastic Search AI Platform, the development platform used by thousands of companies, including more than
Elastic and associated marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Elastic N.V. and its subsidiaries. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements herein are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, which include but are not limited to, statements regarding the appointment and role of Mr. Welihinda as our chief financial officer, our expectation regarding market opportunities, and demand for our products. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements as a result of uncertainties, risks, and changes in circumstances, including but not limited to risks and uncertainties related to the future conduct and growth of Elastic’s business and the markets in which Elastic operates. Additional risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements are included under the caption "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our most recent filings with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2024 and other subsequent reports filed with the SEC. SEC filings are available on the Investor Relations section of Elastic's website at ir.elastic.co and the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Elastic assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release, except as required by law.
Elastic and associated marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Elastic N.V. and its subsidiaries. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250227725046/en/
Anthony Luscri
Elastic Investor Relations
ir@elastic.co
Alexia Russell
Elastic Corporate Communications
PR-Team@elastic.co
Source: Elastic N.V.
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