Udemy Appoints Rob Rosenthal as Chief Revenue Officer

Rhea-AI Summary

Udemy (Nasdaq: UDMY) has appointed Rob Rosenthal as Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) effective June 3, 2024. Rosenthal, with over 25 years of software industry experience, will lead Udemy Business, focusing on global enterprise sales strategy and sustainable growth. He previously served as CRO at Bloomreach, where he tripled revenue, and held senior roles at Adobe and SAP, driving significant revenue growth. Udemy aims to leverage Rosenthal's expertise to expand market presence and capture growth opportunities amid increasing global demand for workforce skill development.

Positive

• Rob Rosenthal's appointment as CRO brings over 25 years of experience.
• Rosenthal previously tripled revenue at Bloomreach.
• He significantly grew Adobe’s Americas enterprise business revenue from $1 billion to $2 billion.
• Rosenthal led SAP business to over 40% annual revenue growth.
• Udemy's Annual Recurring Revenue is approaching $500 million.
• Udemy serves over 16,000 companies globally.

Negative

• Potential challenges in integrating new leadership and strategies.
• Risk of not meeting high growth expectations set by previous roles.
• Reliance on continuous demand for workforce skill development, which may fluctuate.

Seasoned leader with strong track record of scaling enterprise businesses globally and accelerating revenue will oversee next stage of growth for Udemy Business

Former Adobe and SAP executive to lead Udemy Business’ global go-to-market strategy, expand partnerships and strengthen customer relationships

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Udemy (Nasdaq: UDMY), a leading online skills marketplace and learning platform, today announced it has appointed Rob Rosenthal as Chief Revenue Officer to lead Udemy Business, effective June 3, 2024. Rosenthal brings over 25 years of experience in the software industry, helping high-growth organizations accelerate revenues while scaling globally.

Rosenthal will report directly to Udemy’s President and CEO, Greg Brown, and will oversee the entire Udemy Business team. In this role, Rosenthal will have global responsibility for Udemy Business’ enterprise sales strategy, with a focus on driving sustainable growth through acquiring new customers, deepening relationships with existing customers, and expanding into new geographies.

“Rob is a proven sales leader with deep expertise and a unique skill set that is the right fit to usher Udemy Business through its next stage of growth,” said Udemy President and CEO Greg Brown. “We are seeing strong demand globally as it is more critical than ever for enterprises to continuously develop the skills of their workforce, particularly as generative AI is accelerating the pace of change and evolving the way we work. Rob has successfully led global go-to-market teams through significant revenue growth and has a proven track record for establishing new routes to market and strengthening existing revenue streams. I am confident in Rob’s ability to expand Udemy’s market presence and capture the significant opportunity ahead of us.”

Prior to joining Udemy, Rosenthal served as Chief Revenue Officer at Bloomreach, a global digital commerce company. During his tenure from 2020 to 2024, he was instrumental in tripling the organization's revenue. His strategies focused on scaling operations and expanding the company’s international presence. Before that, he spent five years at Adobe in various senior leadership roles, where he contributed significantly to scaling the Americas enterprise business revenue from $1 billion to $2 billion. He was instrumental in transforming the organization’s approach from a point solution to a platform solution selling motion, while also enhancing operational efficiency. Earlier in his career, Rosenthal was Senior Vice President of Sales and General Manager for a large business within SAP. Under his leadership, the business consistently experienced more than 40% annual revenue growth.

“Udemy is at an exciting inflection point with Annual Recurring Revenue approaching $500 million,” Rosenthal said. “More than 16,000 companies worldwide already leverage its best-in-class platform to enhance their workforces’ capabilities and make strategic talent management decisions. There is a significant opportunity to not only grow that customer base, but also deepen relationships with existing customers. My personal commitment to continuous learning fuels my excitement to apply my experience on a broader scale to help organizations and professionals reach their full potential. I am thrilled for the opportunity to join the leadership team at Udemy to further the mission of transforming lives through learning.”

About Udemy

Udemy (Nasdaq: UDMY) transforms lives through learning by providing flexible and effective skills development and validation. Through the Udemy Intelligent Skills Platform and its community of instructors, millions of learners gain expertise in a wide range of technical and professional skills – from generative AI to leadership. The Udemy marketplace provides learners with thousands of up-to-date courses in dozens of languages, offering a variety of solutions to achieve their goals. Udemy Business empowers enterprises to offer on-demand learning for all employees, immersive learning for tech teams, and cohort learning for leaders. Udemy Business customers include Fender^Ⓡ, Glassdoor, On24, The World Bank and Volkswagen. Udemy is headquartered in San Francisco with hubs in Denver, USA; Ankara and Istanbul, Türkiye; Dublin, Ireland; Melbourne, Australia; and Gurugram, India.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding Udemy’s expectations relating to future operating results and financial position; anticipated future expenses and investments; our business strategy and plans; market growth; and our market position and potential market opportunities. The words “believe,” “may,” “will,” “estimate,” “potential,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “expect,” “could,” “would,” “project,” “plan,” “target,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on potentially inaccurate assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expected or implied by the forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from the results predicted and reported results should not be considered as an indication of future performance.

The potential risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from the results predicted include, among others, those risks and uncertainties included under the caption "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including, without limitation, our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on May 6, 2024. All information provided in this release is as of the date hereof, and we undertake no duty to update this information unless required by law.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240521524226/en/

Investor Contact

Dennis Walsh

Vice President, Investor Relations

dennis.walsh@udemy.com



Media Contact

Abby Welch

Senior Director, Corporate Communications

abby.welch@udemy.com

Source: Udemy

FAQ

Who is the new Chief Revenue Officer at Udemy (UDMY)?

Rob Rosenthal has been appointed as the new Chief Revenue Officer at Udemy, effective June 3, 2024.

What is Rob Rosenthal's background before joining Udemy (UDMY)?

Rob Rosenthal was the Chief Revenue Officer at Bloomreach and held senior roles at Adobe and SAP, focusing on scaling revenue and operations.

What will Rob Rosenthal's role be at Udemy (UDMY)?

Rob Rosenthal will oversee Udemy Business' global enterprise sales strategy, focusing on sustainable growth and expanding market presence.

How has Rob Rosenthal impacted companies before Udemy (UDMY)?

Rob Rosenthal tripled Bloomreach's revenue and significantly grew Adobe’s Americas enterprise business revenue from $1 billion to $2 billion.

What is the current Annual Recurring Revenue for Udemy (UDMY)?

Udemy's Annual Recurring Revenue is approaching $500 million.

How many companies use Udemy's platform?

Over 16,000 companies worldwide use Udemy's platform.