F5 Networks Appoints Manny Rivelo as CEO

F5 Networks (FFIV) has appointed Manny Rivelo as president and CEO, responsible for leading the company’s global business.

Rivelo, who was formerly the executive vice president of Strategic Solutions, will assume his new role July 1, replacing John McAdam, who will transition to a new role as chairman of the board after his 15-year stint as CEO. Rivelo will also hold a seat on the board as of July 1.

Al Higginson, who is the current board chairman, will remain on F5’s board in the role of lead independent director, effective July 1.

“My time as CEO has been very rewarding both professionally and personally, and I want to thank all the F5 employees, past and present, who have contributed to making F5 an industry leader and a great place to grow your career,” said McAdam, in a statement. “As I transition to my new role as Chairman of the Board, I am excited about the future of F5 and confident that the company will be in good hands with Manny at the helm.”

As executive vice president of Strategic Solutions at F5, Rivelo was responsible for leading the company’s strategic development, product management and global marketing strategy, according to the announcement. Before he joined F5 in October 2011, Rivelo served as senior vice president of Engineering Systems and Operations at Cisco Systems (CSCO), where he spent 19 years.

“During the past decade F5 has established itself as the leading provider of services to ensure that applications delivered over IP networks are fast, secure and available to anyone, anywhere, any time,” said Rivelo. “This is an exciting time to be at F5, and I look forward to working with the company’s executive staff and the rest of the F5 team to extend our leadership, expand our addressable market, and build on the company’s long history of success.”

In February, F5 launched the Guardian Fast Start Partner Training Program, aimed at educating and training partners to speed implementation times and provide better customer service. The program is expected to focus on four key areas of development—product and solution training, technical certification, professional shadowing and product/service delivery.