GoTo CEO: IT Business Is 'Ripe for MSPs'

Rich Veldran this month became GoTo's most recent CEO, replacing Paddy Srinivasan, who was in the chief executive's chair since 2022.  

Already with the company for nearly four years, Veldran functioned as the company's CFO before getting the ultimate promotion. The freshly seated GoTo CEO is a Procter & Gamble alum and has spent the past 30 years in finance-centric roles, making him a qualified and sought-after candidate. 

From strategy to operations, Veldran says he has seen what's needed to run the company that boasts $1.3 billion in annual revenue, telling us it is not merely about growth, but "profitable growth." 

Playing in the unified-communications-as-a-service (UCaaS) space, the new GoTo CEO says, "We are becoming more profitable in that area."

And on the IT side: "That is a profitable side of the business and an area where we want to focus our efforts to make it stronger."

GoTo Wants MSPs

With a "ripe" IT proposition on the MSP side, Veldran believes GoTo has barely scratched the surface in the space.

"We are investing in this space and continuing to make our channel presence felt," Veldran told Channel Futures.

GoTo's Rich Veldran

With 70% of sales coming from the channel, Veldran told Channel Futures that he will look to boost sales and customer/employee satisfaction across the board.

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"The channel is a big part of what we do," he told us.

E-commerce, the channel and direct sales teams all play an "incredibly important" part in GoTo's strategy, the CEO said. He plans to partner with GoTo's global partner sales head, Michael Day, the former RingCentral executive who the company elevated to the post nearly two years ago. 

CCaaS a 'Big Opportunity' for GoTo

With an increasingly crowded contact-center-as-a-service market, Veldran says there is still room for growth in CCaaS, something he says GoTo has experienced and an area it wants to invest more time and resources into, calling it a "big opportunity."

"We're starting to do very well in the space, and that is a big thrust for us, understanding that the market is so big. We think we have the right product set now, and we're only going to get better," Veldran told Channel Futures.

GoTo is investing in understanding what the market needs and putting money where customer needs reside, Veldran said. The other part is working with the channel and cultivating that relationship "because, at the end of the day, they are helping to bring our business to the world," Veldran said. 

As CEO, Veldran says he will spend a great deal of time with channel partners.

"I will spend a lot of time with our sales team and our channel partners to learn what we can do better," Veldran added.

Eliminating Silos

A disjointed business doesn't function, Veldran told us, which is why he believes in alignment in marketing and other efforts. 

Furthermore, getting feedback from partners and customers is something Veldran says is "critical."

"The tighter the partnership, the more we will work together and share feedback, making us better," he said. 

It also comes down to fostering rich connections and not "transactional" ones, Veldran asserts, and it makes all the difference in the partner space. This is an immediate area of focus, Veldran said. He hopes to do everything to foster a channel that believes in the company's vision and product strategy.

As for any potential new partners, Veldran says he wants to bring them on to reach new areas of business, stating that he believes in having a broad set of channel partners.