The tech industry, particularly the channel, is filled with big personalities making even bigger moves and announcements that drive things forward. While the tenure of tech CEOs, on average, ranges wildly between less than four years and up to 15 years (depending on which research you consider), the point at which one leader leaves and another is brought in can be quite a make-or-break moment for the company in question.
So when Fred Voccola, then co-founder and CEO of Kaseya, announced back in January that he would be stepping down from the top spot – and moving into a vice chairman role – it sent waves of chatter, confusion, and curiosity throughout the market.
For many, Fred is Kaseya. Since his appointment was announced back in July 2015, Voccola has spent a decade front and center. He’s evangelized about the importance of supporting and empowering MSPs and IT personnel through simple-to-use, cost-effective technology that can be game-changing for small and medium businesses (SMBs).
During the last decade, Voccola has been at the helm through many acquisitions, personnel changes, technology innovation, and problems ranging from issuettes to slightly bigger challenges. One thing that has remained consistent during that time is his belief that trust and transparency are key.
“I think we’ve done it the right way, in an honorable way. We’re not a scumbag company. Do we mess up? Oh yeah, but we try to own it,” he told me recently during an interview.
“We didn’t sell our souls. We didn’t become a political or social engine. We always stayed focused on our partners, our employees, and on building a sustainable, great company. I think that we’ve completely accomplished the first phase of our mission – we have changed the unit economics for MSPs.”
Being an MSP can be an unforgiving, unprofitable, unrewarding experience. Once the bills are paid, there’s little left for anything else, let alone innovation. Kaseya, during Fred’s tenure, set out to change that. Today, he says, MSPs that are “powered by Kaseya” can expect to generate a 35-45% profit margin.
Given that success and the fact that the role of a CEO is all-encompassing, it seems the right time to exit stage left and leave on a high note.
“A lot of people say they work an 80-hour week. But this company has been my life for the last 11 years. I was talking to my dad last year a little bit [and said] there’s a lot of things that I want to do in life, and you can’t do them when you wake up at six in the morning for your first phone call meeting, and you go to bed at 11 at night, and you know, half of your Sunday is spent doing that all day,” he said.
“You just can’t do it. So when we released Kaseya 365 that was a monster moment. And the following day and days [post launch], the adoption of it was a monster moment. So I spoke to my fellow board members to say I think it’s time that we start to find the next CEO.
“There are lots of things I want to do in life. It’s not that I don’t love this job. I mean, this, I LOVE it. It’s just there are those other things in life…“
While there will soon be a change at the helm – although industry insiders are divided as to how quickly that may happen in reality, given the ongoing will they/won’t they whispers of an IPO – Kaseya stakeholders can expect all of the good stuff to continue.
“We’re not changing direction,” Voccola asserted. “One of the cool things about Kaseya is, as a security and IT company, we are mission-driven.. That North Star will not change.
“I assure the industry, the employees, everyone, they will be 10 times better than I am. Everything that I screw up with, they won’t make those mistakes. They will be much better, a much better, more charming, handsome, intelligent person. But that North Star mission will not change.”
Voccola has also consistently exuded passion for what he does and pride in what the company as a whole, not just himself, has achieved.
Speaking about just the last financial year, under his leadership, it was a record breaker. Indeed, 2024 was the best financial year in Kaseya’s history, with the firm growing over 17% organically.
The organization has around 5,000 employees, and more than 7,500 companies have already adopted Kaseya 365 since its launch. Voccola takes the responsibility of supporting both sides of the ecosystem very seriously. He refers to employees as ‘Kaseyans” and reports that there have been up to 50 Kaseyan marriages during his time.
“I’ve always taken a lot of pride in how people who have worked in my companies have gone on to do great things. At Kaseya right now, I can tell you there are 20 to 25 tier one CEOs,” he said.
“Miami, Florida, 10 years ago, was not a technology town. Kaseya has made Miami a permanent tech destination that rivals [other locations]. The talent levels at Kaseya are among the best in the world, and what that means is, for every partner who reads this, you have really smart, capable people working tirelessly to make your profitability better. We have an amazing, amazing bunch of people.”
When it comes to continuing to service MSP needs, he has his eye firmly on the horizon and the next big thing…
That next big thing for Kaseya will almost certainly involve AI and automation. Heck, this week plays host to the firm’s Connect event in Las Vegas, so we’re probably mere hours away from the big reveal.
But to move forward, it’s also important to look back, and Voccola has worked hard to reassure people that while he is changing gears, the next era will also be positive.
Going back to the early days, he remembers fondly when things clicked. When he and his peers “saw the magic” and how they could really change the unit economics for MSPs.
“My father used to say, ‘If you want to create something great, find a huge market. Find a problem that the market has, solve it, and then make it easy for people to use your solution, whatever that solution may be.’
It’s clear from the outside looking in, Kaseya has done just that. And while his time as CEO may be done, Kaseya will long be in his life.
“Once the new CEO comes on board, I’ll be vice chairman. I’m the largest individual shareholder of this company, so I have a huge interest in the company. I love it. It’s my baby. It will always be my baby,” he said.
Voccola added: “There are a couple of highlights. One of them is that we built the company the right way. It’s [like that] rank Sinatra song ‘My way.” My dad loved that song. When I think about what we’ve done at Kaseya, [we’ve done that]. And by the way, this is just the beginning of Kaseya. This is just the beginning…”
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