GitLab announced a significant leadership transition. Bill Staples has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and a member of the board of directors, succeeding co-founder Sid Sijbrandij. Sijbrandij will now serve as the executive chair of GitLab's board, stepping back from daily operations to focus on his health.
Sid Sijbrandij co-founded GitLab over a decade ago, transforming it from a developer collaboration tool into a leading AI-driven DevSecOps platform. Under his leadership, the company has achieved significant milestones, including serving over 10,000 customers and surpassing $750 million in run-rate revenue. In his new role as executive chair, Sijbrandij will continue to contribute to GitLab's strategic direction while prioritizing his recovery from cancer treatment. He expressed confidence in Staples' ability to lead the company forward, stating, "I believe his passion for software, commitment to customers, and strong track record make him the right person to lead the company going forward."
Bill Staples brings nearly three decades of experience in building developer platforms and serving developer communities. Prior to joining GitLab, he served as CEO at New Relic, where his strategic leadership and deep product knowledge significantly increased the company's enterprise value. Staples accelerated revenue growth and profitability, establishing New Relic as a broadly adopted platform in its category. His career also includes executive leadership roles at Microsoft and Adobe, where he scaled several multi-billion-dollar businesses. Staples expressed enthusiasm about his new role at GitLab, stating, "I am honored and excited to lead the company into this next chapter and to help our customers and partners accelerate innovation and deliver business value."
The transition has been met with optimism from GitLab's board of directors. Godfrey Sullivan, the lead independent director, remarked, "Looking ahead, the board and I could not be happier to welcome Bill to the role of GitLab CEO. His track record of bringing teams together, experience scaling enterprise software organizations, and focus on innovation makes him the right person to lead the company."
GitLab's platform is trusted by more than 40 million registered users, including over half of the Fortune 100 companies, to deliver secure software efficiently. The company has been at the forefront of integrating artificial intelligence into DevSecOps, enabling organizations to enhance developer productivity, improve operational efficiency, and accelerate digital transformation.
The leadership change comes at a pivotal time as GitLab continues to innovate in the rapidly evolving software development landscape. With Staples at the helm, the company is poised to further its mission of helping organizations around the world deliver better, more secure software faster.
