Charlie Peters, who was chief financial officer for business software firm Red Hat (RHT) for 11 years, is joining the board of CloudBees, another business-focused open-source software company.
Red Hat, which sells a version of the Linux operating system popular with Coins2Day 500 companies, is arguably the largest open-source business software provider.
Peters, who knew CloudBees founder and CEO Sacha Labourey from the days they were both at Red Hat, said he was eager to work with him again. “Sacha has great technical and leadership skills,” Peters told Coins2Day.
CloudBees, with about 250 employees worldwide, has raised nearly $52 million in funding since debuting in 2010. Initially it offered a full environment for programmers building business software, but it then shifted to concentrate on Jenkins, an open-source tool that lets developers continuously test and add new perks to their existing software.
Companies like AllState Insurance, (ALL) use Jenkins to incorporate features faster both into the software they use internally and their software for customers. The need to add the latest bells and whistles fast is important in an era in which companies feel the need to respond quickly to customer demand.
Related: Red Hat Names New CFO
Peters said an initial public offering is a possibility for CloudBees, but he added that it is not the only option. “With private companies, you try to grow as fast as possible responsibly, and then the exit will make itself known whether it is an IPO or some sort of M&A.”
Peters is also on the boards of payment company ACI Worldwide (ACIW), and cybersecurity firm Veracode.
Note: (July 21, 2017 9:19 a.m.) This story was updated to clarify that Peters is joining the board of Cloudbees. He is not CFO.