King of Prussia-based Vertex has named Microsoft executive Christopher Young as its new CEO, who is taking over from longtime leader David DeStefano, writes Jeff Blumenthal for the Philadelphia Business Journal.
Young is the fourth person to hold that title at the publicly traded tax and compliance software maker.
DeStefano will officially step down as CEO on November 10 but will continue as chairman, a position he has held in addition to the CEO role since 2016.
Young, a Princeton University and Harvard Business School graduate, most recently served as executive vice president of business development at Microsoft, where he reported directly to CEO Satya Nadella. There, he oversaw business development, venture investing, and corporate strategy, playing a key role in shaping Microsoft’s investment agenda in artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.
Before joining Microsoft in 2020, Young was CEO of McAfee, a cybersecurity firm that spun off from Intel in 2017. He helped lead the spin-off and guided the company’s transition to the cloud. He also served as senior vice president of the security business at Cisco Systems and has held positions at RSA Products, AOL, and Cyveillance.
Read more about Vertex in the Philadelphia Business Journal.
