THE JOB:
President, CEO and director, BladeLogic
Inc.
THE ACCOMPLISHMENTS:
• Co-founded Applica Corp., one of
the first venture backed application service providers
• Worked as a senior vice-president at Maynard-based Breakaway
Solutions Inc,
• Co-founded BladeLogic Inc. in 2001; took the company public
in July 2007
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BY
LLOYD GRAY
SPECIAL TO MASS HIGH TECH
As
a youngster attending boarding school in the town of Windsor,
just outside of London, Dev Ittycheria participated in numerous
sports, including soccer, cricket and rugby. Tennis, though, was
his passion and he hoped to play it in college.
However, that plan met its demise when his
parents strongly suggested that he focus on something they considered
more practical
— becoming an engineer.
That was many years ago, but the experience remains
etched firmly in Ittycheria's memory: A fact that will undoubtedly
be a source of glee for his own children later.
"My parents meant well, but people do well in
life when they are passionate about what they are doing,"
he said. "If my children show passion for something atypical,
I will tell them to go for it."
Fortunately for Ittycheria, he went on to discover
another endeavor that he would become just as passionate about.
He became an entrepreneur. Today, Ittycheria, 40, is president
and CEO of BladeLogic Inc., a Lexington-based developer of data-center
automation software. He co-founded the company six years ago with
Vijay Manwani and Vance Loiselle, and together they took it public
in July, pricing its initial public offering of 5 |
million
shares of common stock at $17 per share. As of last week, the company's
stock was trading around $29 per share, giving the company a value
more than $700 million.
In an interesting twist of fate, just five days after
Ittycheria and team received their first round of funding, the 9/11
terrorist attacks took place, throwing the United States into chaos
and significantly shrinking investor and customer prospects for
companies in
•
SOFTWARE • |
|
"Like
everyone else, we were shocked at what happened.
But we believed we had answers to (data center) problems
that IT organizations needed to solve,
so we kept going" |
need of funding — including BladeLogic.
But they forged ahead, resolute in the belief they
had a good business model.
"Like everyone else, we were shocked at what happened.
But we believed we had answers to (data center) problems that IT
organizations needed to solve, so we kept going"
Steve Walske, former chairman and CEO of Parametric
Technology Corp. and a longtime mentor to Ittycheria, said he is
not surprised at his success. |
"If I had to name one quality that best describes
Dev, it is perseverance," said Walske. "He took BladeLogic
from a four-person startup in 2001 to one of the most promising
public software companies in the marketplace today, all the while
dealing with tough economic conditions, a brutal competitive environment,
demanding customers and impatient investors."
Prior to Bladelogic, Ittycheria worked as a senior
vice-president at Maynard-based Breakaway Solutions Inc., where
he established the company's application service provider business.
It was there that he got the inspiration for Bladelogic, he said.
Earlier in his career, Ittycheria co-founded and ran
Applica Corp., one of the first venture-backed application service
providers.
He also previously held senior positions in the data
communications businesses of AT&T and Teleport Communications
Group.
Ittycheria is married and has two small children. He
splits his time between Lexington and Warren, N.J., from where BladeLogic
serves the metro New York City area. He has also previously lived
in India, Canada, Africa and the United Kingdom. He earned an electrical
engineering degree from Rutgers University in 1989.
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