Frank Slootman

Frank Slootman
Frank Slootman
Born	Template:Birth year and age
Birthplace	Netherlands
Nationality	American, Dutch
Occupation	Business executive, author
Title	Chairman of the Board
Employer	Snowflake Inc.
Known for	CEO of Snowflake Inc., CEO of ServiceNow, CEO of Data Domain
Education	Erasmus University Rotterdam

Frank Slootman (born 1958) is a Dutch-born American business executive and author who has served as chief executive officer of three major enterprise technology companies: Data Domain, ServiceNow, and Snowflake Inc. Known for his ability to scale companies founded by others and guide them through initial public offerings, Slootman has become one of the most prominent operational CEOs in the enterprise software industry. He led Snowflake through what was, at the time, the largest software IPO in history in September 2020, and previously took both Data Domain and ServiceNow public during his tenures as CEO. Born in the Netherlands and educated at Erasmus University Rotterdam, Slootman relocated to the United States, where he built a career defined by aggressive growth strategies and a direct, results-oriented management style. In February 2024, Snowflake announced Slootman's retirement as CEO, though he remained with the company as chairman of the board. He is also the author of a book on management and has continued to serve on the boards of several technology companies.

Early Life

Frank Slootman was born in 1958 in the Netherlands. He grew up in the Netherlands before eventually relocating to the United States to pursue a career in the technology industry. Details about his early family life and upbringing are not widely documented in public sources. His Dutch origins and European upbringing later distinguished him in the American technology sector, where he developed a reputation for a blunt, no-nonsense management approach that some observers attributed in part to his cultural background.

Slootman's path to the United States and the American technology industry represented a significant transition from his roots in the Netherlands. Before becoming one of Silicon Valley's most sought-after operational executives, he spent formative years in Europe, where he received his higher education.

Education

Slootman attended Erasmus University Rotterdam, a prominent research university in the Netherlands known for its programs in economics and business. His education at Erasmus provided a foundation in business and economics that would inform his later career as a technology executive. After completing his studies in the Netherlands, Slootman transitioned to the American technology sector, where he would spend the bulk of his professional career.

Career

Slootman's career has been defined by a distinctive pattern: joining technology companies that were founded by others, scaling their operations, and taking them through successful initial public offerings. Over the course of three decades, he built a reputation as a specialist in accelerating the growth of enterprise technology companies and preparing them for the public markets.

Early Career

Before his tenure at Data Domain, Slootman held various positions in the technology industry. He gained experience in enterprise software and data management, building the operational expertise that would later define his career as a CEO. His early career positions helped him develop a deep understanding of enterprise technology markets and the challenges associated with scaling software and hardware companies.

Data Domain

Slootman's first major CEO role came at Data Domain, a data storage company specializing in deduplication technology for backup, archiving, and disaster recovery. He joined Data Domain as CEO and led the company through a period of rapid growth. Under his leadership, Data Domain went public, marking the first of three IPOs that Slootman would oversee during his career.

Data Domain's success under Slootman attracted the attention of larger technology companies. In 2009, EMC Corporation acquired Data Domain in a deal that validated Slootman's strategy of building the company into an attractive acquisition target. The Data Domain experience established a template that Slootman would repeat at subsequent companies: join a promising technology company with strong underlying technology, implement aggressive growth strategies, take the company public, and deliver significant returns to investors.

ServiceNow

Following his success at Data Domain, Slootman was recruited to serve as CEO of ServiceNow, a cloud computing company that provided enterprise IT service management software. ServiceNow had been founded by Fred Luddy, who had built the company's initial product but sought an experienced operational leader to scale the business.

Slootman took over as CEO of ServiceNow and implemented significant changes to the company's go-to-market strategy and organizational structure. Under his leadership, ServiceNow experienced substantial revenue growth and expanded its customer base among large enterprises. He led the company through its initial public offering, which represented the second IPO of his career.

During his tenure at ServiceNow, Slootman helped transform the company from a mid-stage startup into a major enterprise software platform. According to Sequoia Capital, Slootman and Luddy together built ServiceNow into a company valued at more than $150 billion. His time at ServiceNow further cemented his reputation as one of the technology industry's most effective operational CEOs—an executive capable of taking a company with strong technology and accelerating its path to scale and profitability.

Slootman eventually departed ServiceNow, and the company continued to grow under subsequent leadership. His tenure there remained a frequently cited example of successful CEO succession in Silicon Valley, where founders often struggle to find external executives capable of maintaining growth while professionalizing operations.

Snowflake Inc.

Appointment as CEO

In April 2019, Slootman was appointed CEO of Snowflake Inc., a cloud-based data warehousing company. Snowflake had been founded in 2012 and had built a cloud-native data platform that allowed customers to store, manage, and analyze large volumes of data across multiple cloud providers. Prior to Slootman's arrival, the company had been growing but had not yet reached the scale or operational maturity needed for a public offering.

Slootman's appointment was closely watched in the technology industry, given his track record of guiding companies through IPOs. Investors and analysts noted that his arrival at Snowflake signaled the company's intent to go public in the near future. He brought with him a management philosophy centered on operational intensity, accountability, and aggressive revenue growth targets.

Growth and IPO

Under Slootman's leadership, Snowflake accelerated its growth trajectory. He restructured the sales organization, expanded the company's enterprise customer base, and increased the pace of product development. The company's revenue grew significantly during his first year as CEO.

In September 2020, Slootman led Snowflake through its initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange. The IPO was notable for several reasons: it was the largest software IPO in history at the time, and it attracted the attention of Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate led by Warren Buffett, which made a rare investment in a technology IPO by purchasing shares. On its first day of trading, Snowflake's stock more than doubled, giving the company a market capitalization exceeding $70 billion.

The successful IPO made Slootman one of the wealthiest executives in the technology industry. According to Fortune, Slootman's compensation and equity holdings at Snowflake were substantial, reflecting the company's rapid increase in valuation under his leadership.

Tenure as CEO

Following the IPO, Slootman continued to lead Snowflake's expansion. The company grew its customer base, increased its revenue, and expanded its product offerings to include features for data sharing, data applications, and artificial intelligence workloads. Slootman maintained an intense focus on revenue growth and operational discipline, consistent with the management approach he had employed at his previous companies.

In June 2023, Slootman addressed rumors that he was planning to resign from Snowflake, dismissing them as "FUD" (fear, uncertainty, and doubt). He affirmed his commitment to the company and its growth trajectory at the time.

Retirement as CEO

On February 28, 2024, Snowflake announced that Slootman was retiring as CEO, effective immediately. He was succeeded by Sridhar Ramaswamy, a former senior vice president at Snowflake who had previously worked at Google. The announcement caused Snowflake's stock to decline approximately 20 percent in after-hours trading, reflecting investor concern over the leadership transition.

Despite stepping down as CEO, Slootman remained with Snowflake as chairman of the board of directors, maintaining a governance role within the company.

Post-CEO Activities

Board Service

Following his retirement as Snowflake CEO, Slootman continued to serve as chairman of Snowflake's board while also taking on additional board positions at other technology companies. In March 2025, data security company Cyera announced the appointment of Slootman to its board of directors. Cyera described itself as a fast-growing data security company and cited Slootman's extensive experience in scaling enterprise technology businesses as a factor in his appointment.

Snowflake Stock Sales

In June 2025, it was reported that Slootman planned to sell approximately 3 million shares of Snowflake stock, a holding valued at over $600 million at the time. Subsequent filings showed Slootman executing a series of stock sales in early 2026. In January 2026, he sold 180,070 shares for approximately $41.35 million. In February 2026, he sold an additional 100,000 shares for approximately $17.69 million and a further 105,900 shares for approximately $17.7 million.

Management Philosophy

Slootman has been characterized by a direct, demanding management style that emphasizes urgency, accountability, and measurable results. His approach has been described as intense and sometimes abrasive, but consistently focused on driving growth. He is known for moving quickly to restructure organizations, replace underperforming leaders, and establish aggressive performance targets upon joining a company.

His philosophy on leadership and urgency has been discussed in broader industry conversations about CEO management styles. Commentary from the enterprise software community has highlighted Slootman's belief that organizational urgency must originate from the CEO and cascade throughout the company, a principle he applied across all three of his major CEO roles.

Slootman is also an author. He has written about management and leadership in the technology industry, sharing his perspectives on scaling companies and navigating the challenges of high-growth environments.

Personal Life

Slootman was born in the Netherlands and later became a resident of the United States. He has maintained a relatively private personal life compared to many Silicon Valley executives. His compensation and equity holdings at Snowflake became a matter of public record following the company's IPO, with Fortune reporting on his salary and net worth in 2020.

Slootman has been described in media profiles as someone who brings a European directness to American corporate culture. His management style and personal demeanor have been subjects of profile pieces in major business publications including Forbes and Business Insider.

Recognition

Slootman's career has been marked by recognition for his ability to scale enterprise technology companies and execute successful IPOs. His track record of three IPOs—at Data Domain, ServiceNow, and Snowflake—is frequently cited as a distinguishing achievement in the technology industry.

The Snowflake IPO in September 2020 brought Slootman particular attention, as it was the largest software IPO in history at the time and attracted investment from Berkshire Hathaway, an endorsement that was widely noted given Warren Buffett's historical reluctance to invest in technology companies.

Belgian financial newspaper L'Echo referred to Slootman as a "maestro des IPO" (maestro of IPOs), reflecting his reputation in European and international business media. Forbes profiled him extensively in 2021 under the headline "The Outsider," examining his career trajectory and management approach.

His appointment to additional boards following his retirement from the Snowflake CEO role, including Cyera in 2025, reflected continued demand for his expertise in the enterprise technology sector.

Legacy

Slootman's career represents a distinctive model of executive leadership in the technology industry. Rather than founding companies, he built his reputation by taking over existing enterprises at critical growth stages and transforming them into large-scale public companies. This pattern—demonstrated across Data Domain, ServiceNow, and Snowflake—established him as one of the most effective operational CEOs in Silicon Valley history.

His tenure at ServiceNow, in particular, illustrated the value of pairing a visionary founder with a disciplined operational leader. Founder Fred Luddy created the company's technology, while Slootman provided the commercial and organizational infrastructure to scale it into a major enterprise platform. The Sequoia Capital podcast series Crucible Moments dedicated an episode to the ServiceNow story, examining how the founder-CEO partnership contributed to building a company valued at more than $150 billion.

At Snowflake, Slootman's impact was reflected in the company's trajectory from a privately held cloud data company to one of the most highly valued enterprise technology firms in the public markets. The record-setting IPO and subsequent growth during his CEO tenure cemented his status as a leader capable of delivering outsized returns for investors and employees.

Slootman's management philosophy, centered on urgency and accountability, has influenced broader discussions about leadership in the technology sector. His approach stands in contrast to more consensus-driven management styles common in Silicon Valley, and his career has been studied as an example of how operational intensity can drive company performance in competitive markets.

As of early 2026, Slootman continued to serve as chairman of Snowflake's board and held board positions at other technology companies, maintaining an active role in the enterprise technology ecosystem he helped shape over more than two decades.