Former Salesforce.com Exec Resurfaces at Xactly

Steve Cakebread, whose recent departure from Salesforce.com sparked headlines, has re-emerged as a high-level executive at Xactly, a provider of on-demand sales performance management solutions.

Xactly on Feb. 11 announced the appointment of Cakebread as its chief financial and administrative officer. In his role at Xactly, Cakebread will be responsible for financial operations, legal, IT, facilities and human resources. Cakebread was most recently the president and chief strategy officer at Salesforce.com, after serving as Salesforce.com’s chief financial officer for six years.

“Steve Cakebread was in at the start of the global software-as-a-service [SAAS] revolution and understands all of the dynamics of a successful SAAS business," said Christopher Cabrera, president and CEO of Xactly, in a statement. "He possesses a one-of-a-kind track record of financial-management success in today’s software industry. As a world-class CFO, Steve understands the significant value of automating incentive sales compensation, and will be a tremendous resource in helping customers recognize and maximize the value of their sales performance management investments.”

During his tenure as Salesforce.com’s CFO, Cakebread helped grow the company from approximately $22 million in annual revenue during fiscal year 2002 to approximately $749 million in fiscal year 2008. He also led the company through its initial public offering in 2004.

“Sales performance management is a large and growing opportunity in SAAS, and Xactly is the de facto standard with the industry’s leading on-demand product suite, significant market traction and an enviable record of customer satisfaction,” Cakebread said in a statement. “As a CFO, I am keenly aware of the value of pay-for-performance strategies that directly impact the top and bottom line.” He also said he is excited by the prospect of taking Xactly "to the next level."

Salesforce.com spread the word of Cakebread's departure via a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Feb. 5. The filing said Cakebread resigned from the company "to pursue other professional opportunities."

Bruce Francis, vice president of corporate strategy at Salesforce.com, said, "Steve did a remarkable job in his time here at Salesforce.com, putting the people and processes in place to build an outstanding company. And we wish him all the best in his future endeavors."

Cakebread came to Salesforce.com from Autodesk, where he served as senior vice president and chief financial officer, responsible for all of the company’s accounting and corporate finance functions.

Prior to joining Autodesk, Cakebread was vice president of finance for Silicon Graphics, where he managed accounting and finance, information systems, and global sales and service administration. He has also held many key positions at Hewlett-Packard, where he gained experience in global operations for high technology, according to Xactly.

Meanwhile, in related news, Salesforce.com announced that its fourth quarter fiscal 2009 results will be released on Feb. 25 after the close of the market.