Seattle-based app security and delivery company F5 Inc. (Nasdaq: FFIV) has named Kara Sprague its first chief product officer.
Sprague has worked at F5 since 2017. Before her appointment to chief product officer, announced Thursday, she was an executive vice president focused on app delivery and enterprise products.
“I’m honored to take on this role at such a pivotal time,” Sprague said in a news release. “We are focused on continuing to enhance our capabilities and radically simplifying the security and delivery of extraordinary digital experiences.”
Sprague's new role entails expanding the company's software offerings and helping organizations with app security and delivery, according to the company. Prior to joining F5, she spent more than 13 years at McKinsey & Co., where she led the firm's software and online services practice, her LinkedIn page shows. She also co-led McKinsey's growth tech practice.
F5, founded in 1996, offers services in app security, performance, automation and insights. The company went public in 1999. Although F5 started with helping clients run their websites smoothly, the company has been pushing more heavily into the app and cloud spaces recently. In January 2021, F5 acquired the app security and deployment company Volterra for about $500 million. The company in September 2021 announced the acquisition of the Boston-based cloud security company Threat Stack for $68 million in a deal that closed the next month. In November 2021, F5 dropped "Networks" from its name.
In its fiscal fourth quarter 2022 financial results, released in October, F5 said it generated $700 million in revenue in the quarter, up from $682 million during the same period in 2021. The company generated $2.7 billion in revenue during the year, up from $2.6 billion in fiscal year 2021.
“Kara has had an incredible impact on F5 over the past five years and has been a key driver of our expansion to a software-led business,” François Locoh-Donou, president and CEO of F5, said in a release. “Kara’s elevation to chief product officer will accelerate the next phase of our transformation."
