Personica has recruited Adam Ochstein as its next CEO. Personica simultaneously completed a capital raise which will help position the company for continued growth
Personica, a STG company and leading multi-channel marketing platform for restaurants, announces the company has hired Adam Ochstein as the organization’s next Chief Executive Officer. Ochstein, who most recently served as Head of Strategy for Toast, a leading point of sale and management system and before that CEO of StratEx HR, a HR/Payroll SaaS platform for the restaurant industry, succeeded Personica’s interim CEO John Ouren.
Ochstein joins Personica with over 20 years of experience selling software and services to the restaurant industry. He co-founded StratEx HR in 2008, growing the business from zero to over $15 million in revenue and over 2,000 customers and 200 employees. He sold StratEx to Toast in 2019 which became a strategic part of Toast’s offering.
“We are thrilled to introduce Adam as the new CEO of Personica,” said Marc Bala, Personica Board Member and Managing Director at STG. “Adam has an outstanding track record of strong leadership. His entrepreneurial style, experience selling to the restaurant vertical and proven experience in driving innovation through software uniquely qualifies him to successfully lead Personica into the future.”
Prior to co-founding StratEx, Ochstein was a partner at iCore Advisory Services, where he provided sales and management consulting for venture-backed technology companies and was responsible for new business and client engagements. Before iCore, Adam held numerous sales leadership roles at different technology companies. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science & European History from the University of Maryland.
“I’m honored, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to lead Personica at this exciting moment in time,” said Ochstein, “I believe that we are well-positioned to take advantage of the evolving restaurant technology landscape. We are building the right product at the right time with the right team. Today more than ever operators are craving ways to seamlessly connect with guests and to ensure that they have a holistic view of all the critical information that allows them to easily make informed marketing decisions.”
Personica also announces it recently completed a growth recapitalization. The investment – led by existing investor STG and funds and accounts managed by new equity investor BlackRock – will allow Personica to further accelerate product development, scale go-to-market processes and fuel growth.
“We are truly enthusiastic about the future trajectory of Personica, and with our partnership with STG, we believe the company has what it takes to become an industry leader,” said Aseem Khatri, Personica Board Member and Director at BlackRock Alternative Investments, where he spearheads capital solutions for leading middle market technology businesses. “Adam brings the perfect combination of executive skillset and restaurant domain expertise, which is critical for leading Personica’s next phase of growth. We are excited to welcome Adam as the new CEO.”