Letter from our CEO

Apologies for getting this October letter out so late in the month.

Things have been quite busy here at Rocket. The last few weeks have been monumental, filled with important announcements, our annual user conference (EVOLVE21), and our most recent acquisition—all contributing to our continuing evolution and growth designed to better serve you and your business.

Milan Shetti: Our next CEO

I’ll start by announcing once again that Milan Shetti will be Rocket’s next CEO beginning November 5th.  In just a few short weeks when Milan adds CEO to his current title of President, I will become Executive Chairman. Much has been said and written about this transition—about this evolution—already. But I want to simply state again that Milan is the right CEO for this moment, and I couldn’t be more proud of him and his Executive Leadership Team as they take Rocket into our next era.   

As I considered my successor, I knew we needed someone with a strong engineering background. But that person also needed to be someone who understands that success starts with customers and partnership. My successor needed to be someone who could build trusted, authentic relationships—someone with true empathy for our customers challenges and the technical chops, determination, and problem-solving ability needed to expertly tackle those challenges.

From the moment I met Milan in early 2020, I saw these qualities in him. And the more I got to know Milan, the more I worked with Milan, the more I could see the impact he had on customers, partners, and Rocketeers. Milan is a strong engineer. Milan is a proven business leader. Milan is an authentic relationship builder. Milan says what he does and does what he says. 

Most importantly, Milan’s own core values are aligned with Rocket’s core values of humanity, empathy, trust, and love. Those core values are what attracted Milan to Rocket. And those core values will guide Milan in his new role as Rocket CEO. 

EVOLVE21: Our first-ever Rocket-wide user conference

I am also proud of the community that came together for our EVOLVE21 user conference. What a week we had together. The event provided an opportunity to celebrate ASG joining the Rocket family and featured new product releases, customer stories, thought-provoking keynotes, and breakout tracks that delivered insights to improve governance, modernization, and automation.   

I want to thank all our partners, customers, presenters, and attendees for a legendary EVOLVE21. The power of community and sharing ideas is so central to who we are at Rocket, and the impact of this virtual conference is a testament to our ability to learn from each other and make meaningful connections through technology. 

Rocket + Uniface + ASG + Zumasys 

And lastly, we are proud to add Zumasys Inc.’s database and tools products to our Rocket family. Rocket has taken on the future innovation of AccuTerm, jBASE, MVConnect, MV Dashboard, and OpenQM, and we are thrilled to welcome Zumasys as our first MV Modernization Partner.  

This move allows us to innovate at scale and, importantly, protect the investment enterprises have made in MultiValue products while also future-proofing the entire MultiValue ecosystem.  

We also recognize the need for developer education within the MultiValue community, and are committed to addressing this need by adopting an eLearning methodology that will give new developers a jump start in mastering MultiValue while providing experienced professionals a chance to catch up on the latest enhancements and best practices.  

With Rocket continuing to lead in innovation and Zumasys focusing on helping modernize applications, we see a bright future for the MultiValue ecosystem.  

In closing

Though my role will be changing when Milan becomes CEO on November 5th, I won’t be going far. While I am looking forward to the time to pursue my other interests, to spend more time with Mariann and our family, and to work hard to make a difference in Boston and beyond, I am also looking forward to taking on my new role of Executive Chairman and providing strategic insights and guidance to Rocket in important areas. 

We started this company as “two guys in a garage” setting out to build a different type of software company. Now, for more than 30 years, Rocket has demonstrated a proven commitment to delivering the innovation and expertise needed for any digital transformation journey while using existing infrastructure, and to providing truly exceptional customer experiences. And along the way, we have lived out our core values of humanity, empathy, trust, and love in everything we do. Throughout Rocket’s many evolutions, including this one, these commitments are unwavering. Milan, our executive leadership team, our senior leadership team, and all 2,500 Rocketeers around the globe remain committed to one another, our customers, and our partners.  

I love Rocket Software: who we are, what we do, how we do it, and the impact we have on the world.  I am so incredibly proud of all we have built together, of all the exceptional leaders that are running our business, and of our entire team of dedicated Rocketeers.  

I know, without a doubt, that our legacy will power Rocket’s legendary next era. I now pass the pen to Milan, who will deliver his first letter as Rocket’s new CEO next month. Thank you for everything. 

Onward and Upwards,