Meet the Executives: Luis Almeida, CRO

In this week’s ‘Meet the Executives’ series, we interview our CRO, Luis Almeida. As one of the OGs of Clear Skye, Luis—alongside Co-Founders TJ and Vahan, and our CEO John (unintentional rhyme)—launched the company out of stealth mode in 2020. From one of the first employees to leading a team of sales powerhouses, he knows what it takes to get a business off the ground. But what’s working hard without playing hard? Much like the ebb and flow of startup life, Luis knows a thing or two about riding the tides—specifically in the warm, crystal blue waters of South Florida. 

Boats N' CROs

What do you do at Clear Skye?

I’m the Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at Clear Skye. I work with our teams to make it as easy as possible for customers to do business with us. We want to make our customers’ product evaluation process efficient and transparent, so they clearly understand Clear Skye’s value. Partners play a significant role in that effort, so I spend a lot of time building and maintaining those relationships.

When and why did you make the jump to Clear Skye?

It didn’t feel like a jump so much as helping Clear Skye Founders TJ and Vahan build the business. I met TJ at a conference I was presenting at about four years ago. At the time I was working for an identity and access management (IAM) consulting services company. When I heard that he and Vahan had built an identity governance and administration (IGA) solution on ServiceNow I was intrigued enough to take a deep dive into the product. From there, we acquired a few customers that played a role in getting us out of stealth mode, and here we are.

What sets Clear Skye apart from other places you’ve worked?

Clear Skye is different from other places I’ve worked because of the potential I see in our solution. IGA is a $5B market and Clear Skye will help ServiceNow capture its share of that. Most professionals in the identity space don’t realize that ServiceNow is much more than just an IT Service Management (ITSM) solution.

ServiceNow really is a platform that lowers IT costs while bringing tremendous flexibility to businesses that are transforming the way they go to market. Large enterprises tend to be early adopters of technology, and we’re seeing them leverage ServiceNow for their “digital transformation” initiatives. Identity needs to be at the center of that transformation, and it’s an amazing experience to contribute to the IT revolution.

Where do you see the company in 5 years?

In five years, I see Clear Skye as a major competitor in the identity security space and a big part of the ServiceNow ecosystem. There’s a lot of discussion around identity fabrics, and the consolidation of the different areas in IAM, Privileged Access Management (PAM), IGA and other functions like directory services. The challenge with identity fabrics is that those solutions are all built today by different vendors on different code bases. Imagine how much easier life would be if all those solutions were built natively on ServiceNow? This is the opportunity for Clear Skye.

Most will agree, from failure comes success. Tell us about a learning moment in your professional life or a valuable piece of advice you’ve picked up along the way.

The major lesson I have learned is that everything worth doing is hard. The core executive team at Clear Skye had to build every aspect of the business from the ground up. That taught me how much I took for granted at other more established companies I’ve worked for. Building Clear Skye has been a true team effort that requires an amazing amount of collaboration and coordination. I’d say we’re doing an excellent job so far. 

Who inspires you—career or otherwise?

The people that inspire me are the ones that work long hours in multiple jobs to support their families and give their children a better life than one they had. When I’m having a rough day, I think about what a privilege it is to be able to do the work I do.

Where can we find you when you’re not leading the sales team at Clear Skye?

When I’m not working, I always try to be on the water in Biscayne Bay National Park. Miami is a beautiful part of the world, and it doesn’t end at South Beach. A few miles off the coast is Elliot Key, and its beaches and sand bars. It’s a boater’s paradise down here and we do what we can to try to take advantage of it.