The Unified Force in CX Automation: Verint and Calabrio
Dave Rhodes has been named the Chief Executive Officer of Verint, effective February 24, 2026. This appointment marks the final phase of the operational integration following the $2 billion acquisition of Verint by private equity firm Thoma Bravo, which closed in late 2025. Rhodes, who previously led Calabrio, will now steer the combined entity under a unified Verint brand as it attempts to redefine the Workforce Engagement Management (WEM) category through autonomous AI.
The New Leadership: Dave Rhodes
Dave Rhodes brings a technical and operational pedigree focused on scaling enterprise software during periods of intense market transition. His background is rooted in scaling high-growth software businesses and a specialized understanding of the WEM and CX sectors.
Previously served as CEO of Sauce Labs and Calabrio (September 2024). Held senior roles at Unity Technologies and Autodesk.
Succeeds interim CEO Mike Lipps (now Chairman). Follows the advisory transition of long-time leader Dan Bodner.
The Founding Stories: Bridging Security and Cloud
Verint’s history began in February 1994 with the incorporation of Interactive Information Systems Corporation. Initially a business unit of Comverse Technology, it was renamed Comverse Information Systems in 1996 and later became Comverse Infosys in 1999.
Renamed Verint Systems and taken public on the NASDAQ in 2002, the firm navigated a complex journey including a 2007 delisting and 2010 relisting. After decades of providing intelligence for security and enterprise, it spun off Cognyte in 2021 to focus purely on CX.
Calabrio emerged in 2007 as a spin-off from Spanlink Communications. While legacy players focused on large-scale hardware recording, Calabrio focused on cloud-accessible workforce management for the mid-market. Following acquisitions by KKR (2016) and Thoma Bravo (2021), it became the engine for this current market consolidation.
Strategic Outlook: The "Big Two" Era
For years, the WEM market was defined by the "Big Three": Verint, NICE, and Calabrio. With the unification of Verint and Calabrio under a single brand, the market has shifted from a three-way race to a dominant duopoly. NICE remains independent, but the competition is now a race to "Agentic AI"—specialized bots that handle end-to-end customer workflows by leveraging Calabrio’s deep performance data and Verint’s Da Vinci engine.
The 5-Year Strategy: We expect the combined Verint to move toward a singular, bot-centric subscription model. The goal is to reduce organizational friction by managing human agents and AI bots through the same workforce engine, effectively ending the era of WEM as a standalone category.
