I have just completed thirty days at Edgio and feel even more energized by the opportunity ahead of us. I was attracted to the company for a variety of reasons. First, the chemistry I had with the CEO and broader management team was instant. There is clarity of vision and members of the team are collaboratively shaping it and know the parts they have to play. Second, there is tremendous pace in the organization. The transformation is moving fast and with scale, there are many opportunities for revenue growth and operating leverage. Finally, the portfolio of products is top notch. All of them have a right to win. Applications is world class with its platform and Security solutions. Delivery is running on the most performant network in the world, and Streaming is best of breed. We have an enviable platform that provides the foundation for growth.
The investment thesis is very clear – we have an underutilized asset and we are adding new market-focused applications which have a large TAM and growth opportunities. The right to win/competitive moat with these products should drive higher monetization with high margin and recurring revenue, which will grow as a percentage of revenue. Add to that a strong balance sheet, an active partner in Apollo, and our valuation versus comps, I see a compelling opportunity to drive continuous value.
My focus over the next 12 months is to build on the changes made over the last 18 months and continue to make this a world class organization. Having spent 21 years in the semiconductor industry, I have expertise in establishing operational discipline and implementing processes and systems. My experience has been in a complex, highly cyclical industry, with high capex and thin margins, supply chain dependencies, and worldwide operations – not dissimilar from Edgio. In my first 90 days, I expect to have completed a full review of the finance and operations team, sharpen the forecastability and predictability of the business, and have a keen grasp on the levers of the business to drive our operating margin expansion.
Nothing has surprised me during my first month here at Edgio. I have been very impressed by our First Team and their focus on our North Star. I consider finance to have a critical role in any organization, strategically and operationally, and there is a need and want in the company to flex those muscles. This is critical for all our stakeholders – customers, partners, shareholders, employees – and I look forward to working with all of them.
— Stephen Cumming, CFO
