Meet the Team Behind Datadobi
Datadobi’s management team brings deep expertise in data management, cloud transformation, and customer success. Together, they guide our mission to help organizations gain control of complex data environments and turn unstructured data into a strategic business asset.
Management Team
IAN LEYSEN
Chief Executive Officer / Co-Founder
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Chief Executive Officer / Co-Founder
Ian has spent his entire career focusing on building quality. Having built three quality assurance software engineering organizations from the ground up, Ian ensures that quality is at the core of Datadobi in every way, for every customer. He has held senior positions at EMC, MEDIAGENIX, and Waves Research. He has a Master of Engineering in Electronics and is Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certified.
KIM MARIVOET
Chief Architect / Co-Founder
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Chief Architect / Co-Founder
Kim has provided out-of-the-box technical solutions for the likes of EMC, Sony, and Swift for more than 20 years. Kim does this by exposing both the opportunities and the limitations of software systems ensuring that customers focus on the probable rather than the wishful, making the result highly profitable. Kim has a Master of Science in Computer Science and is a Certified ScrumMaster. He is a co-author of multiple EMC patents.
IVES AERTS
Senior Software Architect / Co-Founder
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Senior Software Architect / Co-Founder
Ives has more than 20 years of experience in engineering product-quality software. He has worked for Sony and EMC with a focus on embedded software, Java virtual machines, real-time broadcast servers, distributed systems, and operating systems. At EMC, Ives was an integral part of the development for both the core Centera product and the Centera Virtual Archive. Ives has a Master of Applied Science, Computing Sciences and is a Certified ScrumMaster. He is also the co-author of seven patents on digital video servers.
MICHAEL JACK
Chief Revenue Officer / Co-Founder
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Chief Revenue Officer / Co-Founder
Michael Jack has more than 30 years of experience delivering complex IT solutions to companies big and small, with the last 15 years in the data storage industry. During his tenure at EMC, Jack helped to develop Centera into one of the highest quality products in the EMC portfolio. Jack co-founded Datadobi and has helped build it to a highly respected company focusing on unstructured data management.
CARL D’HALLUIN
Chief Technology Officer
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Chief Technology Officer
Carl has been building cloud and storage software for 20 years. He has made notable contributions on protecting and manipulating unstructured data, building highly scalable and secure storage systems, and enabling metadata-driven insights and automation. Each is a cornerstone of the Datadobi business and technology. Carl owns many patents in this domain. He was instrumental in the growth and acquisition of storage companies Amplidata and Q-layer. Carl also worked at EMC Centera, where he architected the world’s first commercial object storage system. Carl has a double Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering (KU Leuven, Belgium) and in Mathematics (UC Berkeley, California).
MANU HEIRBAUT
VP of Engineering
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VP of Engineering
Manu brings a wealth of experience in building international engineering teams to Datadobi. He will lead the Engineering and System Administrator teams at Datadobi as the company continues to expand its latest offering, StorageMAP. Manu previously worked in various roles such as VP Engineering, Software Delivery Manager, Project Manager, and several technology lead roles for companies such as Inventive Designers (acquired by Unifiedpost), Telenet, SunGard (now FIS) and Agfa-Gevaert. Manu has a Master of Computer Science and is a Certified ScrumMaster.
SANDRA ALDI
VP of Marketing
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VP of Marketing
Sandra joined Datadobi in 2025 as the VP of Marketing. She has extensive B2B technology and SaaS marketing experience. With a degree in Computer Science from Lafayette College, Sandra’s marketing career began via her eight years as an industry analyst and consultant working with large technology and communications companies go-to-market and product management teams on a variety of research and advisory projects. She then transitioned in-house first in product and content marketing and expanding her remit to include most marketing disciplines including field marketing, digital marketing, social media, PR and analyst relations, marketing automation and operations, and demand generation. Most recently she was CMO at Neota, a no-code automation platform company.
LINDA DE SCHRIJVER
Global HR Manager
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Global HR Manager
Linda is a human resources manager with over 20 years of experience working for hardware and software companies. The majority of her experience has been with IT companies; she specializes in developing the overall strategy and implementation for acquiring and retaining world-class talent for start-up companies. Linda has advised several companies over her career, including EMC BDG, SD Worx, and USG. She has degrees in Communications and Public Relations.
DENISE NATALI
VP of Americas Sales
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VP of Americas Sales
Denise Natali joined Datadobi in 2024, and she is responsible for developing and executing revenue growth strategies, growing and leading the Sales Team in the Americas. Natali comes to Datadobi with an enviable track record and expertise in organizational transformation and expansion, as well as cybersecurity, digital modernization, and cloud solutions. Before Datadobi, Natali served as Vice President at Cox Communications, Regional Director of Enterprise Sales at Lumen Technologies, and Vice President of Sales at FastPay. She is a military veteran, having served her country in the US Army as a Military Intelligence Officer. She is also an award-winning cartoonist and a published author.
MATTHIAS NIJS
VP of EMEA & APJ Sales
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VP of EMEA & APJ Sales
Matthias joined Datadobi in 2014, and he has held key sales and technical roles, including Territory Manager, before his promotion to VP of EMEA Sales. Before joining Datadobi, Matthias worked as Head of Enterprise Test Management at BNP Paribas Investment Partners, and he has also held roles with Capgemini, Actis, and EMC. He holds an MBA from Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School. When completing his MBA, Matthias wrote a business plan for Datadobi and served on the Datadobi Advisory Board before joining the company.
DANIEL ESPOSITO
VP of Global Alliances
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VP of Global Alliances
Daniel Esposito is Vice President of Global Alliances, where he drives global partner strategy to accelerate revenue growth and customer success. With over 20 years of experience in the IT industry working closely with OEMs and other channel partners, Daniel is passionate about creating mutual value through innovative partnerships and supporting Datadobi’s continued global expansion in the unstructured data management market.