Step into the world of technology with ExtraMile by KnowledgeNile Q&A series, where we explore the expertise of industry leaders and learn from innovators about the latest trends, technologies, marketing tactics, and more.
For today’s session, we are delighted to host Dan Faulkner, the visionary Chief Executive Officer of the leading software quality and visibility tools provider, SmartBear. With top-notch and customer-centric approaches, the firm has become a reliable service provider for over 16 million developers, testers, and software engineers at 32,000+ organizations, among which Microsoft, Adobe, JetBlue, and FedEx are significant.
With a strategic leadership approach and innovation, Dan has been a key player in driving growth for SmartBear. His expertise in the tech domain and determination to take firms beyond success is nothing but commendable.
Let’s dive into Dan’s 15-year-long professional journey alongside exploring wisdom into SmartBear’s services, importance of prioritizing software quality, AI adoption, power of collaborative approaches, among others.
Welcome, Dan; we’re glad to have you with us today!
Can you share the story of your journey to becoming the CEO of SmartBear? Please highlight some pivotal moments in your career that shaped your path.
Ans. Becoming CEO of SmartBear has been an incredible journey, shaped by a passion for technology, innovation, and delivering real value to customers. Leading product and technology teams across global organizations has reinforced my belief in collaboration and customer-centricity.
Before stepping into the CEO role, I joined SmartBear as Chief Product Officer over three years ago, where I spearheaded our Hub strategy—streamlining software development by consolidating our most powerful tools into dynamic, scalable hubs. Prior to SmartBear, I was CTO at Plannuh, but I spent the longest spell of my career - nearly 14 years - at Nuance Communications, where I held multiple leadership roles and helped scale the company to 14,000 employees and $2 billion in revenue.
At SmartBear, we believe quality serves as the launchpad for innovation, enabling teams to push boundaries and deliver exceptional software. AI is central to this transformation—not just in our products, but in how we operate cross-functionally. With SmartBear HaloAI, we are embedding AI across our Hubs to drive software velocity, improve quality, and enhance the developer experience. The next generation of AI will fundamentally reshape our workflows, scale, and cost structures. Every function at SmartBear must embrace AI’s impact. We are committed to leading this evolution, ensuring our teams and customers stay ahead in an AI-driven world.
You have talked about your passion for growth. What does growth mean to you, and how do you see it happening at SmartBear?
Ans. For me, growth isn’t just about growing our financial performance—it’s about having a growth mindset throughout the organization. It’s about making sure we’re constantly innovating, improving the way we help our customers build great software, and scaling in a way that has real impact.
A big part of that is our Hub strategy. We’ve taken our most powerful tools and brought them together into API Hub, Insight Hub, and Test Hub to make life easier for developers and testers. No more juggling fragmented tools—just seamless, modular solutions that help teams move faster without sacrificing quality.
As I’ve said, AI is central to our strategy, increasingly central to our identity, in fact. With SmartBear HaloAI, we’re embedding AI into our Hubs to improve software velocity, testing, and developer experience. AI is reshaping how our customers work, helping them build better software with less friction, and we will be with them wherever they are on their adoption journey.
And of course, strategic acquisitions play a role, too. In 2024, we acquired QMetry and Reflect to strengthen our capabilities. Over the last five years, we’ve brought 10 companies into the SmartBear family, expanding our technology stack and reinforcing our leadership in software quality.
Can you explain the Hub strategy you worked on as Chief Product Officer? How do you think it will affect the future of the company?
Ans. The Hub strategy is all about simplifying software quality and providing a more seamless experience for developers and testers. Instead of standalone tools, we’ve created modular hubs that integrate deeply into development pipelines, removing friction and improving efficiency.
API Hub, for example, consolidates our industry-leading API tools—including SwaggerHub, PactFlow, and Stoplight—into a unified platform that supports the entire API lifecycle. One thing our customers love about API Hub is that it’s built on top of our blue-chip open-source API platforms – Swagger, Pact, Spectral, Prism, and Elements, meaning customers can seamlessly scale from their OSS projects into an Enterprise-ready solution whenever they’re ready. Test Hub brings together our most advanced testing solutions, driving automation and continuous quality improvements. Insight Hub ensures teams have real-time observability into application performance and reliability.
By embedding AI through SmartBear HaloAI and continuing to refine our hubs, we’re not only improving how teams work but ensuring they can innovate faster with fewer barriers.
This strategy represents the future of SmartBear where developers and testers have an intuitive, AI-powered ecosystem that helps them build and deliver high-quality software faster. It’s a major step forward in reducing complexity, increasing visibility, and ensuring that teams can focus on innovation rather than navigating fragmented toolsets.
The role of software quality has evolved significantly. How do you see the relationship between software quality and business success in today’s digital landscape?
Ans. Today, software is the backbone of most modern businesses. Every company today is a software company in some way, whether they’re delivering digital products, running e-commerce platforms, or ensuring seamless customer interactions. The quality of that software directly impacts customer experience, brand reputation, and ultimately, business success.
At SmartBear, we help organizations build software with confidence—removing friction from development, ensuring teams have visibility across their entire software lifecycle, and embedding AI-powered efficiency. The difference between an innovative, high-performing company and one struggling often comes down to how well they manage software quality.
This is why developer visibility is critical—from code to APIs, to testing, to monitoring—every touchpoint must be connected, streamlined, and optimized. SmartBear’s Hub strategy and AI-driven solutions empower teams to move faster, minimize risk, and deliver exceptional software at scale. The businesses that get this right will be the ones defining the future.
SmartBear wants to help its customers in the best way possible. How do you make sure their feedback is included in product development?
Ans. Customers drive our agenda at SmartBear. We stay closely connected with customers, ensuring their challenges shape our solutions. Through programs like the Design Partner Program and Early Access Program, customers help shape product development and get an early look at new capabilities. Our recently launched HaloAI Labs provides a sandbox for AI automation and agentic workflows, and our Customer Advisory Board ensures customer insights drive our roadmap.
At SmartBear, we build with our customers to shape the future of software quality.
Every leader face challenges. What are some of the biggest challenges you have faced, and how did you overcome them?
Ans. Leadership is about navigating uncertainty, making tough decisions, and ensuring teams stay focused on the bigger picture. One of the biggest challenges I’ve faced—both at SmartBear and throughout my career—is balancing rapid innovation with operational excellence. They must co-exist, and I enjoy managing them together. As technology evolves, the pressure to move fast while maintaining quality and stability increases.
At SmartBear, we tackle this by embracing AI-driven automation, streamlining workflows, and creating a culture of adaptability. Another challenge is scaling a company while keeping teams aligned. Growth can create silos, slow down decision-making, and make it harder to stay connected to customers. To overcome this, I focus on building a transparent, collaborative culture—one where teams are empowered, where customer feedback shapes our roadmap, and where innovation is driven by real-world needs.
Ultimately, challenges are opportunities to improve, learn, and push boundaries. The key is to stay focused on delivering value, align teams around a shared mission, and continuously evolve to meet the demands of an ever-changing tech landscape.
AI is transforming how businesses operate. What role does AI play in SmartBear’s vision for the future?
Ans. AI represents a fundamental shift in how software is built, tested, and delivered. The traditional development lifecycle is changing, and AI is accelerating that transformation.
At SmartBear, AI is deeply integrated into everything we do, from automated testing and API management to real-time insights and developer productivity. Our SmartBear HaloAI is all about enhancing developer workflows, eliminating repetitive tasks, and providing intelligent automation that lets teams focus on innovation.
One of the biggest opportunities is in AI-driven software visibility. Companies need a clear, real-time view of their software performance, and AI is making that possible at an entirely new level.
We believe AI-powered quality is the key to unlocking greater software velocity, improved decision-making, and a frictionless developer experience. The future belongs to teams that can embrace AI not just as a tool, but as a strategic advantage—and SmartBear is committed to helping them do that.
Strong collaboration is crucial for overall organizational success. As a leader, how do you ensure effective collaboration between diverse teams within your company?
Ans. Effective collaboration starts with alignment around a shared vision. At SmartBear, we foster a culture of transparency, cross-functional engagement, and customer-first thinking.
To support this, we’ve implemented a structured approach that provides visibility into key priorities and metrics. This framework helps teams focus on the most critical initiatives rather than spreading attention too thin. It also pushes decision-making further down into the organization, empowering teams with the autonomy and data they need to drive impact.
Communication is key. We ensure open dialogue, regular feedback loops, and shared ownership across product, sales, marketing, engineering, and customer success teams. By breaking down silos and ensuring alignment, we can deliver on what’s truly important - exceptional customer outcomes.
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