Google Cloud has hired Oracle veteran Amit Zavery as VP of engineering to drive the Apigee cross-cloud API developer push, Reuters reports. It's a dramatic move, considering Zavery spent nearly 25 years at Oracle.
This is Google's second major cloud-centric hire from the enterprise database giant. Oracle veteran Thomas Kurian succeeded former Google Cloud CEO Diane Greene earlier this year. The hires come as Google attempts to accelerate its cloud services business vs. Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure, and potential foreign rivals like Alibaba Cloud.
While AWS and Azure cloud revenues are accelerating rapidly, Google parent Alphabet has not disclosed the company's cloud sales in recent quarters -- a potential indication that the business hasn't been meeting the company's expectations.
Still, Kurian is moving quickly to ensure Google grabs market share -- or at least accelerates its own cloud revenue growth. The company in February 2019 acquired Alooma for database migration tools. The overall strategy has inspired partners like LogicMonitor to extend multi-cloud monitoring to Google Cloud Platform.
Who Is Google Cloud VP Amit Zavery?
Now, along comes Zavery's jump to Google. He will lead Apigee -- a cross-cloud API management platform, Reuters says. He previously was executive VP of product development for Oracle Cloud Platform -- with a focus on PaaS, middleware and analytics.
While at Oracle, Zavery oversaw a team of more than 4,500 engineers. Those engineers built cloud services in such areas as Application Development, Application Integration, Data Integration, Big Data, Analytics, AI/ML, Blockchain, Digital Assistants/Chatbots, Content and Experience Management, Identity Management and Security, according to Zavery's LinkedIn profile.
That experience may provide clues about Google's next cloud moves -- and potential market gaps the company plans to exploit. Keep in mind, Microsoft is deeply entrenched in the SaaS market and the company is gaining momentum in the IaaS market. AWS, meanwhile, is strongest in the IaaS sector.
Google PaaS Initiatives: Apigee APIs and Partners
Those market realities, coupled with Zavery's background, may suggest that Google Cloud Platform will double down on PaaS opportunities.
The secret sauce involves Apigee -- which allows cloud partners to:
- Build and deliver modern applications very rapidly;
- execute faster at scale while optimizing costs; and
- make smarter decisions through analytics and machine learning, Google claims.
Roll all of that together, and Google seems poised to work more closely with ISVs and corporate developers that want to move workloads into the cloud.
It's a safe bet more details about the strategy will surface at the Google Cloud Next 2019 conference in April.
