Top CFOs is pleased to announce The Top 25 CFOs of San Francisco for 2024. San Francisco is renowned as a global technology hub, which plays a significant role in driving the city’s economy and business landscape. While the tech sector certainly dominates, San Francisco boasts a plethora of talented individuals bringing their financial acumen to industries including health care, finance, real estate, and more. This year’s awardees play a pivotal role in navigating the ever-changing market, capitalizing on opportunities, and shaping the economic future of their respective leading companies.
Among this year’s awardees, we have Justin McAnear, Chief Financial Officer of 10x Genomics, who has 20 years of financial and operational leadership experience in dynamic, high-growth environments including renowned companies Apple and Tesla. Next up, Jessica Lanier, the Chief Financial Officer of Restaurant365, is responsible for financial and strategic functions at the company that is single-handedly driving growth and profitability in restaurants. Last but not least, we honor Tom Aveston, the Chief Financial Officer of MINDBODY, who plays an integral role in finance, corporate development, IT, and workplace services at the wellness technology platform.
San Francisco is home to many impressive CFOs who come from a wide array of backgrounds and are more than worthy of recognition for their long list of achievements. Their contributions not only help improve the financial landscape of San Francisco but also set benchmarks for leadership and excellence in the broader business community. Please join us in recognizing the accomplishments of The Top 25 CFOs of San Francisco for 2024.
1. Tony MacDonald
Chief Financial Officer, Sama
Tony MacDonald is the current Chief Financial Officer at Sama with over 25 years of accounting, financial planning and analysis, and sales operations experience. From 2014 to 2018, he was CFO of Sama where he helped transform the company from a small startup into a leading AI service provider with A-list tech customers. From 2018-2021, MacDonald worked as a consulting CFO at CrowdSmart.ai, Crescendo Education Group, LLC, and NPX Inc. before returning to Sama.
Prior to joining Sama, MacDonald worked as an executive global sales operations senior director at Oracle and as a finance senior manager for Levi's U.S. MacDonald has a bachelor of commerce degree from Queen's University in accounting and finance and he is also certified by the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada.
2. Ita Brennan
Chief Financial Officer, Arista
Ita Brennan is the Chief Financial Officer of Arista Networks, Inc., an American computer networking company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. She brings over two decades of financial management expertise in the high-technology industry to this role, beginning her career in 1989 as an audit manager for Deloitte & Touche.
Early in her career, she worked as a European finance and operations director for Maxtor Corporation in Dubin, Ireland. Before joining Arista, Brennan had an eight-year career at Infinera Corporation, an intelligent transport networking company, holding the position of vice president of finance and corporate controller and most recently CEO. Brennan is also a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.
3. Pete Godbole
Chief Financial Officer, Smartsheet
Pete Godbole began his professional career 34 years ago. Today, he is Chief Financial Officer at Smartsheet, a SaaS offering for collaboration and work management, developed and marketed by Smartsheet Inc. It is used to assign tasks, track project progress, manage calendars, share documents, and manage other work, using a tabular user interface.
Godbole is an enterprise software veteran, with more than two decades of experience as a financial leader in the industry. Before Smartsheet, Godbole served as CFO of Hearsay Systems, Inc., CFO of GoodData Corporation, and CFO of the end-user computing business of VMware, Inc. He has also served in various other finance roles for VMware, Inc., Hyperion Solutions Corporation, Autodesk Inc., and The Hewlett-Packard Company. Godbole currently serves on the board of directors of Hearsay Systems, Inc. He received a bachelor’s degree in business and accounting from the University of Delhi and an MBA from Michigan State University.
4. Nancy Erba
Chief Financial Officer, Infinera
Nancy Erba first joined Infinera in 2019 and serves as the company’s Chief Financial Officer. Infinera is a manufacturer of optical transmission equipment and IP transport technologies for the telecommunications service provider market. It is a pioneer in the designing and manufacturing of large-scale photonic integrated circuits (PICs). The company sells hardware and software networking options for Tier 1 carriers, Internet content providers, cable operators, government, and enterprise networks.
Erba brings over 20 years of financial experience, including management of complex M&A integrations, pricing, and sales operations. In her most recent role, Erba was CFO for Immersion Corporation, a recognized leader in the development and licensing of touch feedback technology known as haptics. Prior to Immersion, she held numerous global leadership positions at Seagate Technology, a multi-billion dollar data storage company. These roles included vice president, financial planning and analysis, division CFO and vice president of finance for strategic growth initiatives, and division CFO and vice president of finance of the consumer solutions division. Erba holds an MBA from Baylor University and an undergraduate degree in mathematics from Smith College.
5. Shobhna Asthana
Chief Financial Officer, Shaklee
Shobhna Asthana serves as Chief Financial Officer for Shaklee and has more than 20 years of experience in various functions of finance and accounting. Shaklee is a manufacturer of natural nutrition supplements, weight-management products, beauty products, and household products. The company is based in Pleasanton, California with global operations in Canada, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, and Taiwan.
Prior to joining Shaklee, Asthana held executive leadership positions across leading technology companies in Silicon Valley, including Lucent Technologies, Yahoo, and Pericom Semiconductor, focusing on both topline revenue growth and bottom-line cost savings. Asthana holds an MBA from San Jose State University and an undergraduate degree in mathematics, physics, and chemistry from Punjab University.
6. Alec Davidian
Chief Financial Officer, Wag! Group
Alec Davidian began his professional career 20 years ago. Today, he is the Chief Financial Officer of Wag! Group, an American pet care app that connects pet owners with independent pet professionals for dog walking, training, and other pet care services. As Chief Financial Officer, Davidian is responsible for leading Wag!’s finance organization, including accounting, reporting, financial planning and analysis, and treasury functions. Prior to being appointed VP of Finance, Davidian was Wag!’s corporate controller, responsible for building out a new accounting team in Mountain View.
Davidian has over 15 years of experience in accounting and finance, working with a variety of companies ranging from Fortune 500 to early-stage startups. Before starting his career at Wag!, Davidian was a senior manager at Ernst & Young, advising companies across the Americas and Europe on accounting matters, filings, process improvements, and scaling businesses. Davidian graduated from Newcastle University with an undergraduate degree in accounting and finance.
7. Justin McAnear
Chief Financial Officer, 10X Genomics
Justin McAnear has served as Chief Financial Officer of 10x Genomics since 2018, bringing over 20 years of financial and operational leadership experience to his current role. 10x Genomics is a biotechnology company that designs and manufactures gene sequencing technology used in scientific research. It was founded in 2012 by Serge Saxonov, Ben Hindson, and Kevin Ness.
Prior to joining 10x Genomics, McAnear was the vice president of worldwide finance and operations at Tesla, where he helped scale the company through the Model X and Model 3 launches. McAnear also served as a finance director at Apple in corporate FP&A and worldwide operations. McAnear began his career at Johnson & Johnson where he held various roles.
Additionally, McAnear served over nine years in the U.S. Navy as an aviator and is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in systems engineering. He also holds an MBA in finance from the University of San Diego.
8. Jessica Lanier
Chief Financial Officer, Restaurant365
Jessica Lanier is the Chief Financial Officer of Restaurant365. Restaurant365 is a cloud-based accounting, operations, workforce, and intelligence solution developed specifically for restaurants. The company’s restaurant enterprise management software assists with daily management for operators, allowing them to control food costs and optimize labor. Integrations and open APIs enable Restaurant365 to connect with other systems, including POS providers, vendors, and banks.
Lanier has 25 years of experience, beginning her career in 1999 as a project manager for the consulting firm Prophet. She most recently served as vice president of finance at Qualtrics. Before Qualtrics, Lanier served as CFO of several SaaS technology companies, including Usermind, an experience management software platform backed by Andreessen Horowitz and Menlo Ventures. Lanier received a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California, Davis, and an MBA from the Anderson School of Business at the University of California, Los Angeles.
9. Ralph Leung
Chief Financial Officer, Achieve
Ralph Leung brings more than 25 years of leadership experience in strategic finance/FP&A, investment banking, capital markets, and corporate strategy. He has worked with companies across a broad spectrum, from VC and PE-backed private companies to Global 500 public companies. Leung is currently the Chief Financial Officer at Achieve, a digital personal finance company that offers digital financial solutions including home equity loans, personal loans, and debt resolution.
Before joining Achieve, Leung served as CFO of Fivestars, a VC-backed payments and CRM software fintech for local SMBs. There, he helped drive strategy and growth across the business and led Fivestars through its $317 million strategic acquisition by global payments leader SumUp. Prior to Fivestars, Leung served in other CFO roles at VC-backed technology companies and as a senior technology, fintech, and M&A investment banker at Morgan Stanley. Leung received his MBA from Cornell Johnson Graduate School of Management and BComm from the University of British Columbia.
10. Sanjay Datta
Chief Financial Officer, Upstart
Sanjay Datta is Upstart’s Chief Financial Officer and is responsible for leading all financial operations and capital markets efforts. Upstart is an AI lending marketplace, connecting millions of consumers to 100 banks and credit unions that use Upstart’s AI models and cloud applications to deliver credit products.
Datta was formerly the vice president of advertising finance at Google, where he oversaw the global finance organization and helped to scale Google's $80 billion core economic engine. While at Google, Datta also held various international finance leadership positions in Asia and Europe. Previously, Datta spent a few years with the private investment group Artisan Capital and began his career as a valuation and data specialist at Deloitte Consulting. Datta has a joint honors degree in economics and finance from McGill University in Montreal and an MBA from Stanford University.
11. Tom Aveston
Chief Financial Officer, MINDBODY
Tom Aveston is the Chief Financial Officer of MINDBODY. He first joined the company in 2022. Mindbody is an experience technology platform for the fitness, wellness, and beauty industries. Fitness studios, salons, spas, and integrative health centers use Mindbody's integrated software and payments platform to run, market, and grow their businesses.
Previously, Aveston was a chief operating officer and chief financial officer at ClassPass and before that a senior director of marketing and commercial at Expedia, Inc. Earlier in his career, he worked with McKinsey & Company as a business analyst and with Microsoft as the director of strategy and business development. Aveston earned a degree in modern history and economics from the University of Oxford.
12. Rod MacLeod
Chief Financial Officer, Nevro
In June 2020, Rod MacLeod was appointed Chief Financial Officer of Nevro, a global medical device company focused on delivering innovation to improve the quality of life for patients suffering from chronic pain. MacLeod brings over 25 years of experience in financial and executive leadership roles in healthcare and technology to his current role.
Most recently, MacLeod served as vice president of finance at Stryker Endoscopy, a division of Stryker Corp that develops and manufactures medical devices used in minimally invasive surgical procedures. During his 16-year career at Stryker Endoscopy, MacLeod played a key role in growing the division from $500 million to $1.8 billion in revenue. His other prior roles include vice president of finance and administration at Lumenare Networks, a Sunnyvale-based software company. Earlier in his career, MacLeod was financial manager/controller at United Airlines and was a senior operational and audit consultant at Arthur Andersen & Co.
MacLeod graduated from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University with a master’s of management degree and received his bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard University.
13. Mike Milotich
Chief Financial Officer, Marqeta
Mike Milotich is Marqeta’s Chief Financial Officer, leading the financial planning, corporate development, accounting, and settlement and investor relations functions at the company. Marqeta is a modern card-issuing platform that enables customers to create tailored and embedded financial solutions.
Before joining Marqeta, Milotich was the senior vice president of corporate finance and investor relations at Visa. He was responsible for understanding Visa’s business and financial performance, managing the corporate outlook, evaluating M&A opportunities, and communicating with the global investor community. Previously, Milotich worked at PayPal and American Express in business analysis roles supporting new product launches, product portfolio strategy, partner pricing, and cost optimization. Milotich holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and an MBA from New York University.
14. Beth Howe
Chief Financial Officer, SiTime
Beth Howe is the Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at SiTime Corporation, a leading provider of Precision Timing solutions to the global electronics industry. In this role, Howe is focused on strategic financial decisions that fuel innovation and accelerate profitable growth.
Prior to joining SiTime in 2023, she spent 17 years at HP Inc driving innovation and change in numerous finance leadership roles including business CFO for HP’s multi-billion dollar Graphics Solutions Business, Global Head of Investor Relations and Chief Audit Executive. She is also a strong advocate for sustainability and inclusion and was the Finance Executive Sponsor for Sustainable Impact. Earlier in her career, she held leadership positions at Silicon Graphics, a high-performance computing and advanced graphics computer company. She holds an MS in Engineering Economic Systems and Operations Research and a BS and MS in Civil and Environmental Engineering, all from Stanford University.
15. Michael Cunha
Chief Financial Officer, Woodruff Sawyer
Michael Cunha is the Chief Financial Officer of Woodruff Sawyer, an insurance brokerage and consulting firm that was founded in 1918, currently working with 4,000 companies. Since joining Woodruff Sawyer in 2014, Cunha oversees the finance, accounting, and treasury teams, and is responsible for financial planning and analysis, reporting, and revenue operations, as well as tax, retirement plan, and equity administration.
Cunha began his career in financial services as a vice president for State Street Alternative Investment Solutions, where he specialized in financial reporting on complex fund structures, engineering solutions to complex accounting/administration issues, and providing on-site client management. Cunha has a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University, a master’s degree in accountancy and a graduate certificate in taxation from Bentley University, and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Merrimack College. He is licensed as a certified public accountant in Massachusetts and holds the Associate in Risk Management (ARM) designation.
16. Garret Albert
Chief Financial Officer, Mynd
Garret Albert began his professional career 22 years ago. Today, he is the Chief Financial Officer at Mynd, a tech-enabled real estate company serving the over $85 billion property management and real estate investment market. The company helps investors find, buy, lease, manage, and sell residential investment properties. Its integrated tech and services model offers customers the ability to build and manage a portfolio remotely.
Before joining Mynd, Albert was the vice president of finance at One Medical. Previously, he was the director of finance at Jive Software and has also held positions as a finance manager at Skype and a senior financial analyst at Agilent Technologies. Albert received his bachelor’s in China Studies from Colgate University and then went on to study finance at Cornell University, where he earned his MBA. He also studied ICLP at the National Taiwan University.
17. Marco Fernandez
Chief Financial Officer, CHANDON
Marco Fernandez is the Chief Financial Officer of Chandon, a sparkling wine company that is part of LVMH. Chandon was founded 60 years ago by Robert-Jean de Vogüé and currently operates on four continents. Fernandez first joined the company in 2017 as a business planning and analysis manager.
Fernandez has held several roles at Chandon prior to his current position, including business planning and analysis manager, and senior business planning and analysis manager at Domaine Chandon and Newton Vineyard. Previously, Fernandez was a financial planning and analysis sr. analyst at Moët Hennessy Argentina (LVMH Group). Earlier in his career, he worked with Grupo Peñaflor as an accounting analyst. Fernandez earned an undergraduate degree in accounting from Universidad del Aconcagua.
18. Kunal Mehta
Chief Financial Officer, Ethos Life
Kunal Mehta brings 22 years of experience to his role as Chief Financial Officer of Ethos, a modern life insurance company designed for families. The company was founded in 2016 to make life insurance more affordable, and partners with top insurance carriers.
Before joining Ethos, Mehta was a senior director of GTM strategy and field operations at Adobe and before that a director of M&A, strategic planning, and operations at DocuSign. Earlier in his career, he worked with PwC as a senior product manager, security and identity management. Mehta graduated from The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth with an MBA in business administration and management, and from UCLA with an undergraduate degree in computer science.
19. Jenny Sohn
Chief Financial Officer, Mindvalley
Jenny Sohn is the Chief Financial Officer at Mindvalley, a learning experience company that publishes ideas and teachings by top authors in personal growth, well-being, spirituality, productivity, mindfulness, and more—combining them with learning technology within engaged and supportive communities.
Sohn has over 20 years of experience in finance and accounting, having worked at various companies in a variety of industries. Sohn started her career as an auditor at a small accounting firm. She then moved to Evergreen Finance, where she was the CEO for two years. After that, she became the CFO at Osmosis-Knowledge Diffusion, where she worked for three years.
Sohn then became the interim chief financial officer at Square Panda Inc. for a year, before becoming a limited partner at Operator Collective. Most recently, she was acting CFO, finance & legal at Workato before taking her current position at Mindvalley. Sohn graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business with an MBA in finance and from Yonsei University with an undergraduate degree in applied linguistics and economics.
20. Jeff Farrow
Chief Financial Officer and Chief Strategy Officer, Tarsus Pharmaceuticals
Jeff Farrow is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Strategy Officer of Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, a biopharmaceutical company that applies proven science and new technology to revolutionize treatment for patients, starting with eye care. He first joined the company in 2023.
Farrow is a seasoned finance and corporate strategy executive with more than two decades of experience successfully leading teams in the life science industry, including several publicly traded commercial biotech companies. Most recently, Farrow served as chief financial officer at Global Blood Therapeutics, Inc., where he was an integral part of the leadership team that secured regulatory approval and successfully commercialized Oxbryta for the treatment of sickle cell disease. Before that, he held other CFO roles at ZS Pharma and Hyperion Therapeutics, Inc.
21. Lori Munoz
Chief Financial Officer, Exo Imaging
Lori Munoz is the Chief Financial Officer of Exo, a medical imaging software and devices company. Munoz brings over 30 years of medical device industry experience, providing financial and fiscal leadership. She also has extensive experience in business planning and financial management, fundraising, finance and accounting, and general operations management.
Most recently, Munoz served as the CFO and VP of finance and administration at ZipLine Medical (acquired by Stryker Corporation) where she was responsible for business planning, fundraising, and general business operations. Previously, Munoz served as the vice president of finance at Medtronic Corporation, Peak Surgical, and Paracor Medical building teams and financial systems. Munoz has a degree in accounting and finance from Robert Morris University.
22. Gary Lo
Chief Financial Officer, Cellares
Gary Lo is the CFO at Cellares, a company developing and operating integrated technologies for cell therapy manufacturing to accelerate access to life-saving cell therapies. Lo has extensive experience in finance and IT. Before joining Cellares, Lo was the vice president of finance at Legrand Building Control Systems. He was responsible for managing global finance functions, including cash management, accounts payable/receivable, credit and collections, cost accounting, and general accounting.
Previously, he was the vice president of business development and IT at Sparta Systems, spearheading Sparta’s M&A strategy, execution, and integration. He also served as CFO for 1WorldSync, a cloud-based product database company with over 15,000 customers across 50 countries. Lo worked at Johnson & Johnson for 10 years as a finance director supporting numerous product lines and geographies. He has held management positions at Siebel Systems, Boston Scientific Corporation, and PWC as well. Lo earned an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and graduated magna cum laude with his bachelor’s from Boston College. He is also a Certified Public Accountant.
23. Svai Sanford
Chief Financial Officer, Rani Therapeutics
Svai Sanford is the Chief Financial Officer of Rani Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotech company that has developed a platform technology to enable oral delivery of biologic drugs. Sanford has more than 23 years of accounting, finance, and management experience in the biopharmaceutical and medical device industries for both public and private companies.
Prior to joining Rani, Sanford served as an executive consultant and interim CFO for pH Pharma and Intuity Medical. Previously, Sanford held the position of CFO for SFJ Pharmaceuticals, a drug development company, and CFO and chief accounting officer for VIVUS, Inc., a publicly traded, commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company. Sanford began his career with KPMG LLP, in its audit practice, where he earned his license as a certified public accountant. Sanford holds a bachelor’s degree with an emphasis in accounting from Kansas State University.
24. Michaela Gifford
Chief Financial Officer, Triple Ring
Michaela Gifford is the Chief Financial Officer of Triple Ring, a co-development company headquartered in Silicon Valley, with offices in Boston, Toronto, and Copenhagen. It partners with clients in medtech, life sciences, sustainability, and the environment to create new technologies, launch innovative projects, and start new ventures.
Gifford has over 15 years of experience in finance and strategy across the globe, including fin-tech venture-backed startups, management consulting, and global investment firms in Asia Pacific. Most recently, Gifford led the FP&A, operations, and vendor management functions at Point Digital Finance, a Series B fin-tech startup backed by some of the most prestigious Bay Area VCs.
Prior to Point, Gifford held domestic and international financial strategy positions at CFOs2Go, Nikko Asset Management, and Rogers Investment Advisors, evaluating, planning, and leading organic and inorganic corporate growth plans. Gifford started her career with IKEA Japan as a high-potential management trainee, leading the market entry effort for the global retailer in Japan. Gifford received her bachelor’s in business administration from Stockholm University and an MBA in Finance, Strategy, and Entrepreneurship from The University of Chicago, Booth School of Business.
25. Conor Tierney
Chief Financial Officer, AEye
Conor Tierney is the Chief Financial Officer of AEye, a unique software-defined lidar solution that enables advanced driver assistance, vehicle autonomy, smart infrastructure, and logistics applications. The solution, the 4Sight Intelligent Sensing Platform, enhances perception by capturing information faster and more reliably, enabling early detection and autonomy—increasing safety and new performance features. The company provides safety enhancements for electric and software-defined vehicles, helps trucks see further and detect objects sooner, and helps transportation authorities become more efficient.
Tierney has 20 years of financial leadership and management experience with top technology companies, including Alphabet and Glu Mobile. Before becoming CFO, Tierney served as AEye’s chief accounting officer and was responsible for overall leadership of AEye’s accounting, financial compliance, controls, and reporting functions. Before joining AEye, Tierney was head of finance and corporate controller at Alphabet’s Wing Aviation division (Alphabet’s drone delivery business). He also served as corporate controller at Glu Mobile in the mobile gaming space, managing a global team, and worked at “Big Four” accounting firms Deloitte and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Tierney is a CPA with a BSC in Accounting from the University of College Cork.
