Luke Kanies
Founder and former Chief Executive Officer of Perforce Puppet
Luke Kanies is the founder and former CEO of Perforce Puppet, the pioneering infrastructure automation company he launched in 2005 after years as a sysadmin and consultant seeking better tools for managing complex IT systems. As Puppet’s first CEO for over a decade, Luke guided the company from its earliest open source beginnings to becoming a global leader in DevOps and infrastructure automation, helping define modern configuration management.
Under his leadership, Puppet raised $87 million in funding, scaled to tens of thousands of customers — including most Fortune 100 companies, such as Apple, Walmart, Bank of America, and Nike. After stepping down as CEO in 2016, Luke continued to shape Puppet’s strategic direction as Executive Chair until 2022.
Beyond Puppet, he has founded and advised multiple startups, including Clickety, and has served as a trusted advisor to companies like GitLab, Sensu, and Wallaroo Labs.