Stuart Van Houten
BLACKLINEAbout Stuart Van Houten
Stuart Van Houten is BlackLine’s Chief Commercial Officer (age 58), appointed effective February 17, 2025, to lead global sales and revenue operations . He previously spent ~10 years at SAP, most recently serving as Chief Revenue Officer for the North American Intelligent Spend Management division, where he doubled divisional revenue; earlier roles included Regional Vice President, East (Oct 2015–Jan 2021) . Prior experience spans CRO roles and senior sales leadership at Orchestro (E2open), Clarabridge, and GridPoint . He holds a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Oregon . Company context at his appointment: BlackLine guided Q4 2024 GAAP revenue to $167–$169M and full-year 2024 GAAP revenue to $651–$653M, reaffirming non-GAAP operating margin ranges .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAP (North America Intelligent Spend Management) | Chief Revenue Officer | Jan 2021–Feb 2025 | Doubled divisional revenue; led large sales/customer success/advisory teams . |
| SAP | Regional Vice President, East | Oct 2015–Jan 2021 | Senior regional sales leadership . |
| Orchestro (now E2open) | Chief Revenue Officer | May 2014–Oct 2015 | Transformative leadership; scaled revenues and teams . |
| Clarabridge | Vice President, Sales | Nov 2011–May 2014 | Senior sales leadership in customer experience software . |
| GridPoint, Inc. | Vice President, Sales | Dec 2008–Nov 2011 | Led sales in energy management solutions . |
External Roles
Company filings list Van Houten’s prior operating roles but do not disclose any external public-company board positions for him; education: B.A., University of Oregon .
Fixed Compensation
- Offer letter terms (base salary, target bonus, and any inducement equity) for Van Houten have not been filed in available BL SEC documents. The January 13, 2025 8-K announced his appointment but did not include compensation details .
- 2024 NEO program context (not specific to Van Houten): the Compensation Committee targets “at-risk” pay and reported 2024 Bonus Plan achievement at 122.9% of target for NEOs .
Performance Compensation
- Specific metric weightings, targets, actuals, and payouts for Van Houten are not disclosed in available filings to date. Company-wide philosophy emphasizes annual measures and at-risk compensation; advisory vote on executive pay held annually .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership (initial) | 0 shares | Form 3 filed 02/13/2025 states “No securities are beneficially owned” . |
| Shares pledged as collateral | Prohibited by policy | Insider Trading Compliance Policy prohibits pledging and hedging by employees/directors . |
| Ownership guidelines | 1x base salary (5x for Co-CEOs) | Uses 90-day trailing average price; phase-in until later of Feb 2025 or fifth anniversary of becoming an executive; due to 2024 policy change, unexercised options no longer counted; compliance required thereafter . |
| Hedging policy | Prohibited | No derivative hedging of company stock permitted . |
Employment Terms
| Term | Detail | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Start date | February 17, 2025 | Announced Jan 13, 2025 . |
| Role | Chief Commercial Officer | Leads global sales and revenue operations; succeeds CRO Mark Woodhams . |
| Contract term | Not disclosed | No employment agreement for Van Houten filed in available documents . |
| Severance/change-of-control | Company uses double-trigger | BL change-of-control/severance is double-trigger; no excise tax gross-ups; specific participant terms disclosed for certain executives (e.g., CFO, CCO, CLAO, CTO) but not for Van Houten . |
| Equity acceleration mechanics | rTSR PSUs truncated at CoC; other PSUs deemed at target | General plan terms; acceleration subject to agreements/policy; not specific to Van Houten . |
Say-on-Pay & Shareholder Feedback
| Proposal | For | Against | Abstain | Broker Non-Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Advisory vote on NEO compensation (May 8, 2025) | 38,602,953 | 12,442,736 | 18,294 | 9,036,673 |
| Advisory vote frequency | One year: 46,990,750 | Two years: 612,798 | Three years: 3,440,306 | Abstain: 20,129; Broker Non-Votes: 9,036,673 |
Investment Implications
- Alignment and retention: Initial Form 3 shows zero holdings; expect inducement RSUs/PSUs to be filed via Form 4 subsequently. Hedging/pledging prohibitions and ownership guidelines support alignment; monitor time-to-compliance given the guideline phase-in for new executives .
- Compensation-lever outcomes: As a revenue leader with a record of doubling SAP divisional revenue, his variable pay will likely hinge on ARR growth, bookings/productivity, and partnership execution (SAP channel). Absence of disclosed targets today limits pay-for-performance assessment; watch proxy/8-K updates .
- Change-of-control economics: Company-wide policies are double-trigger with full acceleration for certain execs; no tax gross-ups. Van Houten’s specific participation terms are not disclosed—an important gap to close for modeling severance/acceleration risk .
- Signal checks: Workforce reduction (~7%, ~130 roles) announced March 4, 2025 could impact near-term sales morale/productivity; management says guidance impact not material. Say-on-pay passed comfortably, and shareholders endorsed annual frequency, suggesting support for comp design .
Monitoring recommendations: Track Form 4 filings for initial equity grants and vesting schedules; review upcoming proxy/8-Ks for CCO-specific compensation metrics and severance participation; assess insider trading windows and any selling once grants vest; tie sales KPIs to ARR growth, net retention, and SAP partnership-derived pipeline conversion .