Yanbing Li
DatadogAbout Yanbing Li
Datadog’s Chief Product Officer since August 2024, Yanbing Li (age 55) brings senior engineering and product leadership from Aurora (SVP Engineering, 2021–2024), Google Cloud (VP Engineering & Product, 2019–2021), and VMware (senior engineering and GM roles, 2008–2019), with prior public board experience at NeoPhotonics. She holds a Ph.D. from Princeton, an M.S. from Cornell, and a B.S. from Tsinghua University . Company performance context during the latest fiscal year: FY2024 revenue was $2.68B (+26% YoY) with 25% non-GAAP operating margin; 2024 annual bonus for NEOs paid at ~93% of target on ~93% net new ARR attainment with operating income gate met; 2024 PSU cycle paid at 115% of target on 100.5% revenue vs target with the operating income gate met . Datadog’s 2024 say‑on‑pay support was ~95% .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aurora | SVP Engineering | 2021–2024 | Led engineering at self-driving tech company; large-scale systems and safety-critical engineering leadership |
| Google Cloud | VP Engineering and Product | 2019–2021 | Drove engineering and product execution across cloud services |
| VMware | Senior Engineering & GM (incl. SVP & GM, Storage & Availability BU) | 2008–2019 | Ran a core infrastructure software BU; multi-cloud services leadership |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| NeoPhotonics | Director | 2019–2022 | Public board in lasers/optoelectronics |
Fixed Compensation
| Item | 2024 Amount/Terms |
|---|---|
| Base Salary | $425,000 annualized; pro‑rated from August 2024 start |
| Target Bonus % | 94% of base salary (company-wide 2024 target for NEOs) |
| Target Bonus ($) | $162,842 pro‑rated for 2024 employment period |
| Actual Bonus Paid (2024) | $151,156 (93% of pro‑rated target) |
| Other Compensation | $200,000 relocation assistance; $116,967 tax gross‑up on relocation payment |
Performance Compensation
Annual Cash Bonus (2024)
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Notes/Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Net New ARR | 100% corporate metric (with op income gate) | 100% of operating plan | ~93% of target | ~93% of target payout | Decelerators if non‑GAAP op income below target; cap at 200% |
| Non‑GAAP Operating Income (gate) | Gate | Target level | Achieved | Gate satisfied | Applied as decelerator if below target |
Long-Term Equity (2024 awards granted at hire)
| Instrument | Target/Grant | Performance Metric | Result | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RSUs | 89,127 units | N/A (time-based) | N/A | 25% on 9/1/2025; remaining in 12 equal quarterly installments (Dec 1/Mar 1/Jun 1/Sep 1 thereafter) |
| PSUs | 89,127 target units | FY2024 revenue with non‑GAAP op income gate | 115% of target earned (102,776 PSUs) based on 100.5% revenue vs target and gate met | Earned PSUs vest 25% on 9/1/2025; remainder in 12 equal quarterly installments thereafter (Dec/Mar/Jun/Sep) |
Design notes:
- LTI mix for NEOs is 50% PSUs / 50% RSUs; PSUs have one‑year performance period with four‑year service vest tail; capped at 200% of target; Datadog currently does not grant stock options .
- FY2024 PSU target revenue was ~$2,672,000k; actual revenue ~$2,684,275k (100.5% of target) leading to 115% payout; non‑GAAP op income gate met .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Beneficial Ownership (as of 3/15/2025) | 0 shares beneficially owned (no Class A or Class B) |
| Unvested/Outstanding Awards (12/31/2024) | 102,776 earned PSUs (from 2024 cycle), 89,127 RSUs (both unvested as of 12/31/2024) |
| First Vest Dates | 25% of RSUs and earned PSUs on 9/1/2025; remainder quarterly thereafter (Dec/Mar/Jun/Sep) subject to continued service |
| Pledging/Hedging | Prohibited: no hedging, shorting, derivatives, margin, or pledging of Datadog stock |
| Stock Ownership Guidelines | Not disclosed for executives in the proxy; N/A |
| Options | None granted; company does not currently grant options |
Implications:
- Zero beneficial ownership as of the record date reflects hire timing and first vest in September 2025; beginning 9/1/2025, quarterly vesting creates a sustained equity delivery cadence that could contribute to selling supply depending on 10b5‑1 plans and personal decisions .
Employment Terms
| Scenario (as of 12/31/2024) | Cash Severance | Bonus | Equity Acceleration | COBRA | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Termination without Cause or with Good Reason (non‑CIC) | $212,500 | $200,000 | — | $5,197 | $417,697 |
| Double‑Trigger CIC (within 3 months before or 12 months after CIC) | $425,000 | $400,000 | $12,735,357 (unvested time-based and earned PSUs subject to time vesting) | $10,394 | $13,570,751 |
Key terms:
- Non‑CIC: 6 months base + 50% target bonus, 6 months COBRA; no equity acceleration .
- CIC: 12 months base + 100% target bonus, 12 months COBRA, and 100% acceleration of unvested time‑based awards; PSUs earned and certified remain subject to CIC treatment per plan; double‑trigger required .
- Clawback policy compliant with SEC/Nasdaq; three‑year lookback on restatement .
Compensation Structure Analysis
- High at‑risk pay mix: significant PSUs/RSUs with four-year vest tails; PSUs at 50% of LTI further ties value to revenue growth and profitability guardrails .
- 2024 outcomes show calibration: cash bonus paid at ~93% (net new ARR under plan), while PSUs paid at 115% (revenue slightly above target with gate met), indicating balanced emphasis on growth and efficiency .
- No options; shift to RSUs/PSUs lowers exercise/strike risk and concentrates alignment on sustained share price/performance against KPIs .
- Governance: no single‑trigger acceleration; hedging/pledging prohibited; clawback adopted; 2024 say‑on‑pay 95% indicates strong shareholder support .
Compensation Benchmarks and Committee Practices
- Committee uses Compensia; peer set includes Atlassian, Cloudflare, CrowdStrike, Dynatrace, Fortinet, HubSpot, MongoDB, Okta, Palantir, Snowflake, Splunk, The Trade Desk, Twilio, Unity, Veeva, Zoom, Zscaler; no target percentile for pay; multiple competitive factors considered .
Performance & Track Record (DDOG context)
| Metric (FY2024) | Result |
|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.68B (+26% YoY) |
| Non‑GAAP Operating Margin | 25% |
| 2024 NEO Cash Bonus Factor | ~93% of target (net new ARR ~93%; op income gate met) |
| 2024 PSU Payout | 115% of target (revenue 100.5% of target; gate met) |
| Say‑on‑Pay Support | ~95% approval (2024 vote) |
Investment Implications
- Alignment and retention: Large hire-on RSU/PSU package with four-year service vest promotes retention and links outcomes to revenue growth and profitability thresholds; double‑trigger CIC and clawback are investor-friendly .
- Supply dynamics: With first vest on 9/1/2025 and quarterly vesting thereafter, monitor potential incremental selling pressure from scheduled deliveries; beneficial ownership was zero as of the proxy record date due to vest timing .
- Performance targeting: Mixed 2024 outcomes (cash at ~93%, PSUs at 115%) suggest balanced targets with real variability; continued scrutiny of PSU metric rigor (revenue vs. plan with profitability gate) is warranted as product expansion and AI initiatives scale .
- Governance quality: Prohibitions on hedging/pledging and strong say‑on‑pay result reduce governance risk; absence of options removes repricing risk; relocation gross‑up ($116,967) is a minor shareholder-unfriendly element but tied to one‑time hire needs .