Unifyr, a global leader in Partner Relationship Management (PRM) software, has announced a leadership transition aimed at accelerating its next phase of growth. Michael Kugler has been appointed Chief Executive Officer, with former CEO Tobi Hartmann transitioning to focus on other roles within the investor portfolio. Kugler’s mandate is to drive global scale, strengthen enterprise capabilities, and advance the company’s agentic AI technologies.
Unifyr appoints Michael Kugler as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Former CEO Tobi Hartmann transitions to other roles within the Investcorp portfolio.
Kugler's focus is on scaling global operations, enterprise expansion, and agentic AI leadership.
The company recently rebranded from Zift Solutions and is targeting mid-market and enterprise clients.
Strategic priorities include automating partner operations and reducing pipeline risk with AI.
David Winkens assumes the role of Chief Operating Officer (COO).
Michael Kugler joins Unifyr with a background in scaling SaaS companies and leading AI-first transformations. His appointment follows the company’s recent rebranding from Zift Solutions and signals a focus on an accelerated strategy for mid-market and enterprise clients. “Unifyr is uniquely positioned to define the future of partner ecosystems,” said Kugler. “My focus will be on scaling our global operations, strengthening our enterprise capabilities, and advancing our agentic AI technologies.”
A core strategic pillar under the new leadership is the advancement of agentic AI within the PRM platform. The company plans to build AI agents capable of autonomously supporting key channel operations such as partner engagement, deal acceleration, marketing, and pipeline risk mitigation. This focus aims to help companies automate complex partner motions and accelerate revenue. “By combining deep workflow automation with agentic AI, Unifyr is going to deliver the most advanced partner operations platform in the market,” added COO David Winkens.
Unifyr serves customers across North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific, with plans to increase its global footprint. The leadership transition is designed to bolster the company’s ability to support complex enterprise partner ecosystems at scale. Gilbert Kamieniecky, Head of Investcorp Technology Partners (Unifyr’s majority investor), expressed confidence that Kugler’s global SaaS leadership and AI expertise would accelerate innovation and expand market leadership.
The change follows the foundational work of outgoing CEO Tobi Hartmann, who led the company through its rebranding and strategic repositioning. Hartmann will now fully focus on his role as CEO of Ativion and other responsibilities within the Investcorp portfolio. This planned transition allows for a renewed focus on execution and growth under a leader with a proven track record in scaling and transforming technology businesses.
With this executive appointment, Unifyr is positioning itself to meet the growing demand for intelligent, automated partner management solutions, aiming to set a new standard for how enterprises leverage AI to drive efficiency and growth within their channel ecosystems.
About Unifyr
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