Cheers to a Game Well Played: Celebrating Mohit Lad and Ricardo Oliveira

In technology and entrepreneurship, few stories resonate with the thrill of a well-played sports game. Today, I draw upon that very analogy as I reflect on the journey of Mohit Lad and Ricardo Oliveira, the co-founders of ThousandEyes just like seasoned athletes who know when to pass the baton, Mohit and Ricardo are stepping down from their roles at Cisco, marking the end of an exhilarating career phase.

In 2010, the same year we launched Catchpoint, Mohit, and Ricardo embarked on their own entrepreneurial journey with ThousandEyes. It was a time of great economic uncertainty, yet both our companies were spurred by a shared belief in the power of technology and innovation. Like two teams entering the field, we were competitors yet shared a mutual respect and admiration for each other’s play.

ThousandEyes, under their leadership, was akin to a champion athlete in the tech arena—agile, innovative, and always a step ahead in the game of network intelligence. They envisioned a platform that could see through the vast and opaque Internet, helping businesses survive and thrive in the digital landscape. We focused on a different persona, the SREs, and what they cared the most about reliability.

Their journey saw a significant milestone when Cisco acquired ThousandEyes. It was not just a business transaction but a testament that observability and internet monitoring were becoming important and must-have in the enterprise.

Now, as they step away from Cisco, I want to congratulate Mohit and Ricardo. Your journey has been nothing short of inspiring, filled with the fierce competition and sportsmanship that makes the game of entrepreneurship so rewarding. You’ve played your parts excellently, with integrity and vision, much like skilled players who know the value of competition and teamwork. We strived to solve similar problems and shared a vision for the future (now a reality) where every organization would depend on a reliable and performant internet.

As both competitors and “comrades” in the field, your departure is a bittersweet moment. However, every athlete deserves some time off after a game well played. I hope you both take this time to rest, rejuvenate, and enjoy the laurels of your hard work. Enjoy this well-earned break, whether it's spending time with family, traveling to new places, or simply taking a moment to breathe and reflect.

Thank you, Mohit and Ricardo, for setting a high industry standard and helping define the Internet Performance Monitoring category. Here’s to new beginnings, continued success, and the joy of a well-played game.

—Mehdi Daoudi, CEO and Co-Founder of Catchpoint