Seattle, WA

Can Seattle startup Tableau flourish under Salesforce? New CEO thinks so

Published

2 years ago

February 12, 2024

Can Seattle startup Tableau flourish under Salesforce? New CEO thinks so

SEATTLE — On a sunny Tuesday around 1 p.m., Tableau’s Data 1 office in Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood bustled with employees going out in groups for lunch or walking around the office overlooking the Lake Washington Ship Canal.

Among them was Tableau CEO Ryan Aytay, who lives in the Bay Area but was visiting for the week. He wore a “DataFam,” the Tableau community’s name, lapel pin on his black jacket.

Tableau was founded in 2003 in California and moved its headquarters to Seattle the next year, where the data analytics firm established itself as a tech startup on the rise. In 2019, tech giant Salesforce acquired the company for nearly $16 billion, inking what was at the time the second-largest acquisition of a Washington company.

Tableau is a data visualization tool through which users can create interactive charts. Its parent company is a leader in products for companies to manage sales data and customer relations.

Tableau’s leadership changed over the years as former CEO Adam Selipsky left in 2021 to become chief executive of Amazon Web Services. His replacement, Tableau veteran Mark Nelson, departed in December 2022 after less than two years as president and CEO.

Appointed CEO in May, Aytay’s goal is cementing the future of Tableau within Salesforce while maintaining Tableau’s own identity.

Aytay became CEO during a difficult year for Tableau, one marked by “wakes,” office subleasing and layoffs. Tableau’s future as an independent part of the Salesforce business software empire remains a point of tension as Salesforce prioritizes profitability after years of aggressive expansion. At the Data 1 building lobby, a Salesforce sign greeted employees and visitors.

Salesforce announced more layoffs last month, affecting 700 jobs, which represents 1% of its workforce. A spokesperson declined to say if the round affected Tableau employees.

Aytay said one of his goals is to build a culture at Tableau that is both a part of Salesforce but also stands on its own.

“We need to continue to evolve. And so that’s what we’ve been really focused on, is how do we bring the spark and liven it up with the culture?” Aytay said.

A Salesforce veteran appointed to lead Tableau nine months ago, Aytay travels to Seattle at least twice a month. He’s in charge of creating a second chapter for Tableau after a year of layoffs and leadership vacancies.

Aytay joined San Francisco-based Salesforce 17 years ago and has held several different roles at the business software maker, including chief business officer from June 2020 to February 2022. He served as Tableau’s president and chief revenue officer from February 2022 to May.

“Because I’d had so many different experiences at Salesforce, I saw an opportunity with Tableau to come in and bring it closer to Salesforce but also recognize what it is and what’s important about it and what differentiates Tableau,” Aytay said in an interview with The Seattle Times.

Aytay said in an interview that Tableau’s revenue has more than doubled since the acquisition.

Tableau grew by 16% year over year in the third quarter of the current fiscal year, released in November. That was faster than Salesforce’s total revenue growth. Valued at $287 billion as of Tuesday, the tech giant reported $8.7 billion in revenue during the same quarter, up 11% from the previous year.

Tableau could grow even faster with more integration with Salesforce’s products, said Rishi Jaluria, a managing director at global investment bank RBC Capital Markets.

“The idea [is] that if someone’s using Sales Cloud and Marketing Cloud from Salesforce, Tableau is really well integrated and it becomes like another button,” Jaluria said.

Salesforce also owns internal workplace communications platform Slack, having acquired it for $28 billion in 2021.

According to a Salesforce spokesperson, Tableau can blend Salesforce data to provide analytics for everyone in an organization.

Jaluria also said Salesforce and Tableau have a competitor: Microsoft and its data visualization platform, Power BI.

For Aytay, what differentiates Tableau from Microsoft’s Power BI is its leadership and community. Tableau’s die-hard fans — the “DataFam” — are a selling point for the platform.

“We have this really vibrant community,” Aytay said.

Tableau’s next chapter

Salesforce bought Tableau to enable customers to use data across their entire businesses and, as Salesforce put it when announcing the acquisition, use Tableau’s insights “to make smarter decisions” and “accelerate innovation.”

Those aspirations remain prominent among Aytay’s goals. He wants Tableau to attract customers outside of the data analytics field with a new product, Tableau Pulse. Pulling up his phone, he showed how business owners, for example, can use Pulse to get quick statistics about sales. The artificial intelligence-enabled product was announced in December.

The first phase of Tableau “was really all about changing the industry” by revolutionizing the analytics field by making it easier to use, he said. Tableau’s next step is “to really enter into businesses,” nonprofits and universities.

“We want to continue that focus on the analyst, but we need to evolve the brand,” Aytay said. “We want to bring analytics and data to everyone.”

Aytay is the right person for the Tableau CEO job, said R “Ray” Wang, principal analyst and founder of Constellation Research, a tech research and advisory firm. Before Aytay’s appointment, Tableau had gone five months without a CEO.

Aytay “has been building out the AI strategy. He’s been trying to figure out how to pull it together,” Wang said. “He’s been at Salesforce before, so he knows what Marc [Benioff, Salesforce CEO] wants, he knows how to put them all together. And I think that’s half the battle.”

Among Aytay’s first tasks was rebuilding the senior leadership team, starting with his old role of chief revenue officer, now occupied by Salesforce veteran Jennifer Lagaly. Now, Aytay said Tableau is growing and hiring, especially in the artificial intelligence field.

Compared with last year, he said, “we’re now at a point where we have it more figured out.”

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Seattle, WA

Seattle Mariners acquire catcher from Twins, DFA RHP Kowar

Published

11 hours ago

January 28, 2026

Press Room

Seattle Mariners acquire catcher from Twins, DFA RHP Kowar

The Seattle Mariners added depth at catcher by acquiring 29-year-old Jhonny Pereda from the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday in exchange for cash considerations.

In a corresponding move, the Mariners designated right-handed reliever Jackson Kowar for assignment to clear space on their 40-man roster.

Drayer: This is an opportunity for M’s fans to celebrate Rick Rizzs

Pereda joins free agent addition Andrew Knizner as potential backup catcher options for Seattle behind Cal Raleigh. The Mariners signed the 30-year-old Knizner to a one-year contract in December.

Pereda made his MLB debut in April 2024 with the Miami Marlins and spent the 2025 season with the Athletics and Minnesota Twins. The Venezuelan native has appeared in 48 career MLB games, slashing .241/.299/.296 with six doubles.

Pereda was designated for assignment by the Twins last Friday. He has one minor league option remaining.

Kowar, 29, was acquired by the Mariners as part of the December 2023 trade that sent outfielder Jarred Kelenic to the Atlanta Braves.

Kowar missed the 2024 season recovering from Tommy John surgery and spent last season hopping between Seattle and Triple-A Tacoma. He made 15 relief appearances with the Mariners last year, posting a 4.24 ERA with 15 strikeouts and seven walks in 17 innings after being activated from the injured list in late May.

Seattle Mariners news and analysis

• 2026 will be Rick Rizzs’ last season as voice of the Mariners
• Seattle Mariners announce broadcast team for 2026 season
• Reports: Seattle Mariners land top international prospect for 2027
• Mariners have league-high seven MLB Pipeline Top 100 prospects
• Seattle Mariners acquire RHP Cooper Criswell from NY Mets

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Seattle, WA

Seattle weather: Dry day Tuesday, showers return tonight

Published

23 hours ago

January 27, 2026

Press Room

Seattle weather: Dry day Tuesday, showers return tonight

SEATTLE – We start off dry on Tuesday, then the chance of showers returns this evening. We have been dry for 14 days now with zero measurable rainfall at SEA Airport. Late Tuesday into Wednesday we could see potential freezing rain at the passes. Winds will be gusty at times Tuesday from the east, then switch to more westerly winds by Wednesday.

We start off dry on Tuesday, then the chance of showers returns this evening.

What’s next:

We will see mostly cloudy skies Tuesday with highs in the upper 40s to low 50s, with showers returning by the late evening hours.

We will see mostly cloudy skies Tuesday with highs in the upper 40s to low 50s.

A few showers will start to move in later Tuesday, with snowflakes or freezing rain into early Wednesday.

A few showers will start to move in later Tuesday, with snowflakes or freezing rain into early Wednesday.

Winds are forecasted to pick up Wednesday as our next system starts to roll through. Strongest winds will be along the coast and north interior.

Winds are forecasted to pick up Wednesday as our next system starts to roll through. (FOX 13 Seattle)

Shower chances continue through the rest of the week with milder afternoon temperatures. Snow levels will also be high through Friday, reaching 6000 to 7000ft. Forecast is looking a little drier for the weekend, with a few sprinkles still in the forecast for now.

Shower chances continue through the rest of the week with milder afternoon temperatures.

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The Source: Information in this story came from the FOX 13 Seattle Weather Team and the National Weather Service.

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Seattle, WA

Walker ‘set a tone’ for Seattle Seahawks’ NFC title win

Published

1 day ago

January 27, 2026

Press Room

Walker ‘set a tone’ for Seattle Seahawks’ NFC title win

Over the past month, Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III has seemingly struck the right balance between attacking downhill and taking the yardage in front of him, while still mixing in the tantalizing elusiveness and explosion that makes him such a dangerous home-run threat.

It’s resulted in the best stretch of his career.

Report details Seahawks WR Kupp’s turmoil with Rams

And it was on display again in Sunday night’s NFC Championship, as Walker totaled 111 yards from scrimmage to help Seattle advance to the Super Bowl with a 31-27 win over the Los Angeles Rams.

Walker rushed for 62 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries, while adding four catches for 49 yards. And he did so while taking on the bulk of the workload in the Seahawks’ first game since second-leading rusher Zach Charbonnet went down with a season-ending torn ACL.

“I thought Ken Walker was outstanding last night, considering he was being hit in the backfield (on some plays) almost as soon as he was handed the ball,” Bob Stelton said Monday on Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob. “He was driving the pile. The legs were churning.

“It just really felt like he set a tone,” Stelton added. “He ran with an attitude. And it was really cool to see that, because they needed it.”

Kenneth Walker III TOUCHDOWN. Seattle starts fast.
LARvsSEA on FOX/FOX One
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/iH8SOGpK5o
— NFL (@NFL) January 25, 2026
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Walker set that tone on the Seahawks’ opening drive, turning a potential loss of yardage into a hard-fought 4-yard gain while bulldozing his way to the Rams’ 2-yard line. Then, on the ensuing third-and-goal play, Walker showcased his spectacular explosion by bouncing outside and racing around the edge for a 2-yard TD to put Seattle on the board.

Walker really dazzled on the next possession, when he led the Seahawks on a field-goal drive with an impressive three-play sequence. It began with Walker bursting through a hole for an 8-yard gain. On the next play, he unleashed a jaw-dropping juke on linebacker Omar Speights for another 8-yard gain. And he followed that by taking a screen pass for 14 more yards.

“That juke he put on Omar Speights, that was amazing,” Stelton said. “… He had the defender grabbing at air.”

This was nasty by Kenneth Walker III
LARvsSEA on FOX/FOX One
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/9V7pJ3DQCd
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2026
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During a third-quarter touchdown drive, Walker had another tough, physical run where he pushed the pile an extra 5 yards for an 11-yard gain.

And in the game’s closing minutes, Walker kickstarted a pivotal clock-chewing drive by catching a short pass in the flat and eluding three defenders on his way to a 15-yard gain.

“He had a lot of great runs,” Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald said during his Monday afternoon press conference. “He really did. And talk about hidden yardage within that game, he’s responsible for a lot of those hidden yards.

“I mean, we’d like to block him a little bit better at points. But when you have a guy like K9, he can make it right for you, so that was awesome.”

More on the Seattle Seahawks

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• Seattle Seahawks had a brilliant way to get JSN open in NFC title win
• Seattle Seahawks’ Emmanwori ‘stood out all game’ in NFC Championship
• Brock and Salk: Seattle Seahawks have embraced Macdonald’s message
• Facing former team, Kupp helps propel Seattle Seahawks to Super Bowl

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