On Thursday, April 18, 2019, Mark Lavelle, announced that he is leaving Magento.
Mark Lavelle, we want to say, “Thank you.” You have been a great and inspiring leader. I still remember the first time we met. It was at the Sunset Pool, Wynn in Las Vegas, during Imagine 2015. There was a client showcase event (7 clients), and two of those were DCKAP’s customers. To be honest, I was a little nervous. You were tall (it scared me a bit 🙂 ), leading Magento, and I was not sure how receptive you would be to your partners. You visited all the seven client showcases, spent time and said hello. I’m not sure whether you would have recognized us then. This was my first interaction with you.
I was following your blog posts, work, and always wanted to reach out and talk to you. However, I wasn’t sure if we had anything to offer to warrant your attention. Later that year (November 2015), I vividly remember meeting you at Magento Live Australia, where you came up to me and started a conversation. I wasn’t expecting this. This made me feel at ease. Having watched you closely, I have also seen you reach out to other partners and do this. This goes a long way.
Though I am with DCKAP, I have learned so much from #Magento and closely watched you lead the team. Your investment in the ecosystem, partners and relationships made a lot of difference. One day, I got a call from you, and it was a chat on the commerce space. (I wasn’t expecting this.) You were receptive to what I had to say, and if there was any feedback that was offered, you immediately reached out to your team and had them fixed.
I enjoy travelling, attending conferences, events, meeting people, etc. However, at times, I have wondered if it was worth all the effort? Having watched you travel the world and lead has taught me a lot of things personally. It was also a reassurance of what we were doing as a company.
Look who was here @DCKAP Booth. @mklave1 pic.twitter.com/iIcTOe72cI
— DCKAP (@DCKAP) April 4, 2017
Not just me, but you have always made it a point to interact with everyone in the community and recognize people in public. It is easy to reach you, pass on feedback, and our team still remembers the vivid moments they had with you when you visited India in 2017.
You have been an inspiration. Thank you, Mark, for everything we have learned from you and watching you up-close. Thank you for your friendship.
Ref: https://magento.com/blog/magento-news/farewell-message-mark-lavelle
