Leadership

Chief Executive Officer

Western Digital Corporation

Irving Tan is the Chief Executive Officer at WD. Widely known as an exceptional leader, he has decades of experience in sales and global operations, market transitions, and customer and government dynamics. His focus on people is evidenced by his track record leading high-performing teams that achieve sustained results.

Prior to his appointment as Chief Executive Officer, he held the position of Executive Vice President for Global Operations at WD, responsible for all global operations functions, including manufacturing operations, procurement and supply chain, and IT.

Previously, Irving served as Cisco's Chairperson, Asia Pacific, Japan, and China, responsible for leading the company's strategy to capture the significant growth opportunity that the APJC region offered and strengthen key customer and ecosystem relationships. During his time at Cisco, he was Executive Vice President and Global Chief of Operations where he was responsible for the development and implementation of the company's operating strategy and targeted growth through productivity improvements and innovation across all core business functions, including sales, engineering, supply chain, and services. He also served as the sales leader of Cisco Asia Pacific and Japan, where he grew the sales business consistently over his tenure and advanced APJ's position as one of the most trusted IT partners and providers in the region.

Irving currently serves as the Chairman on the Board of Directors for SATS (Singapore Airport Terminal Services) and is on the Board of Directors for the U.S.-Japan Business Council. Additionally, he has served as an advisor to governments and industry partners on using technology to innovate and transform. He holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a master's degree in business administration from Singapore's Nanyang Technological University, and an honorary doctoral degree in engineering from Curtin University.

Chief Financial Officer

Western Digital Corporation

Kris Sennesael currently serves as the Chief Financial Officer of WD. He is responsible for the global finance organization, including accounting, financial planning and analysis, tax, treasury, internal audit, investor relations, and corporate real estate.

Kris is a global, hands-on leader with a strong semiconductor and technology background and has deep experience across the U.S., Europe, and Asia.

Prior to WD, Kris was CFO at Skyworks Solutions, where he drove strategic direction and scaled the business through organic and inorganic growth. He also served as CFO at Enphase Energy and Standard Microsystems, and held leadership roles at ON Semiconductor, AMI Semiconductor, and Alcatel Microelectronics.

Kris currently serves on the Board of Directors of MaxLinear, where he was appointed as Director and member of the Audit Committee.

Kris holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in economics from the University of Ghent, Belgium, as well as an MBA from the Vlerick Business School.

Chief Product Officer

Western Digital Corporation

Ahmed Shihab is the Chief Product Officer at WD. In this role, he is responsible for leading engineering and product strategy as well as innovation and the development of current and future WD products and solutions.

With over 30 years of experience across product design and business leadership, Ahmed has consistently delivered on the needs of customers and the business by developing a culture of quality and agile execution.

Prior to WD, Ahmed served as Corporate Vice President of Azure Storage at Microsoft, where he led the engineering and operations teams for object and block storage, driving the design and development of Microsoft's cloud storage solutions. Previously he served as Vice President, Infrastructure Hardware at AWS, where he led innovation, building, and operations of AWS's compute and storage global fleet. He also held leadership roles at NetApp and Xyratex. Ahmed holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Electronic Engineering from the University of Southampton in England.

Chief Sales and Marketing Officer

Western Digital Corporation

B. Scott Davis is the Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at WD. In this role, he is responsible for driving business growth and setting the strategic direction for sales and marketing. He oversees go-to-market strategies, ensuring alignment with corporate objectives to maximize revenue and market impact.

As a veteran sales executive with over 37 years at the company, Scott has unmatched experience in fostering deep, lasting customer relationships and cultivating high-performing teams. He has held various executive leadership roles within the company, including leading Latin America, Americas, Strategic Accounts, and most recently, serving as Senior Vice President of Global Channel and ROEM Sales.

Scott holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Chief of Global Operations

Western Digital Corporation

Vidya Gubbi is the Chief of Global Operations at WD, where he leads the company’s operations globally, including manufacturing, procurement, supply chain, quality, and sustainability with over 35,000 employees worldwide. As a leader with more than 38 years of experience across the storage industry, he is recognized for driving large scale operational excellence, advancing technology innovation, and building high performing global teams.

Throughout his career at WD spanning 20 years, Vidya has played a pivotal role in shaping the company’s operational strategy and product leadership. Most recently, he served as Senior Vice President of the Hard Disk Drive (HDD) Operating Unit, where he led a global organization across manufacturing, engineering, and supply chain. Under his leadership, the team consistently delivers high quality, high reliability products to customers worldwide while achieving strong operational performance and efficiency.

Prior to WD, Vidya held several senior leadership roles at Maxtor and Seagate, where he contributed to advancements in research, product development, and technology innovation across multiple generations of storage solutions. His technical depth is further reflected in the multiple patents he holds in HDD technologies.

Vidya is on the Board of Directors for the Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA). He holds a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Santa Clara University and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology in India.

Chief Human Resources Officer

Western Digital Corporation

Katie Watson is the Chief Human Resources Officer at WD. She oversees the company’s global human resources functions.

As Chief Human Resources Officer, Katie partners closely with the executive management team and the company’s Board of Directors to strategically enable the organization and leads the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors on behalf of management. She oversees WD’s HR functions, leading a high-performing, business-aligned HR organization that empowers employees and activates a culture of innovation.

Katie is a global Human Resources leader with over 25 years of experience across the life sciences, technology, and semiconductor industries.

Previously, she was the Chief Human Resources Officer at Solidigm Technologies, a $9B divestiture from Intel, where she was responsible for building the HR function from scratch and helping the organization establish a new culture and value proposition. Prior to that, she spent nearly 17 years at Gilead Sciences, a global biopharmaceutical company, where she led the HR function and partnered closely with the Chief Executive Officer, Board of Directors, and other top-level executives on strategies to enable organizational and geographic growth, establish an engaged workforce, and create a mission-based culture that aligned with the company’s core values.

Katie is a graduate of Stanford’s Board of Directors’ Governance Program, a Certified Compensation Professional (CCP), and a Certified Executive Coach. In 2017, she was named one of SF Business Times’ Most Influential Women in Business.

Katie has a B.A. in Psychology from UC San Diego and a Master’s in Organizational Psychology from Columbia University.

Chief Information Officer

Western Digital Corporation

Sesh Tirumala is the Chief Information Officer at WD, driving the company's digital transformation and fostering a culture of innovation through technology. In this role, he oversees all of Information technology, Cybersecurity, and Enterprise data and analytics.

Sesh brings more than 30 years of experience and has a proven ability to translate business needs into effective technology strategies to enable profitable growth, streamline operations and enhance customer, partner, and employee experiences. He has extensive experience leading teams responsible for strategy, architecture, mergers & acquisitions, technology product delivery, and shared services.

Previously, Sesh served as PagerDuty’s Chief Information Officer, where he and his team were responsible for creating data-driven, seamless relationships with customers while improving operational efficiency and streamlining employee experience. Prior to that, he was the CIO at Anaplan, where he oversaw IT and partnered closely with Anaplan’s Product, Go to Market, and Business Operations teams. Prior to that role, he served as Divisional CIO for Cisco’s multi-billion-dollar software business.

Sesh holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the National Institute of Technology Karnataka, India.

Vice President, Strategy and Corporate Development (Interim)

Western Digital Corporation

Jeremy Faulk is the Vice President of Strategy and Corporate Development at WD. In this role, he is responsible for long-range planning, business and segment strategy, innovation investments, and navigating the tectonic shifts created by AI, cloud hyperscaler demand, and new storage technologies. He also partners closely with the CEO and Executive Leadership Team to align WD’s technology roadmap, business priorities, and customer strategies with the company’s long-term growth objectives.

Jeremy has more than a decade of experience in global strategy, corporate development, and startup innovation. Before joining WD, he held leadership roles in strategy and development at Arrow Electronics, worked with deep-tech startups focused on semiconductors, drones, and AI, and served as a consultant with McKinsey & Company advising clients in technology and industrial sectors. He began his career as an officer in the United States Marine Corps, leading operational and humanitarian missions across the Pacific and Middle East.

Jeremy holds an MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth and a BS in International Economics from Texas Tech University.

Chief of Staff

Western Digital Corporation

Ginita Taylor is the Chief of Staff to the CEO at WD. She is responsible for planning and executing all aspects of the CEO office, as well as leading Strategic and Employee Communications.

Serving as a strategic thought partner and advisor to the CEO and the broader Executive Leadership Team, she drives operational expertise and strategic insight, facilitates communication across all WD organizations, oversees critical cross functional projects, and enhances the efficiency of the executive functions.

Partnering closely with the business, Ginita is passionate about fostering a collaborative atmosphere to achieve the company’s vision and objectives, whilst delivering the needs of WD's internal and external customers.

With more than 25 years experience in the tech industry across Asia and the USA, she has previously held leadership roles in strategy and planning, sales and partner enablement and employee experience.

Ginita holds a degree in Business Management from the University of Newcastle, Australia.