Avalara appoints new CEO, Hugo Sarrazin

Tax automation solutions provider Avalara announced Hugo Sarrazin as its new CEO, replacing Scott McFarlane, Avalara’s co-founder and original CEO, who will become an advisor to the company. 

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Sarrazin most recently served as president and CEO of Udemy, an online education platform, leading the company ultimately through its sale to Coursera. Prior to that, he was president and chief product and technology officer at UKG, a workforce management solutions provider, where he led cloud transformation initiatives, expanded AI-driven solutions and drove strategic acquisitions. He also spent 26 years at McKinsey & Company, advising global organizations on digital transformation and M&A, and co-founded McKinsey Digital Labs.

An Avalara spokesperson said his three immediate priorities as CEO are to immerse himself in Avalara’s culture, people and operating principles; spend meaningful time with customers to deepen insight and strengthen relationships; and build on Avalara’s strong foundation of AI innovation to accelerate growth and differentiation. 

“I’m excited to join the leader for tax and compliance that leverages proprietary data and deep domain expertise to deliver intelligent, dynamic solutions for customers worldwide,” said Sarrazin in a statement. “Avalara is helping define how AI agents can automate and simplify compliance at global scale and already has a leading AI-powered platform and market presence that few companies can replicate. The opportunity now is to accelerate innovation even further, turning that advantage into more seamless outcomes for customers and partners globally.”

As CEO, Sarrazin will lead Avalara’s global operations and strategy, focused on scaling the business, strengthening execution, and advancing innovation for customers and partners worldwide. Sarrazin will also join Avalara’s board of directors.

McFarlane will be leaving Avalara after more than two decades, having led the company since he co-founded it in 2004, growing it from a startup on Bainbridge Island, Washington, into an international-scale tax and compliance platform. His advisor role, where he will support the transition and provide guidance, is expected to last about 18 months. An Avalara spokesperson said his passion for the business is unwavering, and he looks forward to spending more time with his family and traveling. He expressed great confidence in his successor. 

“Avalara is stronger today than at any point in our history,” said McFarlane in a statement. “We’ve built a category leader with real scale and a platform that’s becoming more critical as tax and compliance grow more complex. The next chapter is about moving faster and delivering more for our customers and partners. Hugo brings the operational and technology leadership needed to accelerate what comes next.”