Arista Networks

Arista benefits from experienced, technically-skilled leadership. CEO Jayshree Ullal has led Arista since 2014 (previously a Cisco veteran) and has a solid track record of navigating competition and executing on strategy. The management team has delivered consistent growth and has been shareholder-friendly (maintaining high margins and buybacks).

Board dynamics changed partly in 2023: founder Andy Bechtolsheim stepped down and settled an SEC matter, removing any founder-control influence. The sudden leadership change of CFO is neutral overall. Arista is no longer founder-run, but Ullal and her team are long-tenured and have significant ownership.

From a Quality Value perspective, this is positive: professional management with aligned incentives. The company culture values stability and engineering excellence. We score management highly. The only negative is loss of founder involvement, but that had minimal operational impact. We see Arista’s team as competent and aligned.