Top Cloud Executives to Watch in 2025

Marlon Hughes

Vice President, Public Sector Systems Engineering, Cohesity

Marlon Hughes recently led a multifaceted team to secure FedRAMP authorization for Cohesity, a critical milestone for the company. He successfully navigated complex coordination across internal teams — including legal, marketing, engineering, and executive leadership — while also managing consultants and government customers to ensure success.

Hughes values the power of clear communication in both his professional and personal life. He draws inspiration from Colin Powell’s perspective on leadership: “Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate, and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand.” Hughes strives to embody this philosophy in his daily problem-solving and decision-making.

Why Watch

Following its acquisition of Veritas, Cohesity has positioned itself as the leader in cyber resiliency. By merging Cohesity’s AI-driven security capabilities with Veritas’ extensive compatibility across IT systems, the company is enhancing its ability to provide comprehensive data protection. This minimizes risk while enabling businesses and government agencies to fully harness the value of their digital gold across any environment, regardless of where the data may live, whether on-premises or in the cloud.

With this integration, Cohesity has expanded its reach across the industry, strengthening its ability to safeguard vast amounts of data for some of the world’s largest enterprises. By combining expertise and technology, the company is now positioned to deliver unparalleled security. This ensures organizations can protect their critical assets, recover from cyber threats faster, and drive long-term success.

Fun Fact: Hughes’ passion for problem-solving traces back to his childhood. At just 10 years old, he became fascinated with anything he could take apart and examine. Radios, remote-controlled cars, computers, and video game consoles were all fair game. “I wanted to understand how things worked,” he said.