Lakeside Software Appoints Daniel Salinas as COO to Drive AI-Powered Growth in Digital Employee Experience

Daniel Salinas has rejoined Lakeside Software as Chief Operating Officer, overseeing global Sales, Customer Success, Customer Support, and Business Development. With more than 25 years of enterprise IT leadership experience, including 18 years at IBM in technical, sales, and management roles, Salinas brings a combination of deep technical insight and business execution expertise to his new position. He holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computer Engineering and Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the Ross School of Business.

Salinas previously served as Vice President of Business Development at Lakeside Software in 2010, working directly with CEO Mike Schumacher to establish the company as a leader in digital experience and desktop analytics. After expanding his impact as Chief Revenue Officer at Relay Network and later at Nobl9, his return signals Lakeside's commitment to accelerating growth through AI and edge observability technologies. The company focuses on transforming IT from a reactive support function to a proactive, strategic partner that delivers seamless digital experiences in today's hybrid workplace environment.

Lakeside Software helps organizations address the evolving needs of modern workplaces by providing endpoint monitoring and automation solutions that prevent issues before they impact employees. Salinas explained that the role of End User Computing (EUC) administrators is shifting toward site reliability engineering, where success is measured by predictability, automation, and resilience. The company's technology gives IT teams the same data depth, actionable insights, and trustworthy automation that site reliability engineers rely on, enabling them to get ahead of issues rather than chasing support tickets.

The impact of Lakeside's approach is demonstrated through significant customer success stories. One major bank planned to refresh 7,000 laptops in a costly initiative until they analyzed data from Lakeside's endpoint sensors. The real-world usage data revealed that only 600 laptops actually needed replacement, representing less than 10% of the planned refresh. This data-driven insight saved the organization approximately $9 million that could be redirected to other strategic projects. More information about Lakeside's solutions can be found at https://www.lakesidesoftware.com.

Lakeside's use of AI and automation creates what Salinas describes as "invisible IT"—solutions that work seamlessly in the background while employees focus on their work. One organization used Lakeside's sensors and automation to prevent more than 205,000 help desk tickets monthly by monitoring device data, scanning for anomalies, and automatically deploying fixes. This approach not only reduces technical friction for end users but also delivers measurable outcomes that justify IT investments through increased productivity and substantial cost savings.

As COO, Salinas emphasizes building operational muscle to scale efficiently while maintaining customer focus. His leadership philosophy, shaped by lessons from coaching and team alignment, focuses on helping employees overcome obstacles rather than avoiding them. This approach supports Lakeside's mission to transform IT from a behind-the-scenes function into a strategic business hero that demonstrates value through productivity improvements, cost reduction, and enhanced digital experiences across the enterprise.