Bradenton tech firm bites into new CEO

BRADENTON — Ryan Brown has been named CEO of xByte Technologies, one of the largest resellers of refurbished Dell servers and equipment in the country.

Brown, currently vice president of sales and marketing at xByte, replaces previous CEO and founder Tom Santilli at the Bradenton-based firm, which has nearly $17 million in annual sales and around 45 employees. Santilli, the firm says in a release, is leaving to spend more time with family and philanthropic ventures. Santilli will remain on the board of xByte in an advisory role, the firm says. xByte COO Stephen Jaynes has also stepped down from his day-to-day role and he too will remain on the board.

Brown has been with the company for around five years and has run the sales side during a recent growth spurt, with revenues up more than 200% since 2010. “I am honored to be presented with this opportunity to lead the best team in the industry,” Brown says in the release. “I look forward to not only growing xByte from a financial aspect, but also expanding the xByte team, giving us the ability to even better serve our growing customer base.”