Martin J. Vanderploeg is a co-founder of Workiva, where he served as CEO from 2018 until 2023. With a solid background in mechanical engineering, he holds a Ph.D. from Michigan State University. Before Workiva, he founded Engineering Animations Inc., which...

Martin J. Vanderploeg is a co-founder of Workiva, where he served as CEO from 2018 until 2023. With a solid background in mechanical engineering, he holds a Ph.D. from Michigan State University. Before Workiva, he founded Engineering Animations Inc., which he led for ten years until it was sold to Unigraphics Solutions. Vanderploeg has a strong hand in shaping Workiva's direction and culture, showing his commitment to scaling sustainable growth in the software industry. He has also worked as a professor at Iowa State University, where he directed the Simulation and Visualization lab. Notably, he has unique insights into both technology and business development, driving innovative solutions at Workiva. Recently, he transitioned to a Non-Executive Chair role after a successful tenure leading the company.

Quick Links

1. Rivals

2. Holdings

3. Insider Trading

4. Compensation History

5. Other Workiva CEOs

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Martin J. Vanderploeg

Ex-CEO of Workiva

Education

B.S. in Business Administration from University of Iowa

Field of Expertise

Business & Management

Sector of Economy

Technology

Born

April 1, 1964 - 61 years ago

CEO of Workiva for

6 years 0 months (Mar 2017 - Mar 2023)

Previous Experience

Chief Operating Officer of Workiva Inc.

Rivals

Competitors/colleagues of Martin J. Vanderploeg

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Howard Fu

CEO of Procore Technologies

2023 Compensation

Stock

$4.15M

Salary

$400.00K

Bonus

$242.76K

Other

$0.00

Total Holdings

$10.18M

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Tooey Courtemanche

Founder and CEO of Procore Technologies

2023 Compensation

Stock

$17.51M

Salary

$545.00K

Bonus

$541.87K

Other

$24.42K

Total Holdings

$229.85M

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Jennifer Tejada

CEO of PagerDuty

2023 Compensation

Stock

$7.50M

Salary

$600.00K

Bonus

$297.36K

Other

$14.55K

Total Holdings

$22.20M

Z

Jay Chaudhry

Founder and CEO of Zscaler

2022 Compensation

Stock

$41.51M

Salary

$23.66K

Bonus

$0.00

Other

$0.00

Total Holdings

$513.27M

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Paul E. Lyandres

CEO of Procore Technologies

2023 Compensation

Stock

$800.00K

Salary

$450.00K

Bonus

$100.00K

Other

$50.00K

Total Holdings

$34.50M

B

Marc Huffman

CEO of BlackLine

2023 Compensation

Stock

$3.62M

Salary

$500.00K

Bonus

$0.00

Other

$18.47K

Total Holdings

$15.21M

Holdings

See how much did Martin J. Vanderploeg make over time.

Vanderploeg has demonstrated a strong investment in Workiva, particularly in Class A and Class B shares, which reflects his confidence in the company’s future. He has held around 634,393 shares of Class A stock and 2,762,665 shares of Class B...

Vanderploeg has demonstrated a strong investment in Workiva, particularly in Class A and Class B shares, which reflects his confidence in the company’s future. He has held around 634,393 shares of Class A stock and 2,762,665 shares of Class B stock. At one point, approximately 23.4% of his wealth was tied up in these holdings. His shares represent a significant portion of his financial interests, highlighting his belief in the growth and potential of Workiva. Over the years, these holdings have seen fluctuations that indicate his engagement and commitment to the company. In 2021, his stock ownership had a higher valuation than in earlier years, demonstrating the company’s progress and his long-term investment strategy.

Mar 17, 2025

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shares

WK @ $88.57

Total Stock Sold

$40.95M

WK

$40.95M

825,000 WK shares

What if they kept their stock?

If Martin J. Vanderploeg didn't sell their stock, today they would have:
Extra WK825,000 shares worth $28.50M.
This is -30.41% and $12.45M less than what they got when they sold the stock.

Charitable Transactions

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34,783 shares

WK

Recent Charitable Transactions

WK

34,783 shares

WK

May 12, 2016

Charity

Insider Trading

See recent insider trades of Martin J. Vanderploeg.

WK

$2.41M

WK at $46.16/share

Feb 3, 2020

Received

WK

$32.34M

WK at $56.25/share

Aug 16, 2019

Sale

WK

$1.56M

WK at $62.41/share

Aug 12, 2019

Sale

WK

$1.52M

WK at $60.80/share

Jul 10, 2019

Sale

WK

$1.41M

WK at $56.39/share

Jun 10, 2019

Sale

WK

$1.36M

WK at $54.58/share

May 10, 2019

Sale

WK

$1.30M

WK at $51.80/share

Apr 10, 2019

Sale

WK

$1.23M

WK at $49.39/share

Mar 11, 2019

Sale

WK

$1.08M

WK at $43.06/share

Feb 11, 2019

Sale

WK

$2.41M

WK at $41.86/share

Feb 1, 2019

Received

Compensation History

See how much did Martin J. Vanderploeg make over time.

In 2023, Vanderploeg received total compensation of $8,238,648, which mostly came from significant stock awards worth about $6.25 million that vested linked to his tenure as CEO. His annual salary was $172,500, plus other retirement-related compensation. This reflects the company's approach to aligning executive pay with performance metrics like revenue growth. In the previous year, his earnings were similarly substantial, highlighting the strong performance Workiva experienced under his leadership. His compensation demonstrated a strategic alignment with the company's overall growth, making it clear that leadership decisions were tied closely to how well the company was performing in the market.

Year

2023

Total Compensation

$8.02M

Salary

$172.50K

Board Justification

The compensation philosophy aims to attract and retain talented leadership, aligning executive compensation with company performance and stockholder interests.

Bonus

$0.00

Board Justification

No bonus was awarded due to retirement before the bonus payout period.

Other

$1.60M

Board Justification

This includes a lump-sum cash payment of $1,380,000 related to his retirement agreement, along with accrued but unused time off and COBRA coverage.

Restricted Stock

$6.25M(67.36K RSU)

Board Justification

The stock awards that vested in 2023 were part of the annual equity grant, which included performance stock units (PSUs) that were earned based on the achievement of applicable annual revenue growth rate goals.

Performance Metrics

Performance metrics for compensation included revenue growth and non-GAAP operating loss.

Other Workiva CEOs

Here are other CEOs of Workiva

Julie Iskow

CEO of Workiva

April 2023 - Present