SurveyMonkey names John Ouren chief executive officer
The tech and insights industry veteran returns to SurveyMonkey to lead the company’s next phase of growth
SAN MATEO, Calif., October 7, 2026 – SurveyMonkey today announced the appointment of John Ouren as chief executive officer. Ouren succeeds Eric Johnson, who stepped down after leading the company for three years, during which SurveyMonkey returned to its iconic brand name and expanded its core product capabilities.
Ouren has served on SurveyMonkey’s Board of Directors since STG completed its acquisition of the company in 2023. He brings deep operational experience and a decades-long relationship with SurveyMonkey, having first joined the business in 2011 through the acquisition of MarketTools’ business units, including Zoomerang and Zoompanel. As an operating partner at STG, Ouren managed investments across market research and software organizations while remaining an active user of SurveyMonkey’s platform.
“John’s long history with SurveyMonkey, combined with his leadership across the technology and market research sectors, makes him the ideal executive to drive our next chapter,” said J.T. Treadwell, managing director at STG. “He brings a deep appreciation for the product, culture, and the massive market opportunity ahead, and I know will be a great leader for the business as CEO. We would also like to extend our sincere thanks to Eric for partnering with us to create a financially and operationally solid foundation, and we look forward to building upon this with John.”
“SurveyMonkey is a business I’ve long believed in, and I am honored to return to the company at such a dynamic moment for our industry,” said Ouren. “I know firsthand the power of the platform and the exceptional talent of this team. We have a clear path forward as we continue delivering fast, reliable, human insights to millions of decision-makers worldwide.”
“I am incredibly proud of what this team has accomplished and how we navigated a period of unprecedented change,” said Johnson. “SurveyMonkey has a solid foundation, a clear strategic direction, and a bright future ahead. I know the company is in extraordinary hands with John.”
About John Ouren
John Ouren is CEO at SurveyMonkey. He joined the company in 2026 after serving on its board of directors since 2023. He previously served as operating partner at STG, managing STG’s investments in Escalent, Onclusive, and Moveable Ink, in addition to SurveyMonkey. Prior to STG, he led teams at Simmons Research, AlphaImpactRX, and MarketTools, which was acquired by SurveyMonkey in 2011. He started his career at McKinsey & Company and holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from UT Austin and an MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.
About SurveyMonkey
SurveyMonkey helps teams understand people and make better decisions. Every day, businesses, governments, educational institutions, and nonprofits use SurveyMonkey products to continuously gather feedback from real humans, conduct research, collect information, and improve experiences.
The SurveyMonkey portfolio includes SurveyMonkey, a leading provider of surveys and forms, built for business and loved by users; SurveyMonkey LaunchPad for ready-to-run market research solutions; SurveyMonkey Apply for application and program management; and Wufoo for online forms and payments.
Millions of users around the world—from startups to Fortune 500 companies—rely on SurveyMonkey to turn feedback into action, validate ideas with confidence, strengthen customer and employee experiences, and make decisions that drive growth. Learn more at surveymonkey.com.
About STG
STG is a private equity partner to companies in software, tech-enabled services, data, and analytics. The firm brings 25 years of experience, flexibility, and resources to build customer-centric, market-winning businesses. STG seeks to create sustainable growth that brings value to stakeholders — today and in the future. STG's portfolio has included more than 60 global companies. For more information, please visit https://stg.com/.
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