ProQuest has named Oded Scharfstein the new president of Ex Libris, effective January 2021. He will succeed Bar Veinstein. Ex Libris has been a portfolio company of ProQuest since October 2015.
Bar Veinstein joined Ex Libris in 2010 as corporate vice president with responsibility for the company's resource management products and has led the company as president since May 2017. He advanced to the top leadership position in Ex Libris when Matti Shem Tov became the president and chief executive officer of ProQuest. Shem Tov had led Ex Libris since 2003.
Following the transition in leadership, Veinstein will continue involvement with Ex Libris as a member of its advisory board. Veinstein will become the chief executive officer of Taranis, a startup headquartered in Sunnyvale, CA that specializes in high-resolution imagery and artificial intelligence in support of agriculture. (see https://taranis.ag)
Scharfstein most recently served as chief financial officer for LiveU, a company that develops and deploys streaming media technologies for sports coverage. LiveU was acquired in May 2019 by Francisco Partners, a private equity firm that owned Ex Libris from June 2006 through April 2008. Prior to his involvement with LiveU, Scharfstein also held multiple roles at Ex Libris, including DigiTool product manager (2003–2006), corporate vice president for Asia and Pacific (2006–2011), and chief financial officer (2011–2019). Scharfstein earned a degree in Law and an MBA from Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Throughout its corporate history, Ex Libris has had stable leadership. Veinstein's three-year tenure as president may have been be a bit short, but it is also not unexpected that a senior executive would move on to a CEO role in another company. Under ProQuest, the top executive position in Ex Libris is president, with all C-level positions residing in the parent organization. Likewise, the top executive position in Innovative Interfaces is managing director. ProQuest and Ex Libris representatives stated that they expect a smooth transition, and one that does not portend significant changes for the company.
