About Renato Santos
Executive Leader and Transformation Architect with 20+ years of experience, focused on leveraging technology as a driver for business growth and market value. I specialize in inorganic growth strategy, M&A technical due diligence, and post-acquisition platform integration to maximize Return on Investment (ROI). My expertise lies in building scalable, resilient, and cost-efficient cloud platforms that enable rapid business expansion and financial optimization.
My journey began with software development and naturally evolved into distributed systems architecture, where I discovered my passion for building infrastructures that not only work, but enable entire teams to be more productive and innovate more rapidly.
Over the years, I've worked with organizations of various sizes, from startups to Fortune 500 companies, always focusing on creating value through solid technical decisions and long-term strategies that directly impact shareholder value and measurable business outcomes.
I deeply believe that the best technology is the one that disappears - when teams can focus on solving business problems without worrying about the complexity of the underlying infrastructure, and when every technical decision can be traced back to its financial impact and business value.
Leadership Principles
Clarity above all
Clear and direct communication eliminates ambiguity and accelerates execution. I invest time in ensuring everyone understands the "why" behind decisions, not just the "what".
Autonomy with responsibility
Autonomous teams are faster, more innovative, and more engaged. But autonomy without responsibility leads to chaos. Balance is fundamental.
High standard as standard
Excellence is non-negotiable. This doesn't mean perfection from day one, but rather a constant commitment to continuous improvement and quality.
Data-driven decisions
Intuition is valuable, but data is fundamental. I always seek metrics and evidence before making important architectural or strategic decisions.
Cloud Strategy Principles
Multicloud as strategy, not accident
Multicloud should be a strategic decision based on real needs, not an architectural accident. Each cloud has its purpose and place.
Cost as feature, not afterthought
Cost optimization should be considered from the initial design, not as a later cleanup activity. Efficient architectures are economical architectures.
Observability from day zero
You can't manage what you can't measure. Observability is not an add-on, it's a fundamental part of the architecture.
Security by design
Security is not something you add later. It must be an integral part of every architectural decision, from day one.
Strategic Growth & M&A Philosophy
Technical Due Diligence
Applying a rigorous framework to assess the scalability, security, and technical debt of target companies, directly informing valuation and acquisition strategy.
Post-Acquisition Integration (PMI)
Designing and executing platform consolidation roadmaps to achieve rapid synergy realization and operational efficiency across merged entities.
Capital Optimization
Treating cloud infrastructure as a capital asset, ensuring FinOps practices are aligned with long-term financial health and shareholder return.
Platform Engineering Philosophy
Platform Engineering is about creating abstractions that make product teams' work easier, faster, and safer. It's not about building complex tools, but rather removing friction and enabling teams to focus on what really matters: creating value for users and measurable results for the business.
A good platform is invisible - when it's working well, teams don't even notice it exists. It simply works, enabling developers to deploy, monitor, and scale their applications without needing to understand all the details of the underlying infrastructure, while every technical decision contributes to financial value and business growth.
But building such a platform requires deep understanding of both team needs and the technical complexities involved. It's a delicate balance between simplicity and flexibility, between opinion and customization, always with the ultimate goal of maximizing ROI and creating measurable value for shareholders.