Experienced commercial executive to accelerate CompTIA’s AI skills and credentialing growth
CompTIA today named Sean Ryan chief executive officer, signaling an accelerated push toward growth and expanded impact as demand for technology, artificial intelligence (AI) skills and credentialing continues to rise.
Ryan, an accomplished senior executive in the education sector, joins CompTIA after six years as president of the School Group at McGraw Hill, a leading global provider of education solutions for preK-12, higher education and professional learning. Ryan succeeds Todd Thibodeaux, who led CompTIA for nearly 18 years.
“Sean distinguished himself throughout the search process as a proven leader who knows how to guide organizations through transformation,” said Jim Ryan, chairman of CompTIA’s Board of Directors and president and CEO of Flexera. “He has a clear vision for expanding access to high-quality skills training at a time when AI and digital transformation are reshaping workforce readiness.”
“AI isn’t just changing IT; it’s redefining what workforce-ready means across industries and occupations,” Sean Ryan said. “CompTIA has spent decades building the infrastructure to train people and independently verify their competence through performance-based credentialing that employers trust. That foundation, combined with a clear focus on AI skills and certifications, puts us in a unique position to turn AI ambition into demonstrated, credentialed capability.”
As president of McGraw Hill’s School Group, Ryan led one of the largest PreK-12 education businesses in the U.S. through its shift from print to digital and SaaS models, with digital growing to the majority of the group’s mix. He scaled the business past the billion-dollar billings mark twice while delivering industry-leading margins and diversified the portfolio through acquisitions and in-house development of data analytics and native AI capabilities. Earlier at McGraw Hill, as senior vice president of sales, service and platform, he rebuilt the sales, implementation, and training organization that drove the School Group’s subsequent growth.
Ryan is a graduate of the Stanford Graduate School of Business (Master of Science in Management), the University of Arizona (Master of Arts in International Relations) and the United States Air Force Academy (bachelor’s degree in Soviet Studies).
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