Jon Zimmerman, the CEO of Seattle startup Front Desk, passed away suddenly Monday of unspecified causes, according to a statement issued by the company this afternoon.
Zimmerman, 47, was a veteran of Expedia and T-Mobile who co-founded Front Desk in 2012. He had most recently led a successful fundraising round for Front Desk, which makes management, payment, and scheduling software used by studios, gyms and other small and medium-sized services businesses.
“Jon was a person of tremendous intelligence and integrity,” said Seattle entrepreneur Nick Hanauer, an early investor in Front Desk. “He was a joy to work with and a good friend. His even style, candor, powers of analysis, and good humor made even difficult circumstances fun to work through. We are devastated by his passing and will miss him enormously. We ache for his family.”
Another Front Desk investor, Rich Barton, the Expedia and Zillow co-founder, said via email, “Jon had a bright shining mind and a heart of gold. All of us who were lucky enough to know and work with him are deeply saddened by this tragedy.”
Update, Wednesday, April 27: John Boyle, Front Desk chief operating officer, said via email, “The senior management team currently in place is working together to head up the company, and the company remains strong and intact. In fact, it was gratifying to see the management team and all employees pull together thru this difficult time. Because of this, we have become a stronger team. Our growth and continued success is the best way we know how to honor Jon’s legacy.”
Here’s the full statement from the company.
April 26, 2016, Seattle, WA: Seattle high-tech startup, Front Desk announced today that its CEO and co-founder, Jon Zimmerman, passed away suddenly on Monday, April 25, of unspecified causes. Zimmerman was 47 years old and is survived by his wife and their two children.
Zimmerman co-founded Front Desk in July of 2012 after spending time in leadership positions at Expedia and T-Mobile, among others. He was well-known in the high-tech startup arena and the Cross-fit community as well.
The Board and leadership remain in place and confident in the health of the company.
The company declined to provide further information at this time. We’ll provide updates as they’re available.
