Dave Opton

Dave Opton is the Founder and CEO of ExecuNet, a Norwalk, Connecticut-based career-management and networking organization built specifically for senior and C-level executives. He founded the company in July 1988 and has led it continuously since, building it into what ExecuNet’s own materials describe as a Forbes-recognized resource for executive career strategy, coaching, and access to select $150k+ roles.

Career Highlights

Before founding ExecuNet, Opton spent roughly a decade in corporate human resources leadership. He worked as a personnel manager on Xerox’s corporate staff in the late 1970s and early 1980s, then moved to Sterling Drug, a pharmaceutical company later absorbed into what became Sanofi, as Vice President of International Personnel, a role he held until launching ExecuNet in 1988.

Under Opton’s leadership, ExecuNet has grown into a long-running executive network combining career coaching, personal-branding guidance, and a curated marketplace connecting senior professionals to vetted opportunities and industry peers. He remains active in the company’s public-facing content, regularly publishing career-strategy guidance for executives navigating moves into C-suite roles.

Education

Opton holds a BA in American Literature from Indiana University Bloomington.