Erik Koto

Chief Operating Officer QuestionPro

Last Reviewed: September 27, 2026

Executive Summary

Erik Koto is Chief Operating Officer of QuestionPro, the survey, market research and experience-management software company founded in Seattle in 2005 by Vivek Bhaskaran. He joined in 2010 to lead the company’s operations and strategic vision, and has stayed through its growth into a business the company says has more than 300 employees, 5.3 million users and a presence in 11 countries. He brings a background in predictive analytics and describes himself as a “data junkie”, and he trained as an engineer before taking an MBA.

Career Highlights

• Chief Operating Officer of QuestionPro, listed second on its executive team after the founder and CEO.
• Joined QuestionPro in 2010 to lead the operations and strategic vision of the company.
• Before QuestionPro, worked with companies including Chase, Nokia, Ford, Microsoft and Dell on customer-centric online experiences and products, according to the company’s biography.
• Bachelor’s degree in Operations Engineering from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the University of Washington.

Professional Journey

Koto studied operations engineering at the University of Michigan and later earned an MBA at the University of Washington. His early career was in digital and analytical work: QuestionPro’s biography says he worked with Chase, Nokia, Ford, Microsoft and Dell to build customer-centric online experiences and the products behind them, and that he brought a deep background in predictive analytics. The biography does not say whether those companies were employers or clients, or when the work took place.

He joined QuestionPro in 2010, five years after Vivek Bhaskaran founded it in Seattle, to lead the company’s operations and strategic vision. QuestionPro’s products now span survey software, a research suite, customer experience and employee experience, with separate presidents now running its Research and Insights, Customer Experience and Workforce businesses. As COO, Koto sits alongside those business-line leaders on an executive team headed by Bhaskaran.

The company describes itself as having more than 300 employees and 5.3 million users across 11 countries, and it has attracted attention outside the research industry: its survey-based estimate of the economic impact of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour was widely reported in 2023 and 2024.

Education

University of Michigan

Bachelor’s degree, Operations Engineering

University of Washington

MBA