Raleigh McClayton

Chief Executive Officer Brightspot

Last Reviewed: September 29, 2026

Executive Summary

Raleigh McClayton has been Chief Executive Officer of Brightspot, the Reston, Virginia content management and digital experience platform company, since September 2022. He took over from co-founder David Gang, who moved into the role of President and Chief Customer Officer. McClayton arrived as an operator from outside the content-software category, having run ArrowStream, a supply-chain software business, through its 2022 acquisition, and before that having served as President of LoopNet and spent five years on Grubhub’s executive leadership team. His career runs across both business and consumer technology, with a recurring theme of scaling companies ahead of a sale.

Career Highlights

• Appointed Chief Executive Officer of Brightspot in September 2022, succeeding co-founder David Gang in the role.
• CEO of ArrowStream, a supply-chain software business that grew significantly before its acquisition by Buyer’s Edge Platform in 2022.
• President of LoopNet, which Brightspot describes as the largest advertising platform for commercial real estate.
• Five years on Grubhub’s executive leadership team before its acquisition by Just Eat Takeaway, responsible for growing its enterprise business and new verticals.
• Head of Digital Marketing and Strategy at Restaurant Brands International, overseeing digital growth for its restaurant brands.

Professional Journey

McClayton studied economics and East Asian studies at Davidson College, having taken Chinese in high school and college, and in the early 2000s he lived and worked in Beijing. According to his Brightspot biography, he began in investment banking and startups in the U.S. and overseas before moving into operating roles at high-growth technology companies. He later earned an MBA from the University of Chicago.

His operating career has run through consumer platforms and business software. At Restaurant Brands International he was Head of Digital Marketing and Strategy, overseeing the digital growth of its restaurant brands; Brightspot’s announcement of his appointment puts that role at four years. He then spent five years on the executive leadership team of Grubhub, responsible for growing its enterprise business and new verticals, before the company’s acquisition by Just Eat Takeaway. He went on to serve as President of LoopNet, the commercial real estate advertising platform.

He was most recently CEO of ArrowStream, a supply-chain software business, which Brightspot says achieved significant growth before being acquired by Buyer’s Edge Platform in 2022.

Brightspot announced his appointment as CEO on 20 September 2022. The company, which trades as Perfect Sense, DBA Brightspot, was co-founded in 2008 by David Gang, who moved to President and Chief Customer Officer as McClayton took over. Brightspot makes a content management system and digital experience platform for enterprise and media publishers. On taking the role he said the team, the mission and the products made him “incredibly humbled and excited to lead this organization.” Brightspot’s leadership page continues to list him as CEO, leading an executive team that includes President and Chief Product Officer Ravi Singh and Chief Financial Officer David Bultema, and the company’s 2025 and 2026 releases have centred on AI features, including an agent for content operations called Esca.

Outside work, he has named skiing, reading and travel among his interests, in a 2023 interview published by Brightspot.

Education

University of Chicago

MBA

Davidson College

B.A., Economics and East Asian Studies