Executives/SAS Institute CEO
Jim Goodnight, CEO of SAS Institute

Who is the CEO of SAS Institute in 2026?

Jim Goodnight is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of SAS Institute. Jim has held the CEO seat since 1976.

Updated September 24, 2026
Time in seat
50 years
CEO since 1976
Education
North Carolina State University
Ph.D, Statistics
Summary
  • Jim Goodnight leads SAS Institute, an American analytics and artificial intelligence company, founded in 1976 and headquartered in Cary.
  • Jim Goodnight holds a Ph.D, Statistics and a bachelor’s Degree, Applied Mathematics from North Carolina State University.

Current company

SAS Institute

SAS Institute is an American analytics and artificial intelligence company.

analyticsHeadquartered in CaryFounded 1976Private company

Source: Wikidata

Career and education

Jim Goodnight has been CEO of SAS Institute since 1976.

Career

  1. SAS1976 to present
    • CEO

Sources: LinkedIn profile

Education

North Carolina State University, Ph.D, StatisticsNorth Carolina State University, Bachelor’s Degree, Applied MathematicsNorth Carolina State University, Master’s Degree, Experimental StatisticsSource

Decision makers by function

270+ decision makers at SAS Institute in Unify, vice president level and above. Choose a function to see who leads it.

Decision maker preview

Top decision makers at SAS Institute

Vice president level and above, most senior first
Sean OBrienSenior Vice President, Global Customer Success · USA@sas.com
Jared PetersonSenior Vice President, Global Engineering · USA@sas.com
Laura McClellandSenior Vice President Human Resources · USA@sas.com
Grant BrooksSVP, Head of Global Government & Public Sector · USA@sas.com
See every decision maker at SAS Institute

Unlock every decision maker at SAS Institute

Get verified profiles, contact data, and live buying signals in Unify.

Leadership team at SAS Institute

Jim Goodnight leads a leadership team of 11 published executives.

Most senior 5 of 11

NameTitleIn seat since
Jim GoodnightCo-Founder, Chief Executive Officer1976
Matt ParsonExecutive Vice President, Chief Financial OfficerNot stated
Gavin DayExecutive Vice President, Chief Operating OfficerNot stated
Patricia BrownExecutive Vice President, Chief Legal OfficerNot stated
Bryan HarrisExecutive Vice President, Chief Technology OfficerNot stated

Sources: SAS leadership page

Frequently asked questions

Who is the CEO of SAS Institute?

Jim Goodnight is the Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of SAS Institute. Jim has held the CEO seat since 1976.

When did Jim Goodnight become CEO of SAS Institute?

Jim Goodnight has been CEO of SAS Institute since 1976, according to LinkedIn profile.

How long has Jim Goodnight been CEO of SAS Institute?

Jim Goodnight has been CEO of SAS Institute for 50 years, since 1976.

Who else leads SAS Institute?

Matt Parson (Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer), Gavin Day (Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer), Patricia Brown (Executive Vice President, Chief Legal Officer), Bryan Harris (Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer), and 6 more. Source: SAS leadership page.

Reach SAS Institute's decision makers

270+ leaders at vice president level and above, with verified work emails and phone numbers in Unify.

Methodology

The seat holder is identified in Unify's professional profile dataset, then confirmed against the company's published leadership page, its SEC filings, and Wikipedia before publication. Career and education rows carry the public document they were taken from. Leadership team membership follows the company's own leadership page; in-seat dates come from filings where available and otherwise from the profile record. Company figures are read from the Unify headcount page for the same company and are profile coverage measures, never company-reported workforce totals. The employee preview lists vice president and senior vice president level profiles by department. No personal contact details are published.

Identity confirmed against Wikipedia, SAS Institute. Last verified: September 24, 2026.