Recent industry movers and shakers

Network Detection and Response (NDR) specialist ExtraHop is continuing to expand its European operations with the appointment of Duncan Butchart as its new Area Vice President (AVP) of Northern EMEA. This follows the recent appointment of Karl Werner as AVP of DACH. Butchart has more than 20 years’ experience in cybersecurity and technology at companies such as Easynet, Blue Coat Systems, Actian and Skybox Security. Marc Andrews, ExtraHop GM of EMEA and APJ, said: “Duncan’s track record in cybersecurity sales and business development puts him in great stead to grow our EMEA operations, pinpointing how we can add value to customers and partners with our market-leading NDR solution. Duncan will help expand our reach so that organisations across Northern EMEA have access to our AI-backed network intelligence to arm technology teams with the tools they need to combat today’s advanced threats.” Butchart added: “ExtraHop is at the forefront of a new approach to cyber defence, one that acknowledges the reality that intrusion is going to happen and focuses on detecting, investigating and responding to post- compromise activity before it becomes a full-scale breach. I look forward to building on ExtraHop’s EMEA momentum by forging strong relations with partners and customers in the region.”

***************************************************************************

RM appoints Tomlinson as MD

Education technology provider RM has appointed Jason Tomlinson as Managing Director of its technology business. In his new role, Tomlinson, previously Global SVP of Strategy and Product for NTT’s cloud and managed services division, will lead a team of 800 employees across RM’s technology division as they help trusts and schools in England, Scotland and Wales undertake digital transformation. Established in 1973, RM is a £211m turnover British business with circa 1,990 employees worldwide specialising in products and services that improve, simplify and support education and learning. Its Technology division supplies ICT software, technology and services to UK schools and colleges. rm.com/education

***************************************************************************

Chris Dedicoat joins Purple as non-exec director

Chris Dedicoat, former Cisco Executive Vice President (EVP) for Worldwide
Sales & Field Operations, has joined the board of Manchester-based technology company Purple as a non-executive director. Currently Chairman of Packet Fabric Inc, a provider of fast, on-demand connectivity, Dedicoat will bring 25+ years of sales and marketing experience in the networking, hardware, software and technology industries to Purple as it embarks upon a period of strategic growth and global expansion. Backed by Sir Terry Leahy, former CEO of Tesco, Purple was established in 2012 with a vision to transform venues in sectors such as healthcare, retail and hospitality into intuitive, intelligent spaces through guest WiFi, digital wayfinding and analytics software. Chris Dedicoat said: “It’s an honour to be joining this highly innovative and growing company as it strives to elevate its position in the technology marketplace. I’ve been continually impressed by the way in which its software enables venues to understand, identify and enhance visitor experience – while also helping them to drive revenue.” https://purple.ai

****************************************************************************

Vapour expands engineering team

Vapour continues to expand its capabilities with the recruitment of cloud voice
UC engineer Graeme McCabe and senior cloud and network engineer Jordan Stephenson to its engineering team and the extension of its footprint to Leeds, with a new workspace in the Platform coworking space adjacent to the city’s
railway station. Vapour already has an HQ in Huddersfield and satellite bases in Glasgow, London and Lancashire.  CEO Tim Mercer said: “This is a promising time for the company as we scale to meet the demands of our customers and the ever-growing cloud market. Our new hires Graeme and Jordan will be a huge asset to our technical team and I welcome them onboard. Announcing our new workspace at Platform is also a proud moment for me as we’ll share the building with some of the region’s most innovative tech companies. To be able to offer my growing team access to more vibrant office space in a new city is a key part of our ongoing recruitment strategy – not to mention our accessibility for customers seeking face to face time.”

***************************************************************************

Ex-Softcat MD joins Content+Cloud

Microsoft-focused cloud services, digital transformation and managed services provider Content+Cloud, which became part of the Nordic technology services group Advania in December 2021, has appointed former Softcat MD Colin Brown as non-executive director to advise on its growth roadmap. Currently a non-executive director for a number of technology and services organisations, Brown previously spent eight years at IT infrastructure provider Softcat as part of the leadership team that brought the organisation to its IPO and a listing on the FTSE 250. Prior to that he was General Manager of UK services for Microsoft and CEO of Computacenter Germany. Peter Sweetbaum, CEO of Content+Cloud, said: “We are delighted to have Colin on board where we look forward to him bringing his exemplary experience at the core of the UK IT Services market in the UK and Europe. Colin’s experience of leadership positions at arguably the most successful technology businesses today will be a fantastic addition to Content+Cloud’s ambitious growth plans.” www.contentandcloud.com

***************************************************************************

Mayer takes over from Timmermans at Flex IT

Andreas Mayer is taking over from Leon Timmermans as CEO of Flex IT, a European specialist in IT lifecycle management. Mayer was previously MD of European demo partner MCKL, which was acquired by Flex IT earlier this year. Mayer has more than 25 years of international experience in IT, including spells at HP, where he was a Senior Director of EMEA business operations, and Lenovo, where he spent over 14 years in various EMEA senior leadership positions including Managing Director, Benelux. Mayer said: “My appointment is not about changing direction, because I think we’re heading in the right direction. I want to use everything that we now have in our tool set, and then expand that tool set even further to continue to drive forward and take advantage of the change in mindset across the world about circular IT.”

***************************************************************************

Janicke to lead Alteryx operations in EMEA

Alteryx, the analytics automation company, has hired Jason Janicke as Senior Vice President of Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA). Based in London, Janicke will report directly to Alteryx President and Chief Revenue Officer Paula Hansen and will lead Alteryx’s business strategy, business activities and operations in the region. Janicke brings more than two decades of experience in building and leading high-performing, customer-centric teams across EMEA and the Americas as a SaaS sales veteran at some of the world’s largest enterprise technology companies, including Conga and Salesforce. Janicke said: “It is an exciting time to join the company on the heels of the recent launch of Alteryx Analytics Cloud and investments in a new, expanded partner program. As businesses strive to move from data collection to driving real insights, Alteryx helps customers extract value from the mountains of data they accumulate. I’m excited to lead the talented EMEA team and help customers across the region unlock the power of data with the Alteryx industry-leading and easy-to-use analytics automation platform.” www.alteryx.com

**************************************************************************

Jeremy Deaner joins Mobius Labs

Computer vision provider Mobius Labs has strengthened its executive team with the appointment of Jeremy Deaner as COO to accelerate the company’s growth. Deaner brings more than 25 years’ experience to Mobius Labs having successfully grown software companies internationally. He has extensive knowledge of one of Mobius Labs’ key target markets, film and broadcast, and was previously CEO of AmberFin, spearheading the company’s journey from a start-up to a global pioneer before it was acquired by Dalet. Based in London, Deaner will report directly to Mobius CEO Appu Shaji. Deaner said: “Mobius Labs is consistently driving innovation and I am very excited to be joining the company, focussing on our clients’ needs and preferences as they continue to evolve. Mobius’ Superhuman Vision technology can unlock new commercial opportunities which I am looking forward to exploring further.” www.mobiuslabs.com

**************************************************************************

New CTO at CSI

Managed service provider CSI has appointed Nick Westall as its new CTO
to drive the company’s ambitious growth plans. Nick was previously COO & CTO at Technimove and CTO at CACI. Simon Fisk, Group Chief Executive at CSI, said: “Nick will be responsible for our strategic direction in terms of products and services, but he also brings a wealth of expertise in acquisitions and driving organic growth. It’s an exciting period for CSI as we rapidly expand our client base in the highly regulated industries that we specialise in.” Westall added: “My first task is to bring an overarching vision and strategy to extend CSI’s current offerings and build a comprehensive roadmap for each product and service area. My participation in several acquisitions at MTI and eight while I was at CACI will undoubtedly be useful to CSI, but my initial focus will be on helping accelerate organic growth.” www.csiltd.co.uk

**************************************************************************

Kin + Carta hires former Google heavyweight

Global digital transformation consultancy Kin + Carta has demonstrated its ambitious growth plans by hiring former Google heavyweight Andrew Clark as Director of Product. Clark has more than a decade’s experience developing product intelligence, including at DeepMind, where as Product Manager he was responsible for creating internal products that enabled up to a thousand people to work on the same problem simultaneously and collaboratively. After DeepMind was acquired by Google in 2014, Clark was part of the Google Health and DeepMind team that built a mobile medical assistant for NHS clinicians. Clark’s appointment follows a raft of new senior hires at Kin + Carta and the introduction of a new go-to-market strategy for the global digital transformation consultancy.

***************************************************************************

New hires enhance customer support at iTG Technologies

Macclesfield-based ICT support specialist iTG Technologies has taken on two new customer service specialists to enhance the technical support offered to the company’s national client base. Katie Whiston and Sophie Buxton have significant customer service experience and will be proactively ‘checking-in’ with iTG Technologies’ client base on a regular basis. Ben Marshall, Service Desk Manager at iTG Technologies, said: “Sophie and Katie have come on board to offer our clients an additional level of contact and will be working from our offices several days a week. They are not replacing our existing technical support function but are enhancing it by being more proactive in contacting our clients. Their recruitment is an important part of the strategic reviews we are currently undertaking across the business, one of the objectives of which is to offer our clients the best possible ICT support service on the market.” https://www.itg.uk.com/