SaaS HR provider Ciphr has appointed Sion Lewis as its new CEO.
He joins the Marlow-based, ECI-backed group effective from February 1st, succeeding Ciphr’s founder Chris Berry, who has moved into a non-executive role on the board after over 30 years as CEO.
Lewis most recently served as general manager of EMEA at GoTo, the all-in-one business communications and IT support specialists, where he helped inform international strategy and build and expand on the brand鈥檚 European presence.
Prior to that, he was CEO of IRIS Software鈥檚 accountancy and education divisions, growing revenue by over 150 per cent. He has also held senior roles with BMC and Salesforce.
Lewis said: 聽鈥淚鈥檓 really excited to join Ciphr and its leadership team at such a pivotal time. Ciphr is a successful and fast growth company, which provides business-critical people management solutions that support and empower the UK鈥檚 SMB sector 鈥� the bedrock and powerhouse of the nation鈥檚 economy.
鈥淗aving been intimately involved with UK PLC during my time at IRIS, the ability to do so again with Ciphr was simply compelling. People are an organisation鈥檚 greatest asset, and Ciphr鈥檚 impressive suite of workplace technologies are designed to enhance their employee experience and help them to do their best work.
鈥淭here are significant opportunities for the business to grow and to drive growth for its customers, and I look forward to leading the company in this dynamic and exciting market.鈥�
Ken Hills, Ciphr鈥檚 chairman, added: 鈥淭his is an important development for Ciphr, and we are delighted to be able to attract someone of Sion鈥檚 expertise and calibre to spearhead Ciphr鈥檚 future growth and take the company into the next stage of its development.
鈥淭he HCM market is changing in new and exciting directions, and I look forward to working with Sion during this next phase in the company鈥檚 evolution.
鈥淥n behalf of the board, I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Chris for his incredible contribution over the years. Ciphr simply wouldn鈥檛 be where it is today without his strong leadership, vision, and dedication.鈥�
Chris Berry, founder and former CEO of Ciphr, said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 been a privilege to lead Ciphr over the last 30 years and I鈥檓 extremely proud of what we have achieved.
鈥淭he business is in a strong position, and it鈥檚 the right time for me to hand over the reins to a new leadership. I鈥檓 thrilled that we have secured someone of Sion鈥檚 credentials to continue to build on Ciphr鈥檚 success. He has a proven track record of growing SaaS enterprises, and I look forward to supporting him and the board in an advisory role.鈥�
Stephen Roberts, partner at ECI, says: 鈥淪ince our investment in 2020, Ciphr has continued to go from strength to strength. I鈥檓 delighted to be welcoming Sion into Ciphr.
鈥淕iven his skills and experience we are confident that he is the right leader to succeed Chris and drive Ciphr forward on its organic and acquisitive growth journey.鈥�
Ciphr is a specialist provider of cloud-based HR, payroll, recruitment and learning software. More than 650 organisations use the group鈥檚 people management solutions.