Ex-Sage CEO & FD joins Wandisco as chairman

THE FORMER CEO of FTSE 100 business Sage has joined WANdisco as its chairman, where he will join his former colleague and ex-Sage CFO.

Paul Walker will become chairman of the New York Stock Exchange-listed IT company WANdisco, with immediate effect.

Walker will join former colleague Paul Harrison ,who joined WANdisco as CFO in September last year. Harrison previously served with Walker at Sage, having worked at the company for 16 years, latterly as CFO.

Walker was previously CEO of Sage for 16 years from 1994 to 2010. He initially joined the business as a company accountant in 1984 and served as its finance director for seven years before taking the CEO role. Walker has worked as a non-executive director and chairman of several large companies including Experian, Diageo, MyTravel and Halma.

The latest move at WANdisco comes as current CEO David Richards who was working as both chairman and CEO with the role now being split into two.

David Richards, WANdisco CEO, said: “The considerable experience he [Walker] brings as the former CEO of the UK’s largest software company, Sage and the breadth of knowledge he has gained from holding several other board level positions, is invaluable.

“Paul and I will work together over the coming years to develop WANdisco into a major, global player in the technology sector. WANdisco is a fast growing company and we are at a hugely exciting time in our development. The board and I believe this structure will best support our current and future growth plans as we scale the business.”

WANdisco had increased its EBITDA to $7.8m (£4.7m) for the year ended 31 December 2013, from a loss of $3m for the previous year.