Ten weeks after resigning from Oracle, respected software-industry executive Charles Phillips has been named CEO at Infor, a relatively low-profile $2 billion enterprise-applications company that focuses on mid-sized companies.
In its carefully worded press release announcing Phillips' appointment, privately held Infor avoided making any explicit references to whether it plans to leverage its new CEO to escalate Infor's level of competition with Oracle, where Phillips was president for most of his seven years with the company and a key force in its 300% growth during that time.
Instead, Infor emphasized that track record of growth and how it will complement its own strength in the mid-market, its huge base of 70,000 customers in 125 countries, its upcoming upgrades to its products, and its own extensive track record of growth through acquisitions, which includes the integration of 70 companies.
Former CEO Jim Schaper, who will continue as Infor chairman, said in the press release that Phillips brings to Infor "the diverse skill set, direct industry experience, and track record of performance necessary to lead the company to continued growth." And while describing Phillips as a "true visionary in the technology industry" with "a unique perspective," Schaper chose not to refer to Oracle by name but rather said that Phillips had gained much of that experience "at one of our leading industry peers."
Infor's primary shareholder is Golden Gate Capital, and that firm's managing director, David Dominik, said in the press release, "We welcome Charles' tremendous management experience at a leading public global technology company and look forward to supporting him as Infor accelerates its growth initiatives and unveils new products and services."
Phillips was quotedas saying that his new company "has quietly built the third-largest enterprise applications company in the world" and has not only "higher margins than eight of the top 10 application companies" but also "a track record of leading innovation."
"With over 70,000 customers in 125 countries, including divisions of large corporations, Infor is poised for growth as the next generation platform ships in January," Phillips also said in the press release. "I am eager to lead this proven team of over 8,000 employees through its next phase of growth. In a consolidating industry, Infor has proven acquisition expertise, having successfully integrated over 70 companies."
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