ELMO Software, the Australian-headquartered HR technology platform, today announces that Joseph Lyons has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer.

Lyons joins ELMO on 22 January 2024 from global small business platform Xero (ASX:XRO) where he was most recently Managing Director, APAC, responsible for driving growth in the company’s most established markets of Australia and New Zealand as well as newer markets across Asia.

Prior to Xero, Lyons was Chief Commercial Officer at ASX-listed REA Group where he led teams across the sales, partner, customer, product, marketing, technology and communications functions.

At ELMO, Lyons will be responsible for accelerating the next stage of the company’s growth across its ELMO Software business in Australia, New Zealand and the UK, as well as Breathe HR in the UK.

Lyons assumes the role from ELMO Software’s President Nord Samuelson who has been acting as interim CEO since July 2023 while a global recruitment search was underway.

Chairman of ELMO Software Bruce Gordon said:

“There were two main attributes we were looking for in a new CEO: an exceptional track record of scaling tech companies in Australia, New Zealand, and across the globe, and deep experience in building high-performing customer-centric teams.

“Joseph has demonstrated these attributes at the highest level and is an exceptional cultural fit for the ELMO Group of companies and for our valued customers.

“We are delighted to have Joseph on board to serve our customers and partners, and look forward to working with him to release the full potential of ELMO.”

Joseph Lyons comments:

“I am excited to join the talented team at ELMO and look forward to building on the company’s 21-year heritage and strong foundations to shape the next chapter of success, both in Australia and New Zealand, and the UK.

“While ELMO has grown rapidly over the past three years with a strong focus on direct and partner channels, there is still a huge opportunity to provide high-impact HR software solutions to mid-sized organisations that meet their increasingly complex needs.

“I have been particularly impressed by the focus across the ELMO team to support the needs of customers and partners alike. I am confident that the business is poised to accelerate its growth, and feel I am joining the team at an incredibly exciting time.”

The appointment of Lyons follows other recent additions to ELMO’s executive team.

Sarah Dart has joined ELMO in the newly created role of Chief Customer Officer. With a wealth of experience in SaaS organisations, Sarah was most recently Senior Director, APAC, a global expense management platform Emburse.

Joshua McKenzie was appointed Chief Technology Officer earlier this month. He was most recently Chief Technology Officer at the home loan provider Lendi Group and has also held senior software engineering roles at OFX, ASX and Westpac.

ELMO’s current Chief Financial Officer James Haslam has expanded his role to include the newly created position of Chief Operating Officer.

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