Following recent customer wins and the recent acquisition of the assets of First Base Technologies LLP, Falanx Group this morning announced the following management changes to the business:
Appointment of Group CTO
The Company has appointed Dick Morrell as Group CTO. This role is responsible for all technology within the business, with a major emphasis on driving our technology strategy in the Cyber Security division. Dick has been with the Company since September 2017 and has a very successful background in cyber technologies and consultancy. He has previously held senior roles (CTO, CSO) within organisations such as Red Hat Inc, CGI plc, NTL/VirginMedia and Gartner Inc, as well as founding his own successful cyber security company SmoothWall which was subject to acquisition by Tenzing Private Equity. A UK Government advisor and CLAS consultant to GCHQ/NCSC/CESG he is an in demand speaker, writer, broadcaster and thought leader on all security and cloud matters. This skillset has been highly relevant in positioning our Midgard platform (a cyber security monitoring managed service based on proprietary and third-party technologies) and has been key in its recent wins and customer deliveries.
Appointment of CMO
The Company has also appointed of Rick Flood as Chief Marketing Officer. This role is responsible for all sales and marketing operations in the group and will support both the cyber and intelligence businesses. Rick has been working with the Company for the last few months and has restructured the Cyber Division’s sales team which has contributed to the recent contract wins.
Rick is an experienced software and technology professional with 15 years’ experience of cloud and SaaS technology. He originally qualified as an accountant but then switched to the software sector and ultimately to senior executive positions in sales and marketing with UK and US listed companies. His relevant AIM experience includes roles at Earthport plc, Host Europe plc and Pipex plc where he first worked with Mike Read. Rick specialises in go to market strategies & execution, turnaround and driving sales and marketing execution
Directorate Change
After nearly two years, Jay Abbott will be leaving Falanx to pursue other business interests. Jay has successfully developed the Cyber business, creating a full service model to enable continued rapid growth. During his tenure, Jay has managed the rebranding of the Cyber business, SOC relocation and led the innovation of our new MidGARD service. Jay leaves Falanx Cyber with a solid foundation in place and well prepared for future expansion.
Jay Abbot, Director of Falanx, commented: “I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Falanx, having worked hard with the leadership team to pass on my knowledge and develop Falanx Cyber for future success. Although I am moving onto new projects, I remain a significant and supportive shareholder and wish Falanx every success and continued growth under the leadership of Mike Read.”
Mike Read, CEO commented: “I would like to thank Jay for his dedication to the business while at Falanx and wish him all the best in the future. I am delighted to formally welcome Dick and Rick in these management positions, whose key roles are to focus on delivering further large monitoring services contracts.
Since I became CEO in November 2017, we have implemented these management changes as well as the appointment of Ian Selby as CFO and John Blamire taking on the role of COO. This strong team have the skills and structure to capitalise on this very significant market opportunity.”
