Ciphr names Gerald Byrne as chief sales officer, and adds Badr Khan as non-exec director

Leading SaaS HR provider Ciphr continues to strengthen its position in the UK’s HCM market, with the appointment of two new board members – SaaS sales leader Gerald Byrne and former ATG CTO Badr Khan – to drive commercial growth.

Byrne joins his former GoTo boss, Sion Lewis, at Ciphr as its new chief sales officer, with responsibility for all sales activity across the Marlow-based, ECI-backed group. While Khan, former chief technology officer at ATG (Auction Technology Group), takes up an independent non-executive director role.

Until recently, Byrne served as VP of EMEA sales at GoTo, the all-in-one business communications and IT support specialists. During his nine years with GoTo, he worked closely with Lewis to build and expand the brand’s European presence, and helped deliver double-digit year-on-year growth. Byrne was also responsible for creating, designing, and growing a successful SaaS Alliance and Partnership programme for the business in the EMEA region.

His extensive background includes over two years at Citrix’s Dublin office as EMEA senior sales manager and site leader, and, prior to that, a 12-year tenure at Dell, where he held senior positions in their sales, marketing and operations departments – rising through the ranks to global business transformation and sales operations manager at Dell's consumer business.

Ciphr’s new non-executive director, Badr Khan, comes with a wealth of technical expertise in digital product development and roadmap prioritisation, having led IT and engineering teams at ATG, MatchesFashion, and Marks & Spencer. As part of his role on Ciphr’s board, he will provide further insight and oversight on Ciphr’s technology strategy.

Sion Lewis, CEO of Ciphr, says: “We’re delighted to welcome Gerald and Badr to the Ciphr board. They both bring a wealth of tech knowledge and leadership experience, which will further enhance the board’s skillset and perspective, and be invaluable to the group.

“I’d also like to congratulate Gerald on his new appointment as Ciphr’s chief sales officer. I had the pleasure of working with him at GoTo for many years, where he was responsible for helping to build and scale the business in the EMEA region and forge successful strategic partnerships across Europe. He’s a passionate and driven leader, and I know he will be a fantastic asset to the team.”

Gerald Byrne, chief sales officer at Ciphr, says: “Ciphr is an ambitious business, with a strong and experienced leadership, and I am incredibly excited to be joining them at this pivotal time. The company has a rich history of success, knowledge, and experience in helping organisations across the UK to unlock the potential of their employees. Its impressive, customer-centric approach really sets it apart and has helped Ciphr develop strong, lasting partnerships with its customers. I’m looking forward to working with the talented team at Ciphr to build on that success and help drive the next phase of its growth.”

Badr Khan, non-executive director at Ciphr, says: “As Ciphr continues to evolve its product offering within the HCM market, I’m looking forward to utilising my knowledge and background in emerging technologies, digital marketplaces, and SaaS to help to inform the business’s tech strategy and contribute to its long-term success.”

Other recent senior hires at Ciphr include new chief marketing officer Chris Boddice, who was appointed earlier this month.

Ciphr is a leading UK-based provider of integrated HR, payroll, learning and recruitment solutions. Over 230 employees work across the group, which includes Ciphr, Digits LMS, Marshall E-Learning, and Payroll Business Solutions (PBS).

For more information about Ciphr’s people management solutions, please visit www.ciphr.com.

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Media enquiries:
Emma-Louise Jones, digital PR manager at Ciphr
e: ejones@ciphr.com
t: 01628 244206

Chris Boddice, chief marketing officer at Ciphr
e: cboddice@ciphr.com
Website: www.ciphr.com
Twitter: @ciphrhrsoftware
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ciphr

Notes:
Ciphr is a leading UK-based provider of integrated HR, payroll, learning and recruitment solutions.

Ciphr’s integrated HCM platform helps organisations manage their end-to-end employee lifecycle so they can deliver an amazing employee experience. With Ciphr, organisations can be confident they can access all their people data in one place, thanks to secure, time-saving integrations between Ciphr’s own solutions and API connections to specialist, third-party tools.

Ciphr is a privately held company backed by ECI Partners, and headquartered in Marlow, Buckinghamshire. Over 200 employees work across the group, which includes Ciphr, Digits LMS, Marshall E-Learning, and Payroll Business Solutions (PBS).