Hamish Leighton takes over as CEO of tech consultancy Innovo
Software testing and intelligent automation consultancy Innovo has appointed IT entrepreneur Hamish Leighton as its new CEO, succeeding Nick Finlayson after a decade building the business.
Finlayson established Innovo – originally ENEX Consulting prior to its 2020 breakaway and rebrand – alongside COO Abdullah Aksuin in Sydney in 2015, with the pair having both previously served as senior leaders at Capgemini following its acquisition of their earlier venture, Nu Solutions.
Meanwhile, Leighton co-founded Revolution IT in 2004 and helped grow the quality assurance specialist to a headcount of 500-plus employees before selling to Pemba in 2019 and then overseeing the firm’s subsequent merger with Shelde to form Ampion, which in turn sold to Wipro the following year for almost $120 million.
“Hamish’s strategic insight and proven leadership make him the perfect choice to build on Nick’s legacy and drive the company forward, achieving Innovo’s vision,” stated Paul Thorley, Capgenimi’s former Australia and Asia Pacific CEO who joined Innovo as chairman at the time of its ENEX split, and also serves as a strategic advisor to close partner Enov8.
Through a further Melbourne base and delivery centre in Manilla, Innovo provides a range of services grouped around quality engineering & testing, intelligent automation, consumer data right compliance, and digital transformation, with federal & state government agencies and organisations in financial services, telecom, retail, and transport sectors among the firm’s clientele.
Speaking with industry publication ARN, Finlayson, who will now focus on customer development and sales, said attention had turned to bringing in a new CEO once the company reached the eight-figure revenue mark, with a belief Innovo could double in size again over the coming year. The six-month search landed on Leighton, with the two parties already well-acquainted.
“There comes a time in every founder’s journey when stepping aside for an experienced CEO is the best decision for the business,” Finlayson commented. “Given Hamish’s remarkable track record of scaling and transforming companies, and with Paul's strategic guidance as chairman, I am confident Innovo will achieve our ambitious targets.”
In response, Leighton said the chance to work with Finlayson again was one of the attractions of the role, and that the aim was now for rapid growth; “I’m fortunately coming in at a really exciting time for Innovo and there’s a significant pipeline of opportunities. We’re going to have a shift in focus in the next twelve months and really scale the business quickly. It’s a fantastic challenge.”
