Volante appoints Ian Penman as CEO

By Stan Beer
Monday, 25 October 2004 06:54

IT Industry - Development

ICT services provider and PC box mover, Volante Group Limited (AS:VGL), has appointed former Compaq Australia boss, Ian Penman, as group managing director and chief executive officer of the company.

Penman was managing director of Compaq South Pacific for 15 years, during a period when it grew from one employee to a team of more than 2,500 people. During his reign in Australia, Compaq acquired Tandem Computers and Digital Equipment Corporation globally.Penman retired from Compaq in 2000.

Before establishing Compaq in Australia, Penman spent 18 years with IBM, including a stint as head of IBM Australia's PC business.

Penman's appointment follows Allan Brackin's decision to step down as CEO of the company after 18 years of leading VGL and AAG, which VGL acquired in 2000. Penman will join VGL on 1 November, and Brackin will retire from the board on 31 October, leaving the company after a brief transition.

In February this year VGL acquired PC box mover and systems integrator Ipex for $70 million, in what was effectively a reverse take-over. Ipex founder Joel Schwalb and his family now effectively hold a controlling interest of 46.8% of VGL and three seats on the six-seat board of directors.

In August, Volante announced a $7.6 million profit after tax and goodwill amortisation for the year to 30 June 2004, compared with $4.1 million for the previous year. This followed the acquisition of Ipex in February, which increased Volante's annual revenue by 55 per cent.