'Accomplished business leader' revealed as new chair of Glasgow cloud computing firm Iomart

Iomart, the Glasgow-headquartered cloud computing group, has appointed an “accomplished business leader” as its new chairman.

Lucy Dimes will become non-executive chair of the company on 30 August, taking over from Ian Steele, who previously announced that he would not be standing for re-election.

The firm described Dimes as an accomplished business leader having operated in senior executive positions in FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and private equity owned companies spanning telecoms, technology, business services and financial services. She is said to have “substantial experience in complex, highly regulated international markets in product innovation, market entry, scaling for growth and expansion”.

Dimes also sits on the board of defence and aerospace giant Babcock International Group and is an advisor to the specialist software developer Intelygenz. She previously sat on the board of Berendsen, a £1 billion-turnover textile services business, before it was acquired by Elis in 2017.

Iomart chief executive Reece Donovan said: “[Dimes’] considerable experience and insight will be invaluable to us as we continue to pursue a successful growth strategy. I very much look forward to working with her in the future.

“On behalf of the full company, I would like to thank Ian for his six years of first class commitment and service. He leaves with our best wishes.”

Dimes added: “The UK does not have many home grown technology businesses, and, over the last 20 years since its inception, Iomart has evolved to become one of the UK's largest and most successful independent providers of managed cloud computing services.

“I welcome this fantastic opportunity to work with Reece and the rest of the board to help realise the company’s full potential in the future.”

Iomart's chief executive Reece Donovan, above, said Lucy Dimes' considerable experience and insight will be invaluable to the company. Picture: Peter Devlin

Iomart recently got back on the acquisition trail, sealing the takeover of an IT provider in a deal worth up to £14.5 million.

Bosses said the acquisition of Concepta Capital, a holding business for a group of companies that includes the Leeds-based Oriium and Sheffield-based Pavilion IT brands, would add “new complementary solution capabilities and deep technical expertise” to the Scottish firm’s offering.

It is paying an initial cash consideration on completion of £10.5m. In addition, a deferred cash consideration of up to £4m will be payable dependent on the future profit performance of the Concepta business in the year to next June.

The deal is being financed through a combination of existing bank facilities and cash on the company’s balance sheet.

Donovan said the deal marked “the resumption of our M&A [merger and acquisition] activity in line with our strategic plans”.

In June, Iomart said it was having to pass on higher energy costs to customers but was confident businesses would continue to invest in their IT provision despite the economic squeeze.

Releasing full-year results in line with figures flagged in April, the firm said it continued to benefit from a “robust business model” delivering strong levels of recurring revenues, amounting to 93 per cent of group revenues. A reduction in overall revenue, to £103m from £111.9m a year earlier, reflected lower non-recurring equipment and consultancy sales, along with lower customer renewal levels at the start of the year, which have since returned to normal levels.