Chip giant that bought Edinburgh's Wolfson for £300m appoints new boss

Cirrus Logic, the US-headquartered chip designer that bought Edinburgh-based Wolfson for almost £300 million in 2014, has appointed John Forsyth as its new boss.

During the latest quarter, Cirrus Logic expanded the number of smartphones, tablets and wearables that are utilising its technology. Picture: Philip Toscano/PA Wire

Forsyth, who graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1995, joined the firm in 2014 as a result of the Wolfson acquisition and has more than 20 years’ experience in embedded technology. He was named as the company’s president in January and will now take on the role of chief executive from 1 January.

Current chief executive Jason Rhode will remain at Cirrus as an executive fellow where he will work with Forsyth following the transition of his responsibilities, as well as continuing to be directly involved in “customer relationships and talent development” within the group.

Forsyth said: “I am excited and honoured to become the next chief executive of Cirrus Logic. We have an extremely talented team with an extraordinary commitment to serving customers who create the world’s most innovative products.

“I believe that our strategic plan will continue to bring innovations that strengthen the company’s leadership position in audio and extend our success to new technology areas.

“I look forward to working closely with our board of directors, leadership team, employees and customers as we continue to fulfil our vision of being the first choice in signal processing.”

Prior to joining Wolfson in 2012, Forsyth had led product development and strategy in several technology companies, including serving as chief technical officer of the Symbian Foundation and as vice president of strategy at Symbian Software.

Rhode added: “Leading Cirrus Logic for these past 13 years has been the privilege of a lifetime. We have built a great organisation with cutting-edge engineering, outstanding employees and great relationships with some of the best customers in the world.

“As president, John has done a tremendous job leading the company. He has the passion, vision, leadership expertise and team necessary to be highly successful as CEO, and I am excited to continue working with him in our new roles.”

Since the takeover of Wolfson, Cirrus has moved its Edinburgh operation to the city centre Quartermile development having previously been based in offices near the BT Murrayfield stadium.

Meanwhile, Cirrus posted revenues of $347.3 million (£268.5m) for its second quarter to the end of September, beating expectations. Revenue is expected to range between $440m and $480m in the third quarter.

Rhode said: “Cirrus Logic delivered revenue above the high end of guidance in the September quarter. We experienced solid sales across the breadth of our product portfolio, with particularly strong demand for components shipping in smartphones.

“During the quarter, we were pleased to have expanded the number of smartphones, tablets and wearables that are utilising our technology. The company also reached several meaningful development milestones that we believe will fuel product diversification and growth opportunities in the coming years.”

In addition, the company announced that David Tupman will become chair of the board of directors, succeeding Al Schuele ahead of his retirement prior to the next annual meeting of shareholders.

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