QBS Software has added Kevin James and Alex Tatham to its leadership team in a move compared to “signing Messi and Ronaldo”.
The former MDs Computacenter UK and Westcoast have joined the software distributor – which is chasing $1bn in revenues – in the roles of Independent Non Executive Director and Strategic Board advisor, respectively.
Headquartered in London, QBS has stepped up its international expansion drive in 2024, acquiring in South Africa in April and Hungary in June. Its revenues hit £167.6m in its fiscal 2023.
Tatham only left Westcoast in July following news of the UK’s largest distributor’s decision to join forces with mainland European peer ALSO.
James spent 17 years at Computacenter from 2005 to 2022, most recently as its Group Chief Commercial Officer (serving as UK MD between 2015 and 2017).
Dream team
In a statement, QBS Software CEO Dave Stevinson said he had known the duo for “many years”, adding that their knowledge will help with the distributor’s acquisition pipeline.
“I am looking forward to having their vision, talent and boundless enthusiasm alongside us here at QBS as we accelerate our execution on global expansion,” he said.
In his role, Tatham will focus on driving QBS Software’s growth initiatives, strengthening relationships with partners, expanding its distribution portfolio with new publishers, and further embedding the company into the hyper scaler marketplaces, QBS said.
James, meanwhile, is tasked with “providing strategic guidance to the executive team, enhancing the company’s profile within the broader software sector, and supporting key initiatives in market positioning, strategic partnerships, M&A activity, and overall sales and marketing strategy”.
“QBS is a business that the UK can be truly proud of,” Tatham said.
“Using my time to boost QBS’s strategy and partner engagement is right in my locker and of course, tremendously exciting.”
James added: “With ambitious plans for growth and expansion we are ideally positioned and destined for great things through our unique platform for delivery of software and a commitment to delivering excellent service for our channel partners. I’m very proud to be playing my part to enable the accelerated growth plan.”
“This is as huge as bringing Messi and Ronaldo to your team at the same time,” QBS account director Martin Clarke remarked upon hearing the news.
