Graeme Watt has given himself a well-earned three months off after ending his five-year stint as Softcat CEO.
Watt served his last day in the role yesterday, and will now move into the chairman seat previously occupied by predecessor Martin Hellawell.
Former CFO Graham Charlton will now fill Watt’s shoes following a 15-month handover process (Watt first announced he was stepping aside last May)
In a Linked In post, Watt said he will now have “three months focused on having fun and see what’s what thereafter”.
“I have enjoyed all my roles and companies to a greater or lesser extent but Softcat has been my standout favourite role and company,” Watt wrote.
During Watt’s stint in charge, Softcat’s top line more than doubled from £1.02bn (in its fiscal 2018) to £2.51bn (in its fiscal 2022).
His role change follows Softcat’s year end for a fiscal period in which it posted more muted gross invoiced income growth of 4.9% per cent in 1H. Its full-year results are due out in October.
“I have no plans so if you think I could help in some way then I would love to hear from you. In the meantime have a great summer and I hope to keep in touch with all you lovely people in this fantastic IT industry,” Watt concluded.
Charlton joined Softcat in 2015 following five years as Finance Director at Compare the Market.
“The prospects for us and our industry are as strong as ever, and becoming CEO next year will be a privilege and an honour,” Charlton said at the time his appointment was first announced.
