Ixchange establishes Management Services arm to support business model

JSE-listed Ixchange group has announced the formation of Ixchange Management Services, headed up by Rob Katz. Ixchange Management Services will operate as a tactical, operational arm of Ixchange, delivering services in the areas of strategic business planning, HR, IT, legal and financial services and facilities management.

Aside from servicing Ixchange`s corporate requirements, Ixchange Management Services` primary focus will be to transfer its operational expertise to the group`s South African operations, in particular its new ventures within its recently announced Incubator division.

"The Incubator is strategic to our future," says Ixchange CEO Derek Kreunen, "allowing us to identify and bring to market the leading software companies of tomorrow.

"However, Incubator companies are generally characterised by entrepreneurs who do not necessarily have the requisite operational expertise to nurture a start-up from concept to business success. Ixchange Management Services will allow these young companies to focus on their core business functions of product development, sales and marketing and customer services without being distracted by operational matters.

"As a team, we`ve learnt - and continue to learn - a lot about building successful software businesses, and in the process we`ve developed many practices that Ixchange Management Services will transfer to our new ventures, accelerating them up the learning curve and shortening their time to market. This includes planning processes, implementation and review, business integration, and focus on return on investment," adds Kreunen.

Katz relinquishes his former position as VP International Operations of Ixchange subsidiary GoldMine Software Corporation to assume his new role as MD, Ixchange Management Services with immediate effect. He will also be involved in the assimilation of all new acquisitions into the group, including project management of the operational delivery components.

"Organisations such as Cisco and Microsoft have an outstanding track record in mergers and acquisitions," notes Katz. "We will distill their, and other companies`, best practices and, where appropriate, adopt and implement them. This will help us accelerate and maximise the benefits of the acquisition process for all stakeholders."

Katz, who previously was also responsible for the launch of Microsoft in South Africa, has spent the past two years driving the international expansion of Ixchange subsidiary, GoldMine Software Corporation. GoldMine is now solidly represented in the Asia-Pacific and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) regions and has started initiatives in Latin America. Key people have been appointed to manage each area of focus.