Business Wire

TX-FORTERRO

17.2.2021 10:02:16 CET | Business Wire | Press release

Share
ERP Provider Forterro Announces New, Europe-Based Executives Amid Continued Growth

Forterro , a group of companies that deliver enterprise resource planning (ERP) software to small- and medium-sized businesses, today announced the appointment of two new executives to lead the company into a new phase of growth in its core market, Europe.

Dean Forbes, a longtime, U.K.-based software executive who was most recently the president of The Access Group, was named Forterro’s chief executive. Paul Smolinski, the former chief financial officer of HR and payroll software firm CoreHR, was named CFO. The two U.K.-based leaders have been tapped to continue Forterro’s growth strategy in Europe, working with the company’s strategic leadership teams across the group’s primary business units in France, Germany, Poland, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Forbes joins Forterro after an extensive career in executive and senior leadership roles for a number of international software companies. Most recently he led the growth and expansion of CoreHR, a UK HCM software provider, across Europe. CoreHR was acquired by The Access Group, where Forbes subsequently served as president and executive board member. Prior to CoreHR, Forbes was CEO of Paris-headquartered SaaS software company KDS, where he led the successful growth and international expansion of the firm, leading to its acquisition by American Express. Earlier in his career, Forbes held senior leadership roles at Philadelphia HQ’d Primavera Systems and, subsequently, Oracle where he was global vice president for sales and marketing for the PPM Division. Forbes brings this wealth of experience to Forterro and its acquired companies, which include abas Software (Germany); BPSC (Poland); Clip Industrie, Silog and Sylob (France); Jeeves and Infocube (Sweden); and ProConcept (Switzerland). Forterro is backed by global, technology-focused investment firm Battery Ventures.

“I am thrilled to become part of such a strong group of ERP companies, who are all successfully operating in one of the strongest, most steadily growing markets in enterprise software,” Forbes said. “The cornerstone of our ongoing success will be to continue investing in the market leadership positions of local and niche ERP software businesses throughout Europe. I am excited about leading the next stage of the Forterro journey as we look to continue to grow the business aggressively, both organically and through further acquisitions.”

“Bringing in new, Europe-based leadership is part of the natural evolution of Forterro,” said Dave Tabors, a Forterro board member and Battery Ventures private equity partner. “Former CEO Jeff Tognoni, former COO Scott Malia, and the rest of the U.S.-based Forterro leadership team have done an outstanding job of growing the business by evaluating, acquiring, and operating ERP companies. To push Forterro into its next stage of development, however, it is time to cultivate leadership talent in closer proximity to our business unit operations. We are very excited to work with Dean as he prepares Forterro for its next stage of growth.”

“We have spent the last several years working closely with our counterparts in Europe to build sustainable growth strategies and unique operating approaches for each business unit and product market,” added Jeff Tognoni, who is stepping down after leading Forterro and growing revenue more than seven-fold since the initial acquisition of Jeeves Information Systems in 2012. “The strength of our local teams and their businesses lets me know that part of our job is done, and that Forterro is ready for new challenges and continued success under the leadership of Dean and Paul.”

ABOUT FORTERRO

Forterro is a group of companies that deliver ERP software to SMEs in specialized geographical or vertical markets. Backed by the investment of Battery Ventures , Forterro operates business units in Sweden, Switzerland, France, Poland, and Germany, as well as regional office locations and research and development centers around the world. Through its ever-growing ecosystem of IP and capital, Forterro collaborates with local management teams to strengthen the solution offerings and operational performance of its portfolio companies. For more information, visit www.forterro.com .

ABOUT BATTERY VENTURES

Battery partners with exceptional founders and management teams developing category-defining businesses in markets including software and services, enterprise infrastructure, online marketplaces, healthcare IT and industrial technology. Founded in 1983, the firm backs companies at all stages, ranging from seed and early to growth and buyout, and invests globally from six strategic locations: Boston; San Francisco and Menlo Park, Calif.; Herzliya, Israel; London; and New York. Follow the firm on Twitter @BatteryVentures, visit our website at www.battery.com and find a full list of Battery's portfolio companies here.

About Business Wire

Business Wire
Business Wire
101 California Street, 20th Floor
CA 94111 San Francisco

http://businesswire.com

Subscribe to releases from Business Wire

Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Latest releases from Business Wire

Meta Signs Agreement With AWS to Power Agentic AI on AWS Graviton Chips24.4.2026 14:10:00 CEST | Press release

The deal helps power the agentic workloads behind Meta’s AI effortsKey takeaways The deployment starts with tens of millions of Graviton cores, with the potential to expand. Meta is now one of the largest Graviton customers in the world. The deal builds on Meta's long-standing AWS relationship and use of Amazon Bedrock at scale to support its next generation of AI. Meta has signed an agreement to deploy AWS Graviton processors at scale. The deal marks a significant expansion of a long-standing partnership between the two companies as Meta builds its next generation of AI. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260424641117/en/ The deployment starts with tens of millions of Graviton cores, with the flexibility to expand as Meta's AI capabilities grow. The deal reflects a shift in how AI infrastructure gets built: while GPUs remain essential for training large models, the rise of agentic AI is creating massive demand f

SLB Announces First-Quarter 2026 Results24.4.2026 12:50:00 CEST | Press release

Revenue of $8.72 billion increased 3% year on year GAAP EPS of $0.50 decreased 14% year on year EPS, excluding charges and credits, of $0.52 decreased 28% year on year Net income attributable to SLB of $752 million decreased 6% year on year Adjusted EBITDA of $1.77 billion decreased 12% year on year Cash flow from operations was $487 million Board approved quarterly cash dividend of $0.295 per share SLB (NYSE: SLB) today announced results for the first-quarter 2026. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260422463846/en/ The exterior of the SLB headquarters in Houston, Texas. First-Quarter Results(Stated in millions, except per share amounts)Three Months EndedChange Mar. 31, 2026 Dec. 31, 2025 Mar. 31, 2025 Sequential Year-on-year Revenue $8,721 $9,745 $8,490 -11% 3% Income before taxes - GAAP basis $956 $943 $1,063 1% -10% Income before taxes margin - GAAP basis 11.0% 9.7% 12.5% 129 bps -156 bps Net income attributa

Gamma Waves Launches: Playing Tomorrow’s Game Today24.4.2026 11:15:00 CEST | Press release

Gamma Waves, a permanent capital investment company, with the ambition to build an innovative sport-focused platform, launches today. Based in Amsterdam, the company was founded by Andrea Agnelli, Rocco Benetton and Giorgio Chiellini, with the aim of creating new value across: This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260424892627/en/ Gamma Waves Partners launched today, here is the team, including founders, Andrea Agnelli, Rocco Benetton and Giorgio Chiellini, along with Chief Investment Officer, Kyang YungSport IPs (Intellectual Properties): assets in globally captivating sectors such as basketball, hockey, cricket, tennis, baseball, rugby, etc., offering unique reach and credibility; Sports Tech: high-quality sports technology products that often struggle to scale because, on their own, they lack sufficient incentives and distribution to break through alongside IPs. Gamma Waves aims to bridge this gap by building a m

Sovereign AI for the World: Cohere and Aleph Alpha to Form Global AI Powerhouse as Nations and Enterprises Demand Control Over Their Technology24.4.2026 11:15:00 CEST | Press release

The companies of Schwarz Group Commit $600M (€500M) in Structured Financing to Further Accelerate Germany-Canada Sovereign AI Venture Cohere and Aleph Alpha, two trusted sovereign AI providers for governments and regulated industries, today announce their plan to join forces. This transatlantic alliance would combine Cohere’s global AI scale with Aleph Alpha’s strong research excellence and deep institutional relationships, forging a globally competitive AI champion backed by their Canadian and German ecosystems. The initiative reflects a shared vision: To provide the world with an independent, enterprise-grade sovereign alternative in an era of growing AI concentration and to ensure that organizations do not need to relinquish control over their own AI stack. The planned combined entity1 will function as a transatlantic AI powerhouse, anchored in Germany and Canada, empowering organizations to choose, deploy and govern AI according to local laws, cultural contexts, and institutional r

Porsche Sells Bugatti Stake to BlueFive Capital24.4.2026 10:00:00 CEST | Press release

Porsche has agreed to sell its equity stake in Bugatti Rimac. Porsche and Rimac Group established Bugatti Rimac as a joint venture in 2021 to serve as home to the iconic Bugatti brand. In this joint venture, Porsche holds a minority stake of 45%, Rimac Group owns 55%. Porsche also holds a 20.6% stake in Rimac Group. As part of the transaction announced today, Porsche will fully divest its equity stakes in Bugatti Rimac and Rimac Group to a HOF Capital-led consortium. This includes BlueFive Capital as its largest investor, as well as a group of institutional investors across the US and EU. Following completion, Rimac Group is set to take control of Bugatti Rimac and form a strategic partnership with BlueFive Capital and HOF Capital to support its continued growth. Hazem Ben-Gacem, Founder and Chief Executive of BlueFive Capital: “Bugatti is a monument to automotive obsession, born from Ettore Bugatti’s pursuit of beauty and performance combined. BlueFive Capital approaches this opportun

In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.

Visit our pressroom
World GlobeA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.HiddenA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.Eye