Infor names Bruce Richardson Chief Strategy Officer

Software industry veteran Bruce Richardson, who is currently chief research officer at AMR Research, will join Infor as chief strategy officer. Richardson will report to Jim Schaper, Infor chairman and chief executive officer (CEO). In addition to his role with Infor, he will serve as a strategic advisor to Golden Gate Capital, Infor's largest shareholder.

"As a student of the market for the last 30 years, I understand the dynamics of the business software marketplace -- the forces that are driving the industry and shifting the balance of power in favor of customers," said Richardson. "Infor gets it. Their leadership is changing how business software providers engage with customers. It's amazing what Infor has been able to accomplish in seven years -- a large and loyal customer base, a global footprint, an exciting lineup of products, a great management team and a bright future with enormous growth opportunities."

As chief research officer at AMR Research, Richardson oversaw all aspects of analysis at the company, including opinions and reporting of key trends and strategies in areas such as ERP, supply chain management, cloud computing, service-oriented architectures, software-as-a-service, software appliances, virtualization and visualisation. Richardson has covered and analyzed the enterprise software market for decades and made many early market predictions that have since proven accurate, such as the rise of the advanced planning market and the evolution of manufacturing resource planning (MRP) to enterprise resource planning (ERP).

Richardson's insights and perspectives on the enterprise software market, and particularly his knowledge of customer needs and requirements, will continue to differentiate Infor as a software provider that consistently listens to its customers. Richardson will continue to share his insights and opinions at www.infor.com in his "An Insider's View" weekly blog.

"Throughout the last two decades, there is no individual who has more closely followed every significant business software company in the world than Bruce Richardson. His joining our world-class team is a significant endorsement," said Schaper. "Bruce is also one of the best trend-spotters in the business and will play a key role as we continue building our business through organic and acquisitive growth."

Infor's Manifesto: At Infor, we work with a core belief. We believe in the customer. We believe that the customer is seeking a better, more collaborative relationship with their business software provider. And a new breed of business software: created for evolution, not revolution. Software that's simple to buy, easy to deploy and convenient to manage. Our 8,000+ employees in more than 100 countries and 70,000 customers stand with us. We look forward to your sharing in the results of our belief. There is a better way.