Sage boss heads for the exit as group nears his revenue targets
SHARES in business software group Sage fell 5.3 per cent yesterday after the firm revealed that chief executive Guy Berruyer is retiring within the next year.
Berruyer, who has led Sage for four years and worked at the firm for 17, said “life is about making choices, and at 63 years old I still have many things I want to achieve besides my executive career”.
Sage said the board has started searching for his replacement ahead of Berruyer’s departure no later than 31 March 2015.
The FTSE 100 firm also reported half-year profits of £165m, compared to a loss of £8m a year ago when the firm booked £180m disposal charges.
Organic revenues rose 4.9 per cent to £657m. Berruyer said the firm will have met a target of six per cent growth by the time he leaves. “Odd timing in our view… After 17 years with Sage, it seems surprising that he does not want to hang on for the last few months to see if he delivers,” said Numis analysts.