Red-M Appoints New CEO

Veteran IT entrepreneur takes the helm of wireless company –

David Richmond, a serial entrepreneur who has established successful companies in both the UK and USA, has been appointed CEO of Red-M Group Limited, formed by the April 2005 merger of Red-M (Communications) Ltd and CDS Ltd. Richmond had joined the board as a non-executive director of the Group at the time of the merger.

A 30-year software veteran, Richmond founded Striva Corporation in 1998 and sold it to Informatica in 2003 for $62m. His previous startups were Adrem Systems plc and Enhanced Software Products, Inc. He has also held several executive and non-executive directorships with early stage technology companies.

Mike McTighe, chairman of Red-M Group Limited, said, “David has an outstanding track record of building and growing technology businesses. He was attracted to Red-M by its technology assets, people skills and customer base.”

David Richmond said he believed Red-M’s Total Airspace Management offering was perfectly timed to meet the increasing need for wireless products and services as data and telephony converged. “Computer equipment is capable of increasingly sophisticated communication and telephony equipment is increasingly handling data. In this environment there is a greater need for managing wireless airspace, hence the rapid growth of the wireless sector. My focus is to ensure that Red-M continues to rapidly develop its portfolio of service and product offerings in this expanding market, and also extend existing customer relationships with organisations such as BAA, T-Mobile, O2, and British Land.”

Richmond’s appointment follows several changes to the board of Red-M Group Limited after the company decided to postpone an AIM flotation following a fall of 18% in the overall AIM index at the time. Karl Feilder, CEO of Red-M since 2002, has resigned his position, as have Simon Poulton, CFO, and Geoff Bristow, non-executive director, both of whom joined the board in preparation for flotation. The company plans to raise new funds for the development of the business through private equity finance.

Speaking of Feilder’s resignation, McTighe said, “Karl has made a significant contribution to the progress of Red-M Communications during the last two and a half years, refining its proposition and implementing the merger with CDS. We are grateful for his contribution.”

The Red-M Board now comprises:

. Mike McTighe – Chairman
. David Richmond – CEO
. Simon Saunders – CTO
. Michael Risman (Apax) – non-executive director
. Roger Jeynes (Interregnum) – non-executive director

Red-M Group Ltd:
The Red-M Group was created by the merger of Red-M (Communications) Ltd and CDS Ltd, founded in 1999 and 1995 respectively. The Group has a suite of wireless security products for public and private organisations of all sizes and offers a range of wireless consultancy, design and implementation services for complex, high-usage environments. Red-M was appointed a technology pioneer by the World Economic Forum for the third consecutive year in 2004.

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