NTT DATA UK loses CEO

NTT DATA UK announced that its current CEO, Simon Williams, will be exiting the business.

Williams has led NTT DATA UK for the past five years, more than doubling the size of the business and increasing its profitability by a factor of 10. He will remain as the CEO of NTT DATA UK until 31 March 2022.

Williams’ involvement with NTT DATA dates back to 2011 when the IT services provider acquired his former business, Value Team. He then went on to become Head of Telco, Media and Technology for NTT DATA UK and helped to create NTT DATA Digital, before becoming CEO of the organisation in 2017.

Since becoming CEO, Williams has driven rapid growth of the NTT DATA UK business, delivering the latest Mid-Term Plan two years early. He has expanded the business’ value propositions, led the company as it entered new markets, and secured investment for the organisation, with the Japanese parent group investing more than £68million in the UK. Most importantly, Williams has built a strong culture, focused on teamwork, trust and quality, and has been a vocal champion for diversity and inclusion, with NTT DATA being recognised as a Financial Times Diversity Leader in 2022.

Walter Ruffinoni, CEO at NTT DATA EMEA, commented: “I would like to thank Simon for the transformation he has delivered to the UK business, first as the Head of Telecoms and Media and then NTT DATA UK CEO. When Simon took over as CEO, five years ago, he inherited a number of legacy businesses, each with their own cultures and suffering from a persistent lack of investment. He leaves a growing, profitable business with a single, strong and supportive culture that is well placed to deliver the planned growth over the coming years. The results speak for themselves, as NTT DATA UK is now one of the fastest-growing and most profitable operations in NTT DATA.”

Williams said: “I’m incredibly proud of the team and what we have managed to achieve as a business. We have achieved our latest three-year plan within its first year, and that is all down to the effort put in by our staff, the quality of delivery that we provide and the fantastic relationships we have built with our clients and partners. I am most proud of building a single, inclusive culture across NTT DATA UK, where people are not afraid to dream big and challenge one another. Our success has been all down to our people pulling in the same direction and going beyond to deliver exceptional results for our clients.

He said he was now looking forward to “starting a new chapter”.