SYDNEY (August 09, 2011) – SugarCRM, the world’s fastest-growing Customer Relationship Management (CRM) company, announced that, in response to continuing success in the Asia-Pacific region, Tony Hughes has been added to the company leadership as managing director of SugarCRM Australia Pty. Ltd.
A proven leader in the technology and software industries in Australia, Tony is also recognised as the creator of the unique sales methodology that is the subject of an acclaimed book, The Joshua Principle: Leadership Secrets of RSVPselling.
“There are growing segments of businesses in this region that are clamouring for CRM as they add customers and seek to reduce churn,” said Hughes. “Flexibility and affordability are watchwords, and that’s what SugarCRM delivers along with unrivalled ease of use and business value.”
Hughes’ arrival coincides with another quarter of remarkable growth for SugarCRM in the Rest of the World (ROW) segment, which is dominated by Asia. Second quarter billings rose by 41 per cent over the first quarter of 2011 and by 30 per cent over the same quarter in 2010.
The company’s customer numbers for ROW have ballooned by 47 per cent in a year, and the end of Q2 2011 saw Sugar with 29 per cent more customers in the region than at the end of Q1.
“The momentum in the Asia-Pacific region is clearly on Sugar’s side, and it’s a testimony to both the completeness of the product and its flexibility to adapt to unique local business conditions,” said Larry Augustin, chief executive officer. “Tony’s arrival is only going to intensify what has gone on in the previous two quarters in APAC.”
A Global Phenomenon
The numbers in the Asia-Pacific region reflect the company’s explosive global growth, which saw billings leap 58 per cent over the same quarter in 2010 and grow 21 per cent from the first quarter of 2011. North American billings grew by 63 per cent over the same quarter in 2010 and the Europe-Middle East-Africa (EMEA) region billings grew by 64 per cent. It also marked the company’s third consecutive cash-positive quarter.
Chmyz Bolsters Leadership as CFO
To support the company’s rapid growth and help manage its international expansion, Sugar also added Andrew Chmyz as chief financial officer. Chmyz brings with him experience as CFO at publicly-traded software company Marimba, CRM vendor Medallia and other technology companies, as well as strong operating experience from his role as chief operating officer at Concentric Medical, where he launched their international sales operations.
“Joining SugarCRM now in the midst of this growth is incredibly exciting,” Chmyz said. “I’m looking forward to making my contribution to the company’s story as it grows and continues to earn loyal users.”
Sales Channel Partners Flocking to SugarCRM
Another continuing pattern is the growth of SugarCRM’s sales channel partners. In the second quarter, Sugar gained 25 new partners, raising the total of partners worldwide to 288. That number is one-third higher than the number of SugarCRM partners at the end of the second quarter of last year.
“Our partners create momentum for the entire SugarCRM ecosystem,” said Doug Erickson, vice president, Asia Pacific. “Business needs are different in Asia and Australia than they are in North America, and our partners’ reach and expertise
“This quarter we have seen a really positive shift in the way customers are approaching CRM.
“Direct Couriers has been using the SugarCRM online platform since May 2011 to more effectively coordinate the efforts of our national sales team. We can now review what our team is working on and have useful, accurate reports at the click of a button,” said Bonnie McRae, national marketing manager for Direct Couriers. “We have found the InsightfulCRM customer support team to be very helpful, and we get prompt answers to any questions we have.”
About SugarCRM
SugarCRM makes CRM simple. As the world’s fastest growing customer relationship management (CRM) company, SugarCRM applications have been downloaded more than seven million times and currently serve over 800,000 end users in 80 languages. Over 7,000 customers have chosen SugarCRM’s On-Site and Cloud Computing services over proprietary alternatives. SugarCRM has been recognised for its customer success and product innovation by CRM Magazine, InfoWorld, Customer Interaction Solutions and Intelligent Enterprise. For more information, call (408) 454-6900 or 1 87 SUGARCRM toll-free in the US, email contact@sugarcrm.com, or visit http://www.sugarcrm.com.
Source: SugarCRM