New CEO at BigHand Follows International Growth

BigHand, a provider of dictation software, has named Jon Ardron as CEO. The appointment reflects the broader scale of the business following successful growth into North America and the healthcare sector. The voice software vendor has just enjoyed a record sales quarter and a customer base that has continued to grow significantly despite the recession, with more than200 new organizations installing BigHand software globally.

Jon Ardron spent his early career at a software business owned by Bank of America. He joined the board of Thomas Cook Group as group CIO and managing director of e-business, and was part of the team that transformed the business. Since then Jon has worked in a variety of technology-enabled, high-growth businesses, including financial services business BGL Group, where he drove the uptake of Internet and voice technology that doubled customer numbers to more than 2.3 million, lowered costs, and quadrupled profits. Jon has a bachelor's degree in physics from Cambridge and an master's from London Business School.

“What first struck me about BigHand was the steady growth in new clients during a period that has remained testing for every software provider," Ardron said. "And when you dig down, what becomes apparent is a total commitment within the business to ensure every voice software implementation delivers value. It is clear the effort and talent at BigHand, alongside the quality of its software, is truly appreciated by its customer base. This gives us a great foundation of success on which to build and innovate, and it is imperative we remain true to those successful ideals as we drive growth further.”