After CEO, Persistent Systems brings another HARMAN exec to top leadership

Pune based information technology (IT) services firm Persistent Systems has appointed former HARMAN International executive Charles Owen as its chief corporate development officer.

Owen will work closely with CEO and executive director Sandeep Kalra to guide the company’s corporate strategy, according to a statement.

In October, Persistent Systems elevated Kalra as the CEO of the company. He was previously the executive director and president of the technology services unit at the company and replaced Christopher O’Connor, who resigned from the post in August citing personal reasons. Prior to joining Persistent Systems in May 2019, Kalra was senior vice president and general manager at HARMAN Connected Systems.

“Charles brings the global perspective we require, as we continue to grow organically and through acquisitions around the world. We see great opportunity to add to our portfolio, making smart acquisitions to continue to enhance our customer offerings,” Kalra said.

Until recently, Owen was the partner of Ev2 Ventures, a smart mobility-focused early-stage investment firm he founded in 2018. Prior to Ev2, he led mergers and acquisitions at HARMAN International.

“This is an exciting time to be joining Persistent, with its impressive growth, extensive global presence and expanding solutions portfolio. Persistent’s leadership in delivering digital solutions, its impressive client portfolio and partner ecosystem present a great market opportunity and one I’m excited to help develop,” Owen said.

Charles will be a member of Persistent’s executive team and will be based out of Atlanta, Georgia.

The company reported an 18.5% increase in net profit on a year-on-year basis for the quarter ending September 30. Net profit stood at Rs 102 crore for the quarter while its revenues grew to Rs 1,000.7 crore, a 13.9% rise over the corresponding quarter in the previous year.

Persistent Systems increased its revenue share from the BFSI (banking, financial services and insurance) segment with 31.9% revenues coming from the sector for Q2 of FY 2020-21, as compared to 28.4% revenue contribution from the segment in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year. At the time, the company it had set up a global technology centre to deliver product modernization and support, as well as partnered with a banking consortium in Europe for business continuity planning during the quarter. 

Earlier this month, the company had announced the acquisition of middleware technology company CAPIOT and its subsidiaries in Australia, India and Singapore for $6.34 million.