SAP has announced the appointment of Ryan Poggi as Managing Director, SAP UK & Ireland. Poggi picks up the role vacated by Michiel Verhoeven, who left at the beginning of the year and will join Xceptor as CEO in April. Ian Wahlers, the current Chief Operating Officer for SAP UK & Ireland, temporarily held the position. Therefore, Poggi will hope he is the 14th to hold the role in the last sixteen years rather than an unlucky thirteenth.
Poggi will be based in London and report to Rohit Nagarajan, President of EMEA North at SAP. Poggi joined SAP in 2007 from Swicon and has held various leadership positions across Europe, the Middle East and Asia. He is no stranger to the UK and Ireland, as he was COO for UKI between 2019 and 2021. More recently, Poggi was SVP Cloud & Chief Business Officer for EMEA North. He launched and built the regional RISE Business across 5 markets in that role.
He also stepped into the role of acting MD of France and helped grow the cloud business by 100% year over year during his tenure there. It seems likely that Poggi is a solid choice for the role, trusted by Nagarajan. He may also have a short tenure as he is a rapidly rising star in SAP.
Rohit Nagarajan, President of EMEA North at SAP, said: “We’re pleased to welcome Ryan back to the UK and Ireland. He previously demonstrated his relevance and impact in serving the commitments of SAP’s customers, partners, and teams in this market. His solid expertise in the development of our cloud business, as well as his leadership skills, are all assets we need to consolidate the foundations of SAP UKI and maximise the opportunities ahead.”
Poggi is back
During his previous stint in the UK, Poggi was also a board member for Enactus UK. The non-profit is a community of student, academic and business leaders enabling progress through entrepreneurial action. Guided by academic advisers and business experts, the 3,000 student leaders of Enactus UK from 57 Universities create and implement community empowerment projects and business ventures in communities around the World.
Poggi has a passion for inspiring and empowering the next generation of talent. He sees business as a catalyst for positive social and environmental impact. It will be interesting to see which initiatives he advocates and whether he rejoins Enactus or another non-profit now he is back in London.
Poggi commented: “I’m delighted to be taking on this role at a hugely exciting time for the UKI business. We are privileged to have some of the most innovative customers and one of the most dynamic partner ecosystems here in the UKI. The opportunity ahead of us cannot be overstated; to be the UKI’s most trusted technology partner, by coming together as one ecosystem and driving customer value.”
Enterprise Times: What does this mean
Nagarajan has put the UKI business into a pair of trusted hands. That he has chosen Poggi, a proven leader who already has experience working in the UK and will no doubt already have relationships with employees, customers, and partners, will bring a level of continuity to the role at a critical time.
SAP needs to continue persuading customers to migrate to its cloud solutions. Poggi will be able to hit the ground running. What will be as interesting is how he evolves the UK operation now he is in charge. Verhoeven has been the voice of engagement over the last two years. What will Poggi’s style bring? The voice of the future?
