Vinodka "Vin" Murria OBE (born 1962) is a British businesswoman and founder of Advanced Computer Software where she was CEO until it was acquired in 2015.[1] Prior to that she was founder and CEO of Computer Software Group Plc, acquired by Hellman&Friedman in 2007.[citation needed] She works as an investor/advisor to HgCapital.[2][3]

Vin Murria
Born
Vinodka Murria

1962 (age 61–62)
Punjab, India
NationalityBritish
EducationUniversity of London
OccupationBusinesswoman

In 2018, Murria received an OBE for services to the British digital economy, as well as for advancing women in the software sector.[3]

Early life

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Murria was born in Punjab, India, and moved to the United Kingdom at the age of three.[1] She received a first class BSc in computer science and an MBA from the University of London.[2]

Career

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Murria began her career at Kewill Systems. When she left the company in 2001, she had risen to the role of group chief operating officer.[citation needed]

Following her time at Kewill, she started her own journey with a shell company, Computer Software Group in 2002. The Group was taken private with HG Capital in April 2007 merged with Iris software and sold to Hellman & Friedman for £500m in July 2007.[1]

Murria has been a partner at Elderstreet Investments since 2002.[1]

In 2008, Murria founded Advanced Computer Software Group.[1] In 2015 she sold the business for £765 million to Vista Equity Partners and subsequently it was sold again in Sept 2019 for £2Bn with Vista and BC Partners now the owners. [4][5]

Murria has also been appointed to sit on various boards.[6][7][8][9] She currently sits on the boards of Bunzl Plc (FTSE 100), Softcat Plc (FTSTE 250) and Silicon Valley Bank. Previous NED roles include Chime Plc, Zoopla Plc, and SophosPlc.[citation needed]

In September 2018, Murria joined Pythagoras Communications as a major shareholder and chairperson.[10] The business was acquired by E&Y in May 2021.[citation needed]

In May 2020, Murria became the largest shareholder in M&C Saatchi, and subsequently with her vehicle ADVT extended the holding to 22.3% of the enlarged company.[citation needed] In September 2022, it was announced Murria's bid to acquire M&C Saatchi was rejected by shareholders.[11]

Awards

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Murria was named Woman of the Year at the 2012 Cisco Everywoman in Technology Awards and Entrepreneur of the Year at the 2012 AIM Awards.[1][12][13] She was also named Aim Plc CEO of the Year in 2013,[citation needed] and UK Tech Awards 2013 Tech Personality of the Year (shared with David Braben, CEO of Frontier Developments).[14] In 2014 Advanced was named Technology company of the Year.[citation needed] She was awarded an honorary doctorate by Edinburgh Napier University.[2]

Philanthropy

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Murria founded the PS Foundation in 2007 to help educate young women in India and the UK.[15] The foundation is named after her mother.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g Medland, Dina (20 September 2012). "Chief executive says 'thank you' everyday". Financial Times. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Vinodka Murria: Executive Profile & Biography". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  3. ^ a b Cook, James (29 December 2017). "Here are all the UK tech figures named in the Queen's New Year's Honours list". Business Insider. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  4. ^ Levy, Danielle. "Tech entrepreneur Murria buys major broker stake". Wealth Manager. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  5. ^ Ralph, Alex (15 May 2017). "Murria drops in with Finncap stake". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  6. ^ Williams, Christopher (13 November 2015). "Softcat chiefs cash in as company surges on stock market debut". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  7. ^ Ruthven, Hunter (22 June 2015). "Zoopla secure serial entrepreneur Vin Murria as non-executive director". Real Business. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  8. ^ "Sophos Appoints Vin Murria to Its Board of Directors". www.sophos.com. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  9. ^ "TAINA Technology proud to welcome Vin Murria to its Strategic Advisory Board | The Fintech Times". 27 November 2017. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  10. ^ "Pythagoras Announce Vin Murria as Investor and Strategic Advisor". www.prnewswire.co.uk. Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  11. ^ "Vin Murria's final offer for M&C Saatchi rejected by shareholders". The Drum. Retrieved 2 May 2023.
  12. ^ "Cisco everywoman in Technology Awards: The winners' stories". ComputerWeekly.com. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Vin Murria is named Entrepreneur of the Year at AIM Awards 2012". AccountingWEB. 17 October 2012. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  14. ^ MarketScreener (22 November 2013). "Advanced Computer Software Group PLC : Advanced Computer Software Group CEO, Vin Murria is named Tech Personality of the Year 2013 | MarketScreener". www.marketscreener.com. Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  15. ^ Vaz, Keith. "Vin Murria". www.asian-voice.com. Retrieved 7 March 2019.