Digital consultancy xDesign has appointed two tech industry heavyweights to boost its growth plans.
Grant Thomas has joined the Edinburgh-headquartered tech firm as chief commercial officer (CCO), with Susheel Dodeja joining as director of business development.
It follows a year of momentum for xDesign which has seen it secure minority investment from Soho Square Capital and join forces with innovation and design company CreateFuture.
The appointments will ‘continue the work the company has done to bolster its offering in the market’ – each bringing experience in the financial services and public sector, respectively.
Both have joined xDesign from competitor BJSS where Grant was a board director responsible for sales and marketing, and Susheel as head of presale, having also previously led its public sector, health and commodities practices.
Together they were part of the team that steered the company to revenues of over £250m in eight years, whilst building it into the international consulting business it is today.
Euan Andrews, founder and CEO, xDesign, said: “This year has seen us make a number of strategic decisions, each preparing the way for us to meet ambitious growth targets. Securing minority investment from Soho Capital; our joining of forces with CreateFuture, and now the appointment of Grant and Susheel can all be seen as important milestones on our growth journey.
“In making these latest appointments, we now have two senior figures that not only bring a wealth of proven leadership experience but also provide us with the knowledge and expertise we need to expand and consolidate our footprint in a number of important industry sectors. Both are also huge advocates of the award-winning people-first culture we’ve built here at xDesign – one that continues to unleash the potential of our people, clients and the communities we collaborate with.”
As part of his new role, Grant will be responsible for growing and strengthening xDesign’s business development team, whilst also supporting its marketing and client partnership functions to build a scalable platform for demand generation.
Grant said: “I’m joining xDesign at an extremely pivotal moment in its growth journey. It’s an organisation known for the quality of its work, a collaborative and multidisciplinary approach to delivery, and an award-winning culture – one that puts its own people, its clients, and the communities it works within, front and centre. This combination is the perfect starting point when it comes to building a digital consultancy that can add so much more value to people’s lives – whether clients or end users.
“I’ve worked with Susheel for the past eight years and between us we have a raft of experience and approaches that will support xDesignin reaching new audiences in a variety of industry sectors – financial services and the public sector being just two of these.”
In joining xDesign, Susheel will work with its extended leadership team to focus on structuring its go-to-market and growth approaches. He’ll be focused on consolidating the company’s profile in the industries it already works within, whilst driving greater awareness of it in those that it’s looking to make a bigger impact within.
Susheel, added: “xDesign’s phenomenal growth to date can be attributed to its strong belief in the power of company culture, its unwavering focus on employee wellbeing, and its proven track record of technical excellence. These are all elements which perfectly align with my own values and which I believe give us an edge in what can sometimes seem like a largely homogenous digital consulting market.
“I’m particularly excited to put my experience of working with public sector clients to good use – supporting the company in making positive impacts on the lives of those using vital public services. I’ll be playing an active role in leading the xDesign charge into new sectors as well as helping it to provide more value in those it’s already serving.”