Perth dealmaker Geoff Lewis has once again tapped his football connections to help with business, signing up former Eagles coach Adam Simpson as a director of ASX-hopeful Stepchange Holdings.
Perth dealmaker Geoff Lewis has once again tapped his football connections to help with business, signing up former West Coast Eagles coach Adam Simpson as a director of ASX-hopeful Stepchange Holdings.
Mr Simpson joined the Stepchange board in October last year, just four months after the company was established.
Its plans for an ASX listing have emerged, somewhat hazily, from an east coast roadshow Mr Lewis is conducting with broking firm Ord Minnett.
The company is looking to raise $17 million in an initial public offering and, it is understood, will use the proceeds to acquire Perth-based IT firm Stepchange Consultants, which specialises in implementing SAP software.
Mr Lewis brings extensive experience with ASX listings, M&A deals and the IT sector to Stepchange.
He led Perth-based IT firm ASG Group for two decades until its sale to Japan’s Nomura Research Institute in a $350 million deal in 2016.
Since leaving ASG, he has been non-executive chairman of ASX-listed digital asset management company COSOL.
Until November last year, COSOL’s managing director was former North Melbourne player and board chairman Ben Buckley.
That’s the same AFL club where Mr Simpson had a successful playing career, racking up 306 games between 1995 and 2009.
The common link is that Mr Lewis also spent time as a director at North Melbourne.
The Stepchange board position adds to several new roles Mr Simpson has taken on since retiring as West Coast Eagles coach last year.
He has worked as a football analyst on radio, joined finance group Paywise as a business development and brand ambassador and owns three Hungry Jacks franchises.
The Stepchange Holdings board also includes Shane Bransby, who lists his current role on Linkedin as managing director of the company.
His past experience includes being a strategy and M&A executive at ASG Group.
That’s another example of Mr Lewis staying close to his hold networks.
The COSOL board includes former ASG director Stephen Johnston and former strategy executive Gerald Strautins.
The consulting business that Stepchange Holdings is looking to acquire traces its history back to 2003, when it was owned by Peter and Kathryn Court.
Since 2014, it has been owned and run by directors Jason Nesa and Kim Carroll.
The business has 38 employees, according to Linkedin, and annual revenue of $42 million.
It has been an SAP partner since inception in 2003 and describes itself as the longest independent local SAP partner.
Business News approached Stepchange Consultants and Mr Lewis for comment but they did not respond.
