Supply chain software firm JDA Software Group Inc. said late Monday that Chairman and CEO Baljit Dail had stepped down and was replaced by former Tyco International executive Girish Rishi.
Rishi, who assumed the CEO position effective immediately, said in a statement that he plans to build stronger partnerships with other software providers to help Scottsdale, Ariz.-based JDA capitalize on such trends as omnichannel fulfillment and the Internet of Things (IoT). Rishi served as executive vice president at Tyco International, responsible for the firm's global retail solutions and North American building automation business. Previously, he was senior vice president for the Enterprise division of Motorola Solutions Inc.
Dail will remain at privately held JDA through the first quarter of 2017 and will continue as a senior advisor to New Mountain Capital, JDA's owner. JDA received a $575 million investment last August from New Mountain and private equity giant The Blackstone Group. At the time, JDA was rumored to be on the verge an acquisiton by Honeywell International Inc., the Morris Plains, N.J.-based conglomerate, as JDA struggled to support a $2 billion debt load. The combined investment was a signal to the marketplace that JDA was not for sale.
JDA said it chose Rishi as CEO for his extensive experience working with retail supply chain companies including retailers, transportation and logistics companies, and manufacturing organizations. The statement did not address the reasons behind Dail's departure; he spent three years at JDA.
JDA named Michael Capellas, CEO of tech advisory firm Capellas Partners, to succeed Dail as chairman. Capellas, a software industry veteran, joined the JDA board in October. The company also named Lloyd (Buzz) Waterhouse as vice chairman of the board. Waterhouse joined the JDA board and New Mountain Capital as a senior advisor in 2015, following a position as CEO of McGraw-Hill Education.
