Ivan Epstein

Ivan Epstein, Chief Executive Officer, Sage AAMEA (Africa, Australia, Middle East and Asia), Chairman Sage Foundation. He leads Sage’s businesses across Africa, Australia, the Middle East and Asia, a territory which includes some of the fastest-growing markets for business solutions in the world. He is one of three operational CEOs in the Sage Group and serves on the Sage Executive Committee which is responsible for the strategic direction and continued growth of the Sage Group internationally. In addition, Ivan serves as the Chairman of the Sage Foundation, which provides support to non-profit organisations and communities around the world by sharing Sage resources with them. The Foundation’s 2+2+2 community model involves donating 2% of employee time each year, 2% of free cash flow and 2 of Sage’s smart technology products for any charity, social enterprise or non-profit organisation. Ivan began his career at Price Waterhouse Coopers before co-founding Softline in 1988. He led the company’s growth from a start-up to a listing on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in 1997. Sage acquired Softline in 2003 and appointed Ivan to its executive committee as CEO for Southern Hemisphere countries. Sage appointed Ivan to his current position in 2010. Ivan was awarded the Ernst and Young ‘South Africa’s Best Entrepreneur’ in 1999/2000, and appointed to the panel of judges where he has served for an extended period in selecting many of SA’s entrepreneurs. In addition he was awarded SA’s ‘IT Personality of the Year’ in 2009.