RESTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ellucian, the leading provider of higher education software and services, today announced key leadership changes designed to further support Ellucian’s transformation to the cloud. After a long career in technology and successful tenure at Ellucian, Jeff Ray is retiring from his role as president and chief executive officer (CEO) and will continue to serve on the company’s board as chairman emeritus. Board member Peter Sinisgalli will oversee Ellucian’s executive team as executive chairman, and work with company management during the search for its next CEO. Additionally, Namita Dhallan has been named chief product officer (CPO), and will lead Ellucian’s product management, user experience and research and development teams.
During his tenure, Ray led Ellucian through the most transformative period in the company’s history; including the introduction of the Ellucian Ethos Platform, and the transition to a cloud-ready product portfolio designed to meet the complex needs of higher education institutions. Ray also has been a committed partner and advocate for innovative institutions, including Southern New Hampshire University and Mercer County Community College, which both have recently chosen Ellucian’s SaaS-based ERP solutions. In his new role as chairman emeritus, Ray will continue to advise the company and support Ellucian’s customer community.
“Jeff has been instrumental in the development and execution of Ellucian’s growth strategy – leading the launch of new products, product enhancements and the strategic shift to the cloud,” said Bryan Taylor, TPG partner and Ellucian board member.“Jeff has set a very high bar, so we will be deliberate and intensive in our search for a successor who can build on his accomplishments and drive success.”
In his role as executive chairman, Sinisgalli will be supported by Ellucian’s strong management team and the rest of the board during the search for the company’s next CEO. Sinisgalli is currently the executive chairman of Eze Software Group and effectively led the firm during its transition to the cloud. He has two decades executive leadership experience in the software marketplace, having led technology companies across multiple industries.
“This team is only made stronger by the addition of CPO Namita Dhallan, who brings deep product management and development expertise,” Taylor continued. “Her ‘customer-first’ philosophy and experience leading cross-functional teams through cloud transformation efforts makes her an incredibly valuable asset both to Ellucian and to the universities it serves.”
Dhallan brings more than 25 years of experience in product management and software development to Ellucian. Most recently, she served as executive vice president of product strategy and engineering at Deltek, where she helped lead the company’s successful transformation from a developer of on-premises solutions to a full-service cloud solutions provider. Dhallan has also held product management and executive roles at JDA Software Group and Manugistics.
“As the only higher education-focused cloud solutions provider, Ellucian is perfectly positioned to enhance operations and enrich the student experience, while it partners with its customers on their journey to the cloud,” said Sinisgalli. “The Ellucian team exudes passion about the value of higher education and the power of learning – it’s this commitment that will foster the continued development of its comprehensive solution suite that meets today’s needs and anticipates tomorrow’s.”
About Ellucian
Ellucian is the world’s leading provider of software and services higher education institutions need to enhance operations and enrich the student experience. More than 2,500 institutions in 50 countries rely on Ellucian to help enable the mission of higher education for over 18 million students. Ellucian provides student information systems (SIS), finance and HR, recruiting, retention, analytics and advancement software solutions. With more than 1,400 institutions subscribing to Ellucian’s cloud services and SaaS offerings, the company is one of the largest providers of cloud-based solutions in higher ed. Ellucian also supports the higher education community with a range of professional services such as application software implementation, training, education, and management consulting. Visit Ellucian at www.ellucian.com.
