At CEO (Boardroom Media) we track over 1,000,000 startups and over 5,000,000 people who hold key positions in these companies. We use this directory of startups to highlight top employees, founders and board members we think deserve more appreciation than they are currently getting.
This list showcases the top Sydney based CEO’ operating in the Enterprise space. If you think a CEO’ is missing from this list, feel free to contact our editor on [email protected]
The individuals on this list have been included because of exceptional performance in one of the following categories:
- Innovation – Operating as a key part in an extremely innovative business or startup.
- Growth – Operating as a key figure in the growth and upscale of a market leading business or startup.
- Management – Showing exceptional management skills.
- Societal impact – Putting their business on the map for their positive societal or environmental impact.
Our Data – We source our data from OSINT (open source intelligence) and public directories such as Crunchbase, SemRush and many more. The data from these sources should be treated with a degree of caution and verified yourself.
Sankar Narayan
Chief Executive Officer of SiteMinder
For more than 20 years, Sankar Narayan has delivered change management, operational rigour and business growth across the travel, technology, media and telecommunications sectors, with particular expertise in company transformations and business strategy to achieve strong shareholder outcomes. Following several senior management roles at Virgin Australia, Fairfax Media and Foxtel, and having also worked at Vodafone Australia, Boston Consulting Group and Schlumberger prior, in 2015 Sankar joined Xero where he went on to serve in the dual capacity of Chief Operating and Financial Officer. Today, Sankar leads SiteMinder’s internationalised software and multilingual teams across 20 locations globally, and which see more than 80% of revenue sourced from outside the company’s home market of Australasia. Sankar holds a Masters in Business Administration with Honours from the Booth School of Business at the University of Chicago and a Masters in Electrical Engineering from the State University of New York. He is a Certified Practising Accountant and a Fellow of CPA (Australia), and has been a regular contributor to Forbes.com on the crucial topics of strategy, disruption and managing high growth businesses.
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About SiteMinder: SiteMinder is the world’s leading open hotel commerce platform and a AU$1 billion business used by 33,000+ hotels across 150 countries.

Kevin Baum
CEO/Co-founder of AgriWebb
Kevin is a former consultant who is currently the co-founder of AgriWebb, a technology startup aiming to disrupt the livestock agriculture industry. Prior to Agriwebb, Kevin worked for Strategic Analysis Inc, a technical consulting firm based in Arlington Virginia, where his work consisted of detailed techno-economic analyses of cutting edge energy projects for the US Government. Kevin earned his Masters and MBA from Oxford University, where he passionate about entrepreneurship. He was the Co-founder of Odyssey Sensors, an Oxford-based startup that was winner of the 2013 Skoll Venture Award (£20,000) and the Tata Idea Idol Business Competition (£10,000). Additionally, while at Oxford, he was the Grand Prize Winner of the IEEE Presidents’ Change the World Competition ($10,000), finalist for the 2013 London Business School CleanTech Challenge, and winner of the Oxford GOTO (Global Opportunities and Threats: Oxford) Contest. Kevin was an elite competitive athlete for a decade. He was a captain of the national championship winning Stanford University rowing team, represented the United States in international competition and Oxford University in 158th Boat Race against Cambridge, the most viewed rowing race in the world.
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About AgriWebb, Odyssey Sensors: AgriWebb is a farm and livestock app that helps livestock producers with record keeping, compliance, and productivity.

Mark Brayan
CEO of Appen
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About Appen: Appen offers a wide variety of services to technology companies seeking to compete and expand in the global marketplace.

Tom Wright
CEO & Cofounder of Cascade Strategy
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About Cascade Strategy: The global strategy execution platform helping thousands of organisations align, accelerate their teams and turn their vision into reality.

Sandeep Rao
Founder & CEO of Einsights
Sandeep has built his career straddling his two core passions – Technology and Strategy. His expertise is in Financial Services, Supply Chain Management and Project Management. Prior to founding Einsights, Sandeep was a Partner at I.Investment Advisory, Partner at NMG Strategy Consulting and Head of Strategy and Finance at ING Australia and New Zealand. An astute leader with a passion for high performance, Sandeep is at his best when solving complex business problems. He has led many large scale engagements globally and spoken at various international conferences. He holds an MBA from AGSM, Australia.
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About Einsights: Einsights develop the business analytics tool built for the inquisitive mind.

Simon Church
Co-Founder & Co-CEO of DSYNC
Simon is an experienced professional who has worked in the tech and logistics industries for the past 20 years. He is one of the two founding affiliates of Temando who are responsible for generating over 16,000+ clients. His roles have included senior manager positions with some of the largest tech and logistics companies of the world.
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About DSYNC: DSYNC (Data Sync) is a live data integration platform that connects, transforms and orchestrates data between multiple disparate systems
Oleg Vornik
CEO and Managing Director of DroneShield
Oleg is an experienced senior executive with experience spanning Royal Bank of Canada, Brookfield, Deutsche Bank and ABN AMRO. Prior to becoming the CEO of DroneShield, Oleg was its Chief Financial Officer. After co-leading the Company in the role of the Chief Financial Officer for over a year and steering the business through its IPO on the Australian Securities Exchange, Oleg was appointed as the CEO and Managing Director of DroneShield in January 2017.
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About DroneShield: DroneShield is a global leader in Counter-UAS, Electronic Warfare (EW) and Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) solutions

Mark Bradley
Executive Chairman & CEO of Cognitive Software Group
Mr. Bradley graduated from the University of NSW in 1981 and joined IBM Australia as a computer programmer in IBM’s internal computing division. In 1982 he moved to field sales in the role of Sales Engineer until 1984 when he was appointed as Account Manager for a steel-making Division of Australia’s then largest company, BHP. In 1986 Mr. Bradley was appointed Sales Manager within the mainframe sales division. In their first year together, Mr. Bradley’s team set IBM Australia’s record for mainframe sales by a single sales team in a single year. In 1988 Mr. Bradley formed an international collaboration between IBM customers to jointly build a next generation billing system, and graduated from the Macquarie University Advanced Management Program. In 1990 Mr Bradley graduated from IBM’s Advanced Management Program in Tokyo. In 1991, after two years in an IBM Headquarters role managing upgrades to IBM revenue management systems in Asia, for which he was awarded an IBM Management Excellence Award, Mr. Bradley was appointed IBM State Manager, South Australia. In this role, he sat on the South Australian Board of the national Australian Quality Awards Foundation, and became a key adviser to the State Government’s Information Technology and Telecommunications industry strategy team, during which time he assisted the State Government to develop its whole of government IT outsourcing strategy. In 1994, after the global IT industry went into a severe downturn, Mr Bradley elected to have a two year break from IT and was headhunted to establish a direct salesforce for Qantas Airways. Over the following two years Mr Bradley’s new sales team won almost the entire corporate and government customer base from the rival airline, Ansett Airlines, said to be the largest market share shift in Australia corporate history. In 1996 Mr. Bradley returned to technology joining telecommunications start-up AAPT Limited as Director of Sales and Marketing. Attracted by opportunities of the emerging Internet, in August 1998 Mr. Bradley ended corporate life to found his own start-up company, Online Australia Pty. Ltd. This was followed by a second start-up venture, Tralee Software Group, in 2001, when that company invented breakthrough technology for next generation data integration and messaging over the Internet, and applied for its first patent. The technology invented was years ahead of its time utilizing XML-like virtual structures and in-memory processing to automate transformation of data from one format to another, a growing need for internet based electronic commerce. After the award of patents for the above inventions Tralee turned its focus to commercialising what was clearly a disruptive new technology. In early 2012 a White Paper was commissioned from London-based respected analysts Bloor Research, who hailed the technology as world leading in its class and a necessary component of a future “Semantic Web”. As a result, Tralee repositioned itself as an Australian resreach and devlopment company focused on Semantic Computing, the “holy-grail” of Artificial Intelligence. Accordingly, Tralee renamed itself as Semantic Software and has since emerged as Australia’s leading Artificial Intelligence solution provider.
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About Cognitive Software Group: The Cognitive Software Group helps Enterprises or Government build their own AI data systems using the cognitiveAI software platform.
Anthony Johnston
CEO of CoVentured
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About CoVentured: We are reinventing the way corporates solve their problems, connecting them with the world’s brightest scaleups. No more RFPs or tenders.
Hanno Blankenstein
Co-Founder and CEO of Unleash live
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About : Unleash live is a cloud-based software platform ingesting live video and applying real time A.I. analytics for instant decision making
Pieter Danhieux
Co-Founder, Chairman/CEO of Secure Code Warrior
Pieter Danhiex currently designs and implements cybersecurity exercises together with a group of extremely talented people at Secure Code Warrior in Australia.Danhiex is a certified instructor for the SANS Institute teaching military, government and private organizations offensive techniques on how to target and assess organizations, systems and individuals for security weaknesses.
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About Secure Code Warrior: Secure Code Warrior makes secure coding a positive and engaging experience for developers as they increase their software security skills.

Bridget Loudon
Founder & CEO of Expert360
Bridget Loudon is the CEO of Expert360, Australia’s leading online marketplace for the elite freelance consulting talent. Since cofounding Expert360 in 2013, Bridget has led the company to become a global Talent-as-a-Service (TaaS) platform, most recently overseeing its expansion into the US and enabling a new market for readily available elite capability and expertise. Bridget is a digital native and a former management consultant from top tier firm Bain & Company. Running successful businesses and start-ups is in Bridget’s blood. She started her first business in high school, which she sold successfully, whilst in University. A recognised thought leader in the future of talent and professional services, she has won numerous accolades and awards, including NAB 2014 Women’s Agenda Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year, FutureMakers list of Australia’s top 25 Emerging Entrepreneurs, and Shoestring’s Top 50 Australian female entrepreneurs under 40.
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About Expert360: Expert360 Marketplace empower thousands of organisations to build, scale and manage flexible, on-demand workforces.
Daniel Franz
Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Fine Software
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About Fine Software, Good News, JXL, Kickoff, ZNET: Passion to craft beautiful software that really helps people get their job done.
Jordan Wainer
CEO of Admyt
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About Admyt: Making parking simple, seamless and smart.
Rory San Miguel
Co-founder & CEO of Propeller Aero
Rory San Miguel cofounded Propeller Aero in 2014. The startup sells software for high-accuracy GPS drone surveying. It is mainly used to aid construction companies track large areas of land and investigate hazards without endangering anyone. The enterprise partnered with global drone leader DJI to sell its software and hardware alongside DJI drones. It now has offices in Sydney’s Surrey Hills and has a team of 30.
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About Propeller Aero: Propeller is a global leader in drone-mapping and analytics solutions that give worksites the power to measure and manage themselves.

Ruben Martin
CEO (Co-Founder) of Quivers
Ruben Martin is a Co-Founder, CEO at Quivers.
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About Quivers, Thoughts2Binary: Quivers develops an omnichannel e-commerce platform designed to control the brand beyond the domain.
Michelle McGrath
Co-Founder and CEO of Lens10
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About DataTrue, Lens10: Lens10 is a digital strategy and analytics consultancies.

Elizabeth Whitelock
CEO of Veriluma (ASX:VRI)
Founding shareholder of Veriluma in 2010 27 years of software experience in applications for databases, data integration, data analytics, business intelligence at such companies as Ingres, SAS, IBM and Microstrategy Experienced in emerging and turn around situations Strong leader who builds committed, capable teams Client centric with success in direct and indirect software sales and services
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About : Veriluma’s patented Prescriptive Analytics software refines decision making providing the likelihood and certainty of future outcomes.
Danny Lessem
CEO, Executive Director and Co-founder of ELMO Cloud HR & Payroll
Danny Lessem is the CEO, Executive Director and co-founder of ELMO. Member of the Audit and Risk Management Committee. Danny is responsible for leading the development and execution of the Company’s long term strategy and delivering on growth objectives for the business. Danny also plays a key part in the day-to-day management of the Company’s operations and has been critical to the success of ELMO, including the strategy underpinning the development of the Company’s full suite of talent management software solutions. Danny has extensive experience in the technology industry having led SaaS companies for over 15 years in senior roles, including Compu Technologies where he was the CEO and was responsible for overseeing the transition of the Company’s primary business from a digital agency to an eLearning content provider. Danny holds a Bachelor of Laws (LL B.) and Bachelors of Arts and Law from the University of Witwatersrand, South Africa.
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About ELMO Cloud HR & Payroll: ELMO Cloud HR & Payroll offers an integrated cloud HR, payroll and rostering / time & attendance solution.
Joshua Shields
Founder & CEO of Catalyst Technologies
Passionate tech leader who loves the challenge of growing meaningful businesses, continuous learning and working with inspired people. Co-founder of RiskLogic P/L, FirstAction P/L and Catalyst Technologies P/L; dominant industry leaders in the Australian resilience market.
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About Catalyst Technologies: Australian Tech startup that is rethinking traditional crisis management to support organisations more confidently face adversity.

Amit Jaiswal
Co-founder & CEO of Foogi Inc.
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About Foogi Inc.: Foogi is a Brisbane based software startup that is revolutionising the way meetings are scheduled.

David Younger
CEO of The Service Manager (TSM)
Bachelor of Applied Science in Computing Science (Hons) Sydney Institute of Technology (UTS) Founded TSM with over 30 years experience in field service and custom software development and a pioneer of mobility solutions in field service. Author of ‘Instant Profits’ guide to identifying and finding solutions to common problems faced by field service business owners. David has personally developed, designed and deployed hundreds of business applications in a wide range of situations, gaining extensive hands-on experience in the area of Field Service. His unique insight and understanding of customer needs combined with his technical proficiency have enabled him to grow The Service Manager into a high-growth market-leading supplier of Field Service and Asset based business solutions.
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About The Service Manager (TSM): TSM provides tools in improving productivity, increasing profitability and efficiency of their field service management operations.
Robert Lincolne
CEO of PayDock
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About PayDock: PayDock is a payments middleware adapter unlocking access to all payment processing types and third party integrations from a single API.

Arjun Singh
Co-Founder and CEO of ezyCollect
Arjun Singh is the Founder & CEO at ezyCollect.
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About ezyCollect: ezyCollect is cloud-based accounts receivable software that automatically manages its users’ collection processes.

Shaun Leisegang
CEO and Co-Founder of AppsForOps
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About AppsForOps: Apps to automate your business operations. Run a better business today.
Alex James
Founder and CEO of RESRODEL
Alex is the founder and CEO of RESRODEL, a new software solution company that solves the enigma of resource management for project based enterprises. With first-hand experience in the consequences of poor resource planning practices and solutions, Alex created an alternative methodology that solved this blatant problem which has now been embodied in the resource role model application called RESRODEL – and has triggered an exciting transition to Alex’s career. Alex is a member of the ‘Workforce Management’ Working Group with the International Standards Organisation and Australian Standards. Alex has a Bachelor of Engineering (Civil) from the University of Technology Sydney, an Advanced Diploma in Managerial Excellence in Engineering, and is a Prince2 Practitioner in project management. Over 28 years, Alex has been an executive at Aurecon and worked in project management, construction and design of transport infrastructure including Sydney Harbour Tunnel, Sydney’s Cross City Tunnel and the renewal of Circular Quay.
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About RESRODEL: RESRODEL is an online SaaS solution specifically for project based enterprises such as consultancies, IT developers, builders, and PMOs.
Ralf Huuck
CEO & Founder of LOGILICA
Dr Ralf Huuck is the CEO of the software intelligence company LOGILICA, the leading software intelligence solutions provider for digital transformation leaders. Previously, Dr Huuck was a Business Development Director with Synopsys’s Software Integrity Group responsible for guidance on their worldwide automotive activities. Before joining Synopsys, Ralf served as the CEO with security solution company Goanna Software and as Principle Researcher with R&D lab NICTA. He is an Adjunct Associate Professor in Computer Science with UNSW, Australia.
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About LOGILICA: Value stream analytics for digital transformation leaders.
Kain Tietzel
Founder/CEO of Start Beyond
Founder & CEO of immersive learning solutions company Start Beyond, reformed Growth Hacker and co-founder of Fotomerchant
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About Start Beyond: Immersive learning solutions that move people to see the world differently, increases knowledge, productivity & drives business growth.
Frank McKenna
Chief Executive Officer of Knowledgeone Corporation
Frank McKenna is a Sydney based software engineer and CEO (and founder and major shareholder) of the multi-national software company, Knowledgeone Corporation. He has designed countless commercial application software packages, written innumerable papers on knowledge management, a text book on records management, millions of lines of code and thousands of pages of help files. He has also presented at numerous industry conferences including ARMA and the RMAA. He has lived and worked all over the world for the last 40 years (Africa, Asia, Europe, USA, Canada, South America, Australia and New Zealand). Before starting Knowledgeone Corporation he was the Australian Technical Director (responsible for all software and support) for Burroughs Corporation and before that he held the same position for Sperry Univac Australasia. Prior to this he was the International Operations manager for Sperry Univac operating out of Blue Bell PA and responsible for the successful installation and acceptance testing of major mainframe sites in South America, Canada and Australia. For the previous eight years he was a major systems project manager and installed and commissioned mainframes in Australia, South Africa and Canada. Before becoming a project manager he went through the then usual career path of trainee programmer, programmer, programmer/analyst, systems analyst and then project manager. One way or another, he has been involved with computers and software since 1964. Frank splits his year between San Diego and Sydney managing his various software companies. He lives with his wife of 45 years, Georgina Kay, has two daughters, Michelle and Samantha and two grandchildren, Piper and Jasper. Frank’s hobbies are drawing, painting, writing, cars (he has an unexplainable and masochistic love for old Jaguars, particularly E-Types), motorcycles and working out in the gym. Computing, especially software design and development has been his career for over 40 years. Since founding the Knowledgeone Corporation in 1984 he has designed, built and brought 39 products to market.
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About Knowledgeone Corporation: Knowledgeone providing quality assured information management software solutions to organizations world-wide.
Mark Burch
CEO/Director of InvoiceSmash
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About InvoiceSmash: InvoiceSmash is an online platform that provides e-invoicing solutions to businesses.
Mark Burch
CEO/Director of InvoiceSmash
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About InvoiceSmash: InvoiceSmash is an online platform that provides e-invoicing solutions to businesses.