Hybrid cloud and IT managed services provider Celerity has appointed Stephen Leonard as Advisor to its Board.
Stephen will guide Celerity’s expansion into the IBM Power marketplace in the US.Stephen brings a wealth of experience from senior roles including CEO of IBM UK, General Manager of IBM Americas and IBM Power Solutions globally, and Senior Vice President, Alliances and Partnerships for Kyndryl. Over his career, he has led large-scale transformation programmes, strengthened strategic alliances, and advanced enterprise cloud adoption across global markets.
Craig Aston, CEO of Celerity, has commented:
“We’ve seen strong progress since BGF’s investment, and Stephen’s insight will be vital as we build on that momentum. Our team brings deep industry expertise and accredited technical skills, fuelled by a passion for partnering with our customers – and Stephen will fit right in. His leadership experience and deep understanding of IBM ecosystems will play a key role in driving our next phase of expansion.”
In his advisory role, Stephen will focus on scaling Celerity’s Copy Assure solution and accessing the US IBM Power market with Copy Assure as part of Celerity’s international growth strategy. Copy Assure is a cyber recovery and data resilience offering built for IBM Power, both on-premise and in the cloud, with IP developed by Celerity. Stephen has a deep understanding of the challenges organisations face around cyber resilience, offering him unique insight into the strength of the Copy Assure proposition to offer enterprise class resilience and rapid restore of critical systems.
Founded in 2002, North West-based Celerity has established itself as a leader in cybersecurity, data protection, and data visualisation services. Following a £15 million investment from BGF in 2021, the company has continued to grow through service expansion, strategic partnerships, and targeted acquisitions. In 2024, Celerity appointed Craig Aston as CEO to lead its next phase of growth.
Stephen Leonard has stated: “I’m passionate about fostering innovation through partnerships and empowering teams, so I’m thrilled to be working with a company as ambitious and resilient as Celerity. My focus on the US market will help the business reach more organisations seeking to modernise and strengthen their critical infrastructure.”
Celerity is a BGF-backed organisation. BGF invests in growing businesses across all regions and sectors in the UK and Ireland through its network of 15 offices. BGF is a certified UK B Corporation (B Corp), reflecting its commitment to creating a positive impact across the growth economy.
