Earlier this year, Safe Software announced a strategic growth investment from JMI Equity, a firm providing software companies with capital and industry expertise to build businesses of enduring value.
Headquartered in Surrey, Safe provides solutions that empower people and enterprises to unlock the full potential of their information, especially geo-spatial data. The BC firm’s flagship product is the Feature Manipulation Engine, or FME. With FME’s tools, users can process and convert data, creating workflows that extend the reach of data integration.
JMI Equity, which has been involved with Safe for more than 10 years, bought out Dale Lutz through that transaction. Lutz served as co-CEO alongside Don Murray since Safe was founded in the early 90’s.
Murray, an Entrepreneur of the Year finalist, is now majority owner and, for the first time in Safe’s history, sole chief executive of the company.
“The momentum and growth of our business in the last year was phenomenal,” Murray said this week. “I am incredibly proud of what we accomplished.”
Over the past 12 months, headcount has increased by 20%, to 300. But that’s just the beginning for Safe’s future. Moving forward, Murray’s focus is on even further growth.
“Over this year … the hiring plan is 80 more people,” he stated recently.
Safe Software plans to boost its headcount by more than 30% through the next fiscal year, according to an official statement from the company, which promises workers a suite of traditional benefits on top of what Murray describes as a “generous” profit share policy: 20% of the firm’s profits are distributed to employees.
Why the heavy emphasis on hiring and retention? Consider it a lesson learned. Despite Safe’s longstanding stability, the CEO believes that hiring more key players earlier on could have better positioned his company for growth.
“One lesson I learned is we should have hired other people sooner,” Murray is quoted as saying. “Find the best people you can, and then just trust them and support them.”
With annual recurring revenue growing fast enough to see Safe on track for $250M by 2028, the company is seeking top-tier tech talent to take things to the next level.
“We’re just getting started,” Murray says, “and I can’t wait to see where this new fiscal year takes us.”
Check out Safe Software’s open roles here.
