Melissa Mulholland Leaving SoftwareOne; Raphael Erb Becoming Sole CEO

‘The combination of SoftwareOne and Crayon has created a stronger company with a compelling future,’ Mulholland wrote.

Switzerland-based SoftwareOne has appointed Raphael Erb as sole CEO, effective Aug. 1.

The move will see co-CEO Melissa Mulholland leave the organization as the integration of SoftwareOne and Crayon is now “substantially complete.”

The company said its board and co-CEOs determined that the next phase of its development would be better supported by a sole CEO structure.

Erb and Mulholland have led the organization since July 2025, following SoftwareOne’s buyout of Crayon.

Under the co-CEO structure, Erb was responsible for commercial operations, services and marketplace, while Mulholland oversaw strategy development, customer platforms and global functions, among other areas.

Moving forward, Erb will assume responsibility for all aspects of the business.

Mulholland previously served as CEO of Crayon.

In a LinkedIn post, she wrote that she was excited about what comes next but has not specified her next career move.

“I am proud of what we have achieved together over the past year,” said Mulholland.

“The combination of SoftwareOne and Crayon has created a stronger company with a compelling future, and I am grateful to our employees, customers and partners for their support throughout this journey.

“The time is now right to transition to a sole CEO structure.”

Erb said in a statement that “[t]he past year has demonstrated the strength of our combined business, and now it’s about building on that momentum.

“I am honoured by the trust placed in me and excited to lead SoftwareOne into its next stage of growth, together with our talented teams around the world.”

Erb previously served as sole CEO of SoftwareOne from late 2024 until the completion of the Crayon takeover.

He replaced former company head Brian Duffy following a mixed performance in FY24, particularly in EMEA.

Erb first joined SoftwareOne as inside sales team leader in 1999.

While the firm continued to experience soft momentum in FY25, with revenue rising 1.4 per cent across the financial year, top line jumped 22.5 per cent to CHF 1.24 billion ($1.5 billion), boosted by the acquisition.

Organic growth was stronger in Q1 FY26, as top line increased 12.9 per cent, supported by a high volume of three-year Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) agreements and early renewals linked to the vendor’s upcoming price increases.

Group revenue leapt 64.7 per cent to CHF 387.7 million ($479 million) in Q1, also fueled by the acquisition.

The firm will announce its H1 FY26 results on Aug. 26.

SoftwareOne ranks No. 43 on CRN’s Solution Provider 500.

This article originally appeared on CRN sister website CRN UK.