TechOne profits up 19 percent, CEO Ed Chung says borders need to open to attract IT talent

One of the nation’s largest tech companies is actively talking to overseas recruits once again as it hunts IT talent amid a profit surge.

Ed Chung is CEO of TechnologyOne. Source: Supplied.

Australia’s freshly opened borders will help one of the nation’s largest tech companies TechnologyOne ramp up its hunt for talent, its chief executive Ed Chung says, after the company posted a profit jump of 19 per cent for the financial year.

For the 12 months ended September 30 the Brisbane-based TechnologyOne posted profits before tax of $97.8m on Tuesday – up 19 per cent year-on-year – while total revenue climbed by four per cent to $312m. It posted a net profit of $72.7m.

“I‘m really happy with these numbers, and it’s been nothing to do with acquisitions or anything else, it’s been total organic growth,” Mr Chung said.

“Announcing the end of on-premise and converting to SaaS [software-as-a-service] has been a watershed moment for us, and it really draws a line in the sand for our remaining on-premise customers.

“We’ve given them plenty of time, it’s three years to make the transition to SaaS, but we’re very confident now that we have a path to achieve our ambitious goal of $500m in annual recurring revenue by FY26.”

The results capped off a strong year for the business, which secured deals with Oracle, SAP, Microsoft, Tribal and Workday. TechnologyOne also lifted its dividend for the full year to 13.91 cents per share, up 8 per cent on the prior year.

Following ongoing lockdowns and pandemic pain the nation’s borders are beginning to re-open, which Mr Chung said would be a further boost for his company’s fortunes.

“It will help, and we’ve started talking to some people now from overseas locations about relocating in Australia,” Mr Chung said.

“When it comes to the war for talent, one thing I call out is our holistic approach. Of course we need to pay people well and keep our staff happy, but we have an integrated approach to looking after our team.

“That means we invest in their careers, we invest in cultural events, we invest in their growth, and it’s all those things that makes TechnologyOne a great place to work, it’s not just the money.

“There’s not one single thing that makes TechOne a great place to work and keeps people here and motivates them to join us.”

The company is still facing a looming retrial involving former Victorian manager Behnam Roohizadegan, who alleged he was illegally fired and bullied. Mr Roohizadegan has sought leave to appeal to the High Court after the Federal Court overturned a $5.2m damages payout he received in 2020.

“We won our appeal and a retrial was ordered a couple of months back,” Mr Chung said. “We’re looking forward to that retrial in the coming year.”

Shares in TechnologyOne slipped by 2.68 per cent to close at $12.55, giving it a valuation of $4.04bn.