Azarc® has confirmed that Franz-Joseph ‘FJ’ Miller has been appointed as its new Chair of the Board.
The appointment of FJ, alongside the recent round of strategic senior leadership hires in sales and technology, signifies another major step forward for Azarc® as it continues to execute its ambitious plans for responsible, sustainable growth in 2024.
With current and previous board roles in the tech logistics space, including AVA Global Logistics (Phoenix Capital), Carousel Logistics (Livingbridge), Airspace (DBL Partners, Telstra, HarbourVest), Zencargo (HV Capital, Yttrium), and Anyvan (Vitruvian Partners) as well as Senior Industry Advisor roles with leading growth investors such as Vitruvian Partners and Harald Quandt Industriebeteiligungen (HQIB), the skills, depth of experience and balanced perspective that FJ is bringing to the board, all stand to support and advance Azarc®’s evolution as it looks to grow its global presence and customer base in the years to come.
Prior to his board roles, FJ was the Founder and CEO of two leading technology and service platforms in the special logistics sector – time:matters Group, which was sold to Lufthansa 15 years after its birth as a $150m global platform for speed logistics; and Liefery, a last-mile logistics platform for the retail sector which was sold to Hermes/Otto Group after raising more than $20m.
Over the last 25 years, FJ has helped create more than $300m in growth, completed four company exits to major industry players or private equity investors, and executed six acquisitions. The quality of FJ’s expertise, leadership style, and proven success in business supports and underscores the pioneering plans Azarc® has set for its team. Plans that look to supercharge how the business aims to address global challenges affecting the supply chain and logistics realm, and how through its digital products and solutions it can answer the growing call of customer demand.
FJ’s appointment not only serves to support the rapid growth Azarc® is aspiring to but also signals how those intentions are now being recognized by the industry.
Dave Robbins, CEO at Azarc®, said: “I speak for the entire Azarcian team when I say how excited we are to welcome FJ as our Chair. From our initial conversations, it was clear that FJ’s cultural ethos echoes our founding values – something that was very important to us.
“Not only does FJ’s passion for working with great people mirror our own but his focus on scaling tech-based customer service organizations primed with an entrepreneurial spirit serves to amplify the progressive goals we have set for Azarc® this year. His positive but challenging input is one we are ready to capitalize on to push Azarc® to fulfil and exceed its full capabilities.”
Alongside his entrepreneurial vision, FJ’s arrival ushers in a shift in support for the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) at Azarc® as it works to provide long-term value to the industry. With each team across the business expanding, and strategic hires being made across the board, the SLT’s time, more than ever, will be focused on supporting the world-class talent that Azarc® is proud to have operating under its global roof.
FJ added: “Azarc® has been built on incredibly solid foundations of hard work and intense customer focus, with a unique team culture and collective talent at its core. I’m looking forward to working with Dave, Jono, and the wider team over the coming months to help steer and guide progress as Azarc® begins to make the ambitious goals that have been set for 2024 and beyond, a reality. Being appointed Chair of a board that brings such a wealth of experience together to support Azarc®’s overall development is an exciting prospect. I can’t wait to see the positive impact and growth that will unfold as we leverage the collective expertise of this accomplished board in guiding Azarc® toward its ambitious goals for 2024 and beyond.”
In addition to FJ taking up the position of Chair, Azarc® has also announced that 2024 will see a new London office opened in a move to provide the global team with an accessible, central space where face-to-face meetings, workshops, and EMEA operations can be managed.
