IFS AB – A Sweden-based Enterprise Software Company Also Aiming To Improve Lives Of Underprivileged Population.
IFS AB also known as Industrial and Financial Systems was born in 1983 in Sweden. The company specializes in developing and delivering enterprise software. IFS AB focuses on project-centric industries where it uses a single code base and develops ERP. Some of the sectors where IFS AB delivers such products are aerospace, manufacturing, automotive, oil, and gas, etc. With 4,000 employees, the company offers its products and solutions on a global scale to more than 10,000 customers. IFS AB is one of the most recommended suppliers in its sector and is currently led by Darren Roos (CEO of IFS AB).
About IFS AB
Since its foundation, IFS AB has made a big impact both in terms of business and uplifting the lives of socio-economically backward people. In terms of its innovative products and solutions, the company became the winner of the European Digital Technology Award among 150,000 companies. It has also won the 2019 European Business Award. Last year, Darren Roos won the Best CEO of the Year award for leading the company to such great heights. IFS AB believes in serving people who are in need of better living conditions and proper education. So, the company founded the IFS Foundation that is currently focusing on helping poor people of rural Sri Lanka.
History of the Company
After founding the company in 1983, the company launched its first product in 1985. The name of the software product was IFS Maintenance which after five years was included in an entire product suite called IFS Applications. Being a European company, the company gradually expanded into the Scandinavian region. It opened offices in Norway, Denmark, and Finland. After the New Year, it also opened an office in Poland. In the early 1990s, IFS AB expanded to Asia and North America. In 1996, IFS got listed on the Swedish Stock Exchange. Eventually, the company opened up an R&D center in Colombo.
In less than ten years of its releasing the first graphical user interface, it gathered 500,000 active users. In 2008, the company again launched a new GUI and started acquiring companies from various fields. IFS AB was acquired by a private equity firm in 2015. To date, the main product of IFS is IFS Applications which is an integrated suite of enterprise applications for businesses. It includes software for asset and service management, project management, manufacturing, and supply chain.
Business Growth and Acquisitions
In 2015, IFS recorded more than 1 million users of its GUI. The company has expanded to many international grounds and its operational focus has been divided into four groups. The first two groups focus on European markets, and the other two groups are in charge of management in the America and Asia Pacific region. The company has made a series of acquisitions in various countries from the US to the UK in the past 1.5 decades. In 2009, the company acquired MultiPlus Solutions followed by 360 Scheduling, a UK-based scheduling engine in 2010. In 2017, it acquired three companies namely Field Service Management Limited, WorkWave LLC, and systems Limited. This year, to date, IFS acquired two US-based businesses which are Axios Systems and Customerville.
IFS as a Philanthropist
For years, IFS has focussed on education and the importance of STEM subjects and thus partnered with many schools for financial support and scholarship. The company is heavily inclined towards providing education to those who don’t have financial support and create a bright future for the younger generation. The company also currently focuses on serving the backward local communities of Sri Lanka for the past 20 years. The IFS Foundation is addressing healthcare, sanitation, education, etc in these areas.
Darren Roos – CEO of IFS AB
Hailing from South Africa, Darren Roos is a famous business executive who has worked in multiple companies before joining IFS. He served as the Executive Board Member of Software AG and also as the President of SARP ERP Cloud. He completed his education at the University of South Africa. He was directly appointed as the CEO of IFS in 2018 when he first joined the company.
Annasha Dey is an NIT student, who apart from studying engineering is also a content writer. She has a great interest in photography, writing, reading novels, and travelling as well. She is a foodie who loves socializing and hanging out with her friends. She is also a trained Kathak dancer and a big fashion enthusiast. Dey also loves watching TV series, which includes F.R.I.E.N.D.S. and Big Bang Theory. To be a better writer she prefers to read more