Change at the Top: Eileen Martinson Steps Down at Sparta Systems; New CEO is Dana Jones
Hamilton-based Sparta Systems, which develops software that helps companies automate business processes tied to quality management and regulatory compliance, has a new CEO.
Sparta has appointed Dana Jones to fill the role. Former CEO Eileen Martinson is retiring, but she plans to remain an active member of the board and a strategic adviser to the company.
Martinson joined Sparta in July 2011, and since then the company has transformed itself: Rather than continuing along a steady path, Sparta has accelerated its growth, doubling its revenues while maintaining strong profitability.
Further, Martinson led a competitive and successful transaction that resulted in the company’s sale to leading private equity firm Thoma Bravo (Chicago and San Francisco) in July 2014. Thoma Bravo sold Sparta to private equity firm New Mountain Capital (New York) in the summer of 2017.
Prior to joining Sparta, Martinson was COO of Allscripts (Chicago), a provider of clinical software and information and connectivity solutions for physicians.
Speaking about her successor, Martinson said, “Dana is a passionate leader who brings a valuable combination of customer focus and market-driven innovation to Sparta, making her the perfect fit for this role. I am thrilled to welcome Dana as our next CEO.”
Jones has experience in leading and growing cloud-based global businesses. She most recently served as CEO of ACTIVE Network (Dallas), which makes activity and event management software. The company grew rapidly under her watch, leading to the strategic sale of its Sports and Communities divisions to Global Payments (Atlanta) in 2017 for $1.2 billion.
Prior to ACTIVE Network, Jones was chief marketing officer and SVP of solutions management at Sabre Airline Solutions (Southlake, Texas), a global provider of mission-critical software to the airline industry. At Sabre, she drove double-digit revenues and earnings growth by transforming the organization into a market-driven software company focused on accelerated product innovation.
“We are incredibly excited to partner with Dana,” said Peter N. Masucci, a managing director at New Mountain Capital. “She is a visionary leader with a track record of driving exponential growth, accelerating innovation, and building strong value-based cultures – all critical elements for Sparta’s continued success and future growth.”
“Sparta Systems is the market leader and is poised for its next phase of growth enabled by the cloud and the digital transformation revolutionizing the markets we serve,” said Jones in a press release.
“We have a world-class customer base, strong products, and a talented organization rich in domain expertise. I am thrilled to lead Sparta through its next phase of growth and, more importantly, deliver on our commitment to enable our customers to produce safe and compliant products.”
