Red Helix, a leading UK cyber security and network performance specialist, has appointed Marion Stewart as CEO to lead the next phase of growth.
Established in 1984, Red Helix provides solutions and services to improve on-premise and cloud application performance and cyber-security for major UK organisations.
Marion, who is currently the Deputy CEO/COO, will take over from current CEO John Carson from 1 January 2023. Since her arrival at the firm in late 2021, she has led a number of major initiatives including the business’ re-brand from Phoenix Datacom to Red Helix, developed the managed services for enterprise customers, and supporting the board in building the growth strategy of the company following investment from mid-market private equity investor LDC.
Before joining Red Helix, Marion Stewart held various senior roles in the technology sector, including C-suite roles at Savvis, Alternative Networks, Daisy and Pulsant, where she led successful transformation initiatives and acquisition integrations, supporting business scale up under private equity investment.
The current CEO, John Carson, will continue in an advisory capacity until the end of March 2023, enabling a transition period, before retiring. John Carson has spent over 20 years building the Red Helix business and lead the LDC-backed management buyout of the business in 2021.
“I am delighted to have the opportunity to lead Red Helix into this next phase, building on its well-established team and technical heritage and growing its core areas of cyber security and network performance. It is a critical time for the sector as major organisations demand technical expertise to help them through business-critical incidents and secure their most valuable information.
John has been integral to the growth of Red Helix over the past three decades. He’s built the company into a real force in our industry. I look forward to continuing to work alongside him in the coming months as we see through the succession and wish him all the best for a well-earned retirement.” – Marion Stewart
“I’ve had a wonderful journey with this business and am immensely proud of the whole Red Helix team who have made the company what it is today. Marion is the perfect candidate to take this business forward. She has both the vision and capability to help Red Helix realise its full potential and continued growth.” John Carson
