Centric Software, a core brand of Dassault Systèmes, has promoted company president Fabrice Canonge to chief executive officer. Canonge succeeds founder Chris Groves, who established the company in 2004, along with its flagship product, Centric PLM.
Groves moves into a senior advisory role with Dassault Systèmes.
“We thank Chris Groves for his leadership and vision that have positioned Centric Software as the trusted leader in PLM for more than 20,000 consumer brands worldwide,” stated Bernard Charlès, executive chairman of Dassault Systèmes. “We are fully committed to making Centric Software a world-class brand by drawing on our proven ability to drive global enterprise transformation with virtual twins across key sectors of the economy.”
Canonge will be responsible for “defining and expediting Centric Software’s strategic SaaS roadmap to meet evolving customer demands, as well as expanding its market leadership with a new generation of AI-powered cloud solutions,” the company reported in a media release.
Joining Centric Software in 2004, Canonge led European operations before becoming executive vice president of global sales and marketing in 2019. He was promoted to chief operating officer in 2020 and then to president in 2023. He has played a major role in the company’s growth, particularly in go-to-market strategy, expansion to 56 countries and securing key customers such as Hugo Boss, Lacoste and Asics.
On his appointment, Canonge said, “I want to thank Dassault Systèmes for the opportunity to lead Centric Software and am fully committed to accelerating the brand’s growth with end-to-end solutions that enable fast-moving consumer goods companies to navigate disruptions, scale and thrive.”
Images courtesy Dassault Systèmes
