The CEO of smart sensing software company Oxford Metrics plc is to join Ordnance Survey as chief executive.
The UK government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology has appointed Nick Bolton, who has led Oxford Metrics since 2005, to head the national mapping agency.
Ordnance Survey provides geospatial data and location services to help tackle many of the biggest challenges facing the world today, from climate change and pandemics to urbanisation and national resilience.
Viscount Camrose, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, said: “Ordnance Survey has transformed from being a very important and much-loved provider of paper mapping services to an organisation that is ushering in a new age of possibility, thanks to continuous innovation and new uses of technology and applications.
“Nick brings an exceptional track record of leading and growing technology businesses and will apply this experience to ensure that OS continues to guide our policy decisions, our economic decisions and any decision that affects our national wealth and quality of life.”
Bolton will join on 2nd October and be succeeded by Imogen Moorhouse, leader of Oxford Metrics’ Vicon division. She was made CEO of the division in 2012 and has spent a total of 22 years within it, growing the business both organically and through acquisition to over 170 people today.
Following the disposal of Yotta in 2022, Moorhouse has been CEO of the entirety of Oxford Metrics’ trading operations. The company says she has been integral to the development and implementation of the group’s current five-year strategic growth plan.
Roger Parry, non-executive chair at Oxford Metrics, said: “Although it is sad to see Nick go after so many years of excellent service, we congratulate him on his new appointment and wish him well in the role. Nick has been pivotal to the growth and development of our group for many years and has partnered with Imogen in many of the initiatives that have contributed most to our success.
“Given her significant experience of our business, of the markets we operate in and the culture we cherish, the Board is delighted to welcome Imogen to her new broader role at Oxford Metrics. We are very fortunate to have such a natural internal successor to take us forward as we continue to execute successfully against the five-year plan for growth.”
Oxford Metrics has been at the forefront and intersection between the digital and physical world since inception.
“It has been an honour to lead Oxford Metrics over the last 18 years and to see smart sensing and analysis successfully deployed by our great team in so many amazing applications,” said Bolton.
“Ordnance Survey is an institution and iconic brand with a global reputation as leaders in mapping, location data and services. It is an organisation which has been at the forefront of innovation for two centuries, continuously transforming to meet the demands of its diverse range of customers. In today’s increasingly digitally augmented world, place matters more than ever and OS data and services are at the very heart of this.
“I am excited to be joining Ordnance Survey and working with the talented teams across the organisation to continue to provide world-leading geospatial services and operate as a profitable commercial organisation.”