Dean Forbes
The Operator
Execution, delivery and performance, gets the hard thing done.
Dean Forbes is a British business executive and serial software CEO. Since February 2021 he has served as CEO of Forterro, a European mid-market manufacturing ERP software group headquartered in London; under his leadership Forterro was acquired by Partners Group in February 2022 at a reported €1 billion valuation, crossing the tech-unicorn threshold. His prior executive track record includes CoreHR (CEO, acquired by The Access Group in 2020), KDS (CEO, acquired by American Express Global Business Travel in 2016), Oracle (Group VP, worldwide sales), and Primavera Systems (VP, international growth, company acquired by Oracle in 2009 for a reported $550 million). He is Chair and co-founder of the Forbes Family Group, a social-mobility charity, and sits on the board of Cornerstone VC. He was ranked the most influential Black British person by the Powerlist in 2023 and again in 2025.
“All you really need is a single and executable path to success. You don't need 20 options. You need one path that you can walk that will get you to success.”
“I've always had teams better than me, or better than the opportunity deserved — and being relentless once I can see the path out of the situation.”
“I'm not concerned about difficult or adverse environments. Organisations that are underperforming, that need transformation, that are going to take eight days a week and 25 hours a day — that doesn't worry me.”
The Fifty 2026 — enterprise seat
THE RECORD IS CHECKABLE