KaFe Rocks CEO to step down after nearly five years
Simon Pilkington to leave the affiliate at the end of the year after just under three years in the role
KaFe Rocks Group CEO Simon Pilkington has announced he will be stepping down from his role on 31 December 2022.
Pilkington originally joined the firm in May 2018 as the head of English language markets before being made VP of English markets in November 2019 and finally taking the CEO role in February 2020, becoming the firm’s first non-founder chief executive.
Pilkington is set to step down almost two years since KaFe Rocks was acquired by Glitnor Group in an undisclosed deal.
The deal was announced in February 2022, and while financial terms of the deal between the two Malta-based firms were disclosed, the deal is understood to have included all of KaFe Rocks assets.
KaFe Rocks co-founder Feda Mecan joined the Glitnor board of directors while Pilkington was added to the Glitnor Group executive management team.
In a post on LinkedIn, Pilkington said: “I will leave the company on the 31 December, and I leave with absolute love and respect for the company, for its people, and for the founders and owners who’ve supported me along the way.
“It’s the right time for me and the right time for the company, and I couldn’t be more excited for whoever will take the role on from here – such a good opportunity to lead KFR on to the next level.”
He also penned an open letter to his colleagues on Friday in which Pilkington stated how his decision to leave was not an easy one but that he trusts the firm to keep improving and kick on.
He said: “In true KaFe Rocks style, this decision came about during a couple of incredibly candid, transparent, and amicable conversations, where both parties came to a similar conclusion that it’s the right time to part ways for the long-term benefit of both the company and me personally.
“Whether you see this news today in a positive, negative, or indifferent way, please join me in trusting this team to deliver for you all – everyone involved has the absolute best interests of the business at heart and for inspiring improvements and growth across all business units.
“I knew soon after joining the company, back in 2018, when we were just 15 or so, Rocketeers that I’d joined somewhere special, and being asked to become the first non-founder CEO of the company is the biggest honour of my career so far,” Pilkington added.