Rogers new co-CEO of Ultimate Software

Adam Rogers, Ultimate Software’s chief technology officer, has been named coCEO of the Weston-based technology giant, the company announced Wednesday.

Rogers, who joined Ultimate Software in 1997, will lead the company with Scott Scherr founder and now co-CEO.

“Adam has been my trusted partner in leading Ultimate and developing our product and technology strategies for more than 20 years. I’m thrilled to welcome him as co-CEO,” said Scherr in a news release. “Adam brings extraordinary leadership experience and operational expertise to the next phase of our partnership journey together.”

Ultimate also announced Wednesday that it has promoted Julie Dodd to chief operating officer. Dodd joined Ultimate in 2007 and has been Ultimate’s chief services officer since 2013, overseeing customer support.

Ultimate Software, which employs 5,100 including 1,650 in Weston, went private in April through an $11 billion sale to San Francisco-based Hellman & Friedman. Ultimate’s shareholders received $331.50 in cash for each share of common stock they held.

Top executive officers of Ultimate Software including Scherr and Rogers collectively became $102 million richer as result of a buyout, according a company securities filing.

Perhaps there was a hint in a Feb. 20 securities filing that Rogers’ star was rising. The filing contains an excerpt from an employee presentation made by Rogers, which gave a glimpse at the pressures of being a public company.

Using a hypothetical growing company as an example, Rogers said: “If you’re not growing at a certain rate, then Wall Street says, well, then you better be making a whole lot of money. …Now every single dollar that I want to go spend … I’ve got to make a decision. Do I want to spend money on R&D, sales and marketing? Or do I do what Wall Street asked me to do, which is to make more money?”

Rogers said Ultimate’s going private would give the company “more freedom to think about long-term investments.”

Ultimate was begun by Scherr with a philosophy of “People First,” meaning its employees come first. The company regularly wins awards for its employee perks and benefits.

In 2019, Ultimate was one of three South Florida companies ranked among the “100 Best Companies to Work For” by Fortune, and topped Fortune’s “Best Workplaces in Technology” in 2019.

Scherr founded the company in 1990 and has operated it in Weston since 1999.

SUSAN STOCKER/SUN SENTINEL Adam Rogers, chief technology officer of Ultimate Software, addresses employees during the unveiling of their company’s new flagship building in Weston. Rogers was named co-CEO of Ultimate Software, the company announced Wednesday.