Aron Ain

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Aron Ain
Alma mater Hamilton College
Occupation(s)Software technology executive, author

Aron Ain is an American software technology executive [1] [2] and author. He became the CEO of UKG (Ultimate Kronos Group) in 2020, a role he held until being named UKG Executive Chair, effective July 1, 2022. UKG was created from the merger of Ultimate Software and Kronos Incorporated, and provides global HCM[ clarification needed ] and workforce management solutions.[ clarification needed ] Previously, Ain had been the chief executive officer [3] of Kronos Incorporated since 2005.

Contents

Career

Ain joined Kronos in 1979 and has played a role in nearly every functional department at the organization. In October 2005, he was named chief executive officer and a member of the Kronos Board of Directors. [2]

In 2007, Ain led the effort to take the company private, [4] [5] after going public in 1992. [6]

Under his leadership, the company completed a major, multi-year business transformation, changing from a licensed-software model to a cloud, software-as-a-service (SaaS) model. [7] [8]

In 2016, Ain introduced new benefits [9] to employees such as open vacation time [10] and student loan repayment. [11] A new manager performance rating was also created, called the Manager Effectiveness Index (MEI), which captures employee judgments about managers' performance. [12]

In 2017, Kronos relocated its headquarters [13] [14] to the Crosspoint Towers in Lowell, Massachusetts.

In 2018, Ain’s book, WorkInspired: How to Build an Organization Where Everyone Loves to Work (McGraw Hill Education) was published. The book chronicles how he and the company’s leadership team used employee engagement as a business strategy to impart leadership lessons onto senior leaders, HR professionals, and people managers. [15] [16]

In 2020, Kronos completed a merger with Ultimate Software to create UKG, [17] and Ain became the chairman and chief executive officer of the combined company. UKG has more than 15,000 employees worldwide, and an enterprise value of $35 billion.

On June 1, 2022, UKG announced Ain would transition to UKG Executive Chair, effective July 1, 2022. Chris Todd, former President at UKG, replaced Ain as CEO. [18]

In December 2022, Ain became Operating Partner at Hellman & Friedman, in an effort to help H&F portfolio companies (like UKG) enhance exceptional leadership practices and inspired cultures. [19] [20]

Affiliations

Ain serves on the board of trustees of his alma mater, Hamilton College. [21] He is on the board of trustees of Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. [22] He is on the board of directors of Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston (CJP). [23]

Honors

On multiple occasions, Glassdoor has named Ain to its list of Top 100 CEOs in the U.S. [24] In 2019, he ranked 30th out of the 100 highest-rated CEOs throughout North America and parts of Europe across all industries. [25] [ third-party source needed ]

In addition, he has been awarded the Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year award, [26] the Massachusetts High Technology Council's Ray Stata Leadership and Innovation Award, [27] and the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council's CEO of the Year Award. [28] [29] [30] [31]

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References

  1. ↑ Bryant, Adam (2016-09-09). "Aron Ain of Kronos: The Incalculable Value of a Good Boss". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  2. 1 2 "Aron J Ain, Kronos Inc: Profile and Biography - Bloomberg Markets". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2018-11-30.
  3. ↑ "Aron Ain of Kronos Named CEO of the Year". JMI Equity. 2016-09-19. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  4. ↑ Lipton, Joshua. "Kronos Goes Private". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  5. ↑ "Today In Business | Buyout Deal For Kronos" . Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  6. ↑ "Want to build a billion dollar business? Go overseas" . Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  7. ↑ "New Kronos headquarters design mirrors reinvention play". SearchHRSoftware. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  8. ↑ "Kronos Transitions to SaaS". www.bcg.com. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  9. ↑ "Kronos Incorporated". reviews.greatplacetowork.com. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  10. ↑ "The CEO of Kronos on Launching an Unlimited Vacation Policy". Harvard Business Review. 2017-11-01. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  11. ↑ "Paying Down Employees' Student Loans Is the Hot New Perk". Fortune. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  12. ↑ Fuhrmans, Vanessa (2018-01-03). "This Company Lets Employees Rate Their Bosses Twice a Year". Wall Street Journal. ISSN   0099-9660 . Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  13. ↑ "One of the state's biggest and best tech employers is moving to Lowell". Boston.com. 2016-02-29. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  14. ↑ "At Lowell's Cross Point, a Towering Coronation for Kronos' New Headquarters" . Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  15. ↑ "WorkInspired: How to Build an Organization Where Everyone Loves to Work [Book]". Oreilly.com.
  16. ↑ "WorkInspired: How to Build an Organization Where Everyone Loves to Work". Porchlight Books.
  17. ↑ "Next steps in the Kronos, Ultimate Software merger | HRExecutive.com". hrexecutive.com. 2020-08-28. Retrieved 2020-09-15.
  18. ↑ Brown, Jo-Lynn (30 November 2022). "Transamerica names Tampa executive president of World Financial Group and head of Transamerica Financial Advisors". TBBW.
  19. ↑ "Aron Ain, Former UKG CEO, to Join Hellman & Friedman as Operating Partner". TecHR. 9 December 2022.
  20. ↑ "Aron Ain". Hellman & Friedman.
  21. ↑ "Hamilton College". Hamilton College. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  22. ↑ "Beth Israel Deaconess board appoints Newton residents". Newton TAB. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  23. ↑ "Our Leadership". Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston (CJP). Retrieved 2020-09-08.
  24. ↑ "Top CEOs". Glassdoor. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  25. ↑ "Glassdoor's Top CEOs 2019". www.glassdoor.com. 2019-06-19. Archived from the original on 2018-06-15. Retrieved 2019-12-13.
  26. ↑ Reidy, Chris (July 3, 2012). "Kronos CEO Aron Ain wins an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in tech category". Boston Globe.
  27. ↑ "Kronos CEO Aron Ain Honored with Inaugural Ray Stata Leadership and Innovation Award by Massachusetts High Technology Council". MarketWatch. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  28. ↑ "MassTLC Leadership Award Winners 2016 | MassTLC". MassTLC. 2016-09-15. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  29. ↑ "The 1 Thing You Need to Realize Before You Can Be a Great Leader". Inc.com. 2019-01-17. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  30. ↑ "It's Tough to Earn Employees' Trust-That's Why You Should Try This Unconventional Approach". Inc.com. 2018-12-05. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
  31. ↑ Duncan, Rodger Dean. "Want Your People To Work Inspired? Be An Un-Leader". Forbes. Retrieved 2019-02-06.
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