Murdoch Webster appoints Tom Allan as chief executive

Murdoch Webster has appointed former CyberCX Chief Operating Officer Tom Allan as Chief Executive Officer as the Melbourne technology services company marks 20 years in business.

He takes over during a broader period of change, with the company reshaping its managed services operations over the past year and expanding its cybersecurity work. Founder Chris Mearns will remain as Founder and Executive Director, focusing on customers, technology partners and staff.

The appointment puts a former founder and senior operator from Australia's cybersecurity sector at the head of a mid-sized Melbourne provider that supports more than 90 organisations. Murdoch Webster works across infrastructure, networking, cybersecurity and managed services, serving customers in local government, education, healthcare and business.

Several of those customer relationships date back almost to the company's first year. That long tenure forms part of the backdrop to the leadership transition as the business looks to expand services while maintaining existing client ties.

Allan previously founded Basis Networks, a technology services business later acquired by CyberCX. He then served as Chief Operating Officer at CyberCX and more recently worked with technology companies and investors through his advisory firm, Allanex.

His appointment follows Murdoch Webster's investment in a more integrated managed services model combining network, infrastructure and cybersecurity functions. The company has also expanded specialist security services and introduced a customer-facing platform called Assure.

Service changes

Over the past 12 months, Murdoch Webster has reorganised managed services around the combined management and protection of networks, infrastructure and cybersecurity. It has also changed service activation and onboarding processes to make services easier for customers to adopt and manage.

The expanded security offering includes managed detection and response, cyber resilience and recovery, vulnerability management and AI security. That AI security work includes oversight of so-called shadow AI, which the company describes as employees' use of AI tools outside approved organisational systems.

Assure, built by Murdoch Webster as a managed services intelligence portal, gives customers real-time visibility across service tickets, incidents, security threats and service performance, along with custom reporting. The platform is designed to reduce reliance on periodic reporting by making operating information available on demand.

Murdoch Webster has also introduced AI and automation into internal workflows to reduce repetitive tasks, while senior engineers continue to handle judgement-based work and customer accountability.

Before outlining his view of the role, Allan pointed to the customer-facing nature of the business and the continuity of long-standing relationships. "I wanted to lead a business where I could spend time with customers, work alongside the engineers and see the difference our decisions make," said Tom Allan, Chief Executive Officer, Murdoch Webster. "Murdoch Webster has customers who have trusted the team for almost 20 years. That tells you something about how people here work. There's a lot we can build on, and I want to help the team do that while keeping the personal service customers know us for."

Growth focus

The restructuring reflects a broader trend across technology services providers, which are increasingly combining infrastructure support with cybersecurity operations as customer environments become more interlinked. For smaller and mid-sized providers, the challenge is often to add new layers of service without losing the direct customer contact that helped build the business.

Murdoch Webster's model relies in part on technology partnerships, using third-party products and specialist expertise alongside its own understanding of client environments. Those partnerships remain central to how it delivers infrastructure, networking and cybersecurity services.

Allan said the use of AI inside the business was intended to free staff from routine tasks rather than replace technical oversight. "AI can take repetitive work off an engineer's desk, but customers still need someone experienced who understands their environment and takes responsibility," he said. "We're using AI and automation to give our people more time for that work, while keeping personal service at the heart of our customer relationships. And with Assure, customers can see what's happening across their service, from an open ticket to a security threat. Our customers value that level of visibility and transparency."

Mearns, who founded the business in 2006, said the leadership handover was intended to support the next phase of development while preserving the company's established customer base and operating approach.

"From the start, Murdoch Webster has been about doing right by our customers, keeping our word and delivering what matters to them. You earn trust that way, and I'm proud of the relationships we've built over the past 20 years," said Chris Mearns, Founder and Executive Director, Murdoch Webster. "Tom understands what it takes to build a strong technology services business and shares that commitment. He'll lead the business as CEO, and I'll stay closely involved with our customers, technology and partners. I'm looking forward to what we can do together."