Cornelius Ferris

Neil Ferris joined the Tier1 Board in early 2019, and is now Chairman for Tier1 Financial Solutions. He has been involved in the creation and growth of high-tech companies for over 35 years and is an active advisor and executive consultant to technology companies, venture capital and private equity investors. Prior to his current assignments, he was CEO of Giganet, a storage networking company which was sold to Emulex. Neil’s previous CEO roles included Open Data which was sold to a private company, and Fluent Machines which was sold to Novell Corp.

Neil was part of the founding team and Vice President of Apollo Computer, which enjoyed a successful IPO and was subsequently sold to HP. For almost ten years, Neil held senior director positions with Data General, where he joined shortly after formation and was the first incumbent in every position he held. His previous board roles include BTI Systems, Archives, Enfora, InterSense, and Ibrix, all which were successfully acquired. His nonprofit activities include ten years as Chairman of the board for UMass Marlborough Hospital and Trustee of New Horizons. Neil holds an MBA and a B.S. degree from Northeastern University.