Ian Goddard
Chairman and Founder

I’m the chair of Yarris Technologies. I founded the company in 1995. My job is to lead the board of directors, set the agenda for the monthly board meeting and chair the meeting. As a lawyer I also have a second role as in-house counsel for the company. I handle all the company’s contracts, joint ventures, legal matters that come up from time to time and manage relations with our external law firm.

I love finding better ways to do things. I detest processes that are inefficient and waste my time. The greatest pleasure is finding customers who want to change how they carry on their business with our help. My goal is to help Yarris to grow bigger, and then have as much fun as I can with family and with travelling, woodworking, reading, swimming, cooking and perhaps dinghy sailing

I attended Melbourne Uni and studied law and commerce. While studying I had a variety of holiday jobs including as a demolition labourer, factory worker, builder and painter. After graduation I became a lawyer and worked in corporate law and finance, eventually finishing up as a partner in one of the big law firms. I loved the law, but I felt entrepreneurial urges, and left the firm to found a technology company, Yarris. I was CEO, or joint CEO, until 2021.

All my life I have tinkered with technology and made things with my hands. Yarris is perfect for me because I can combine my love of technology with something I am professionally skilled in, law and business.

For pleasure, I have loved sailing all my life. When I was 29 I took a big punt and bought one of the first yacht charter businesses in the Whitsundays with my brother. I worked on the boats in my holidays and had some wonderful experiences.