Ciphr named Thames Valley Tech Company of the Year 2026

The Reading-based, HR tech firm was recognised as the Thames Valley Tech Company of the Year – taking home the biggest award of the night. 

Ciphr’s strong, profitable performance and investment in product developments over the past year also saw it rewarded with the High Growth Tech Company of the Year Award.

The judges praised Ciphr for its successful and “significant customer-focused transformation” and continued “strong commitment to its people and culture”.

Ciphr was a finalist in three other award categories, including Large Tech Enterprise of the Year, Tech Employer of the Year (which it won in 2025), and Tech Leadership Team of the Year. 

Sion Lewis, CEO of Ciphr, says: “These awards celebrate the region’s top tech companies, and we are honoured to be named the best Thames Valley Tech Company of the Year. This is a great accolade for Ciphr. We're incredibly proud of this recognition – and even prouder of the team that made it possible. Thank you. 

“Over the past few years, we’ve invested in long-term growth rather than short-term wins – reflecting our commitment to delivering innovative, functionality-rich people management solutions that help UK organisations work smarter, stay compliant, and put their people first. 

“We are serving more customers than ever, and a record number of people are engaging with our platform daily. I’m really excited about the opportunities that lie ahead for Ciphr, as we continue to build and grow our business.”

Some highlights of 2025 include the launch of Ciphr Payroll, Ciphr’s award-winning cloud payroll solution, and the subsequent launch of Ciphr’s real-time HR and payroll integration (which is also in the running for best software product at the CIPP Excellence Awards this year). 

Ciphr’s fully integrated product suite now also includes Ciphr Benefits. Having everything connected in one suite ensures admin users from HR, payroll, benefits, and L&D teams can work from the same up-to-date people data: from recruitment and onboarding to HR, learning, cloud payroll, and benefits and rewards. Creating a more resilient, transparent process that reduces manual admin tasks and the risks of human error.

Other new features introduced in 2025 include an HR analytics suite, with pre-configured dashboards and robust reporting tools, a microlearning suite for UK organisations, refreshed mobile access, an AI form summarisation tool (available to all customers with the talent management module), and personalised AI coaching thanks to a new partnership with MyTeamBuilder. 

More recent innovations include the rollout of Ciphr’s AI HR assistant to its HR customers. Designed to improve self-service, users can view and cross-reference their people data in seconds, produce quick reports, and perform routine tasks via simple conversational queries. It’s changing how people interact with their HR system and already delivering genuine efficiency gains. 

And, because Ciphr AI is built into the suite, rather than a third-party add-on, users will benefit from better, more secure, data-led insights across the full employee lifecycle. 

Claire Hawes, chief people and operations officer at Ciphr, adds: “I'm incredibly proud of what our teams have achieved. To win two big awards, and be shortlisted for three others, reflects the journey we’ve been on as a business. It’s an incredible recognition of our people first and foremost, who care deeply about getting it right for our customers and providing an excellent experience. 

“I’m proud of our credentials as one of the best employers in the Thames Valley region. People are at the heart of what we do, and we’re committed to empowering our employees and fostering a workplace where everyone thrives.” 

The winners of the 2026 Thames Valley Tech and Innovation Awards were announced on 9 July at Hilton Reading Hotel.

Ciphr has also been included in the 2026 edition of the Thames Valley 250 – an annual ranking that celebrates the top privately-owned businesses in the region, listed by annual sales turnover. And the 2026 Thames Valley SME Growth 100 list, for businesses with turnovers of up to £30m.

Ciphr is the go-to HR, payroll and benefits software partner for UK organisations with 200 to 2,000 employees. Its integrated HR, payroll, benefits, learning and recruitment software, services and content provide invaluable insights to HR teams to help inform their people strategy and grow and develop their organisations. Ciphr is on a mission to amplify the voice and value of HR through intelligent people data solutions that help HR be heard – in the boardroom and across the business.

More than 1,400 organisations use people management solutions from Ciphr, including Natural History Museum, Haygrove, Amaze Hotels, Barnardo's, University of Cambridge, CitySprint, Crisis UK, Greater London Authority, the Irish Universities Association, Action Against Hunger, Eversheds Sutherland, the Church of England, Evri, Allpay, Jonas, Taylor Wessing, Newcastle University, Bunzl, Bluelight Commercial, Prudential, University of Oxford, Together Housing, AND Digital, Knauf, Aptos, and Crest Nicholson.

For more information, please visit www.ciphr.com.

### 

 

Media enquiries:

Emma-Louise Jones, digital PR manager at Ciphr
e:  ejones@ciphr.com  

Chris Boddice, chief marketing officer at Ciphr
e: cboddice@ciphr.com
Website: www.ciphr.com
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ciphr 

About Ciphr

Photo to accompany this announcement:

(Pictured left to right) award host Jason Bradbury, Phil King, commercial director at Ciphr, James Whatmore, director of sales at Ciphr, Josh Phillips, account development manager – team leader at Ciphr, and award sponsor Rosalind Payne from BDO (credit: Insider Media): https://www.ciphr.com/hs-fs/hubfs/corporate-pr-images/Ciphr_2026_thames_valley_tech_company.jpg

Ciphr is the go-to HR, payroll and benefits software partner for UK organisations with 200 to 2,000 employees. Ciphr is on a mission to strengthen the strategic value of HR and payroll teams. With market-leading tools and support, Ciphr provides the means to automate and streamline processes so HR and payroll professionals can focus on doing what they do best. 

The Ciphr Group is a privately held company backed by ECI Partners and headquartered in Reading. Over 230 employees work across the group, which includes Ciphr and FlexGenius, as well as its previous acquisition Marshall E-Learning (now known as Ciphr eLearning). 

Ciphr spokespeople are available to provide expert media comment on a broad range of topics, including HR strategy, people management, employee experience and wellbeing, AI in HR, payroll, benefits and rewards, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I), learning and development, the future of work, tech trends, business and leadership, marketing, and more.