Australian IT success story Atlassian, which makes collaboration software for developers, appointed Erik Bardman as chief financial officer as the company prepares for a potential US initial public offering this year.

Atlassian, which was valued at $4.27 billion in its latest funding round, has 1250 employees globally and generated revenue of $278 million in the past year, Jay Simons, the company's president, said in an interview.

Atlassian co-founders Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar.

The startup, co-founded by Scott Farquhar and Mike Cannon-Brookes in Sydney in 2002, moved to the UK last year and added directors from Silicon Valley ahead of a public debut. Bardman, who previously held CFO positions at Roku, Logitech and eBay's Marketplaces unit, "will be a great asset" for Atlassian, Cannon-Brookes wrote in an emailed statement.

"We could file (for an IPO) this year, but we haven't decided yet whether we will or not," Simons said. Atlassian decided to go public in the US, but hasn't yet picked bankers or an exchange, he said.