Protiviti acquires US-based Decision First Technologies
Global consulting firm Protiviti has acquired Decision First Technologies, a move which enables the business advisory to meet the growing demand for analytics, data warehousing and predictive analytics consulting services.
With over 3,700 professionals operating from 70 locations in over 20 countries, Protiviti is one of the globe’s larger consultancies. The firm focuses mainly on topics in the risk, finance advisory, and internal audit domain.
To meet growing demand for business analytics – according to data from analysts one of most in-demand segments within the consulting industry – the US-headquartered advisory has purchased Decision First Technologies (DFT), an Atlanta-based company that specialises in business intelligence and SAP solutions. The company was founded in 2001, and has since grown into an award-winning company* with roughly 90 professionals.
As part of the deal, DFT becomes part of Protiviti’s Data Management and Advanced Analytics solution group, with Taylor Courtnay and Scott Golden, DFT’s co-founders, and Steve Freeman, Vice President of Field Operations, joining Protiviti as Managing Directors. With the move, Protiviti bolsters the breadth and depth of its analytical rigour, enhancing the firm’s ability to deliver consulting services in business analytics, data warehousing, data governance, predictive analytics and model risk management, says Shaheen Dil, Managing Director and leader of Protiviti’s Data Management and Advanced Analytics practice.
In particular the combination with Protiviti’s risk and finance footprint is expected to unlock significant value added. Technology consulting and risk & finance consulting are the two fastest growing offerings in the US consulting industry, a market assessed to be worth over $50 billion, and the common space in between both worlds is described by experts as the sweet spot for growth going forward. “The addition of DFT’s talent and business creates a synergy of services that will deliver a deeper level of expertise and increase Protiviti’s ability to equip its clients with the information and processes needed to effectively manage their business and risks globally,” explains James Pajakowski, Executive VP Global Services at Protiviti.
The acquisition also bolsters Protiviti’s SAP-based portfolio with among others solutions for analytics, enterprise information management (EIM), data warehousing, and the SAP HANA platform – DFT is a SAP gold channel partner and can boast on a seven-time ‘SAP BusinessObjects Solution Provider Partner of the Year’ track record. “We focus on multiple ERP products for our clients, and this acquisition is a significant addition to our SAP practice,” adds Pajakowski.
Transactions
The acquisition is Protiviti’s first major deal in three years. In 2007 it acquired PENTA Advisory Services, a Baltimore-based firm which provides restructuring and bankruptcy-related services to businesses, while in 2006 it purchased Canadian risk management and loss prevention firms Creative Options and Radius, as well as P.G. Lewis & Associates, a US-based data forensics firm. Protiviti’s latest deal stems from 2012, when it bought SusQtech, a provider of SharePoint consulting services. Terms of the Decision First Technologies transaction have not been disclosed.
* Decision First Technologies was for instance earlier this year named to the 2015 Top Workplaces list by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
