Version 1 boosts public sector offering with Farsight Consulting acquisition
The Irish IT firm has bought UK-based Farsight Consulting, adding €20m revenue and 133 staff
IT service provider Version 1 has purchased UK-based Farsight Consulting for an undisclosed sum.
The deal brings approximately €20m in additional revenue and 133 employees into Version 1's fold.
Farsight specialises in delivering digital transformation projects to organisations within the public sector.
The acquisition builds on an existing partnership between the two companies, collaborating on multiple government projects.
Version 1 aims to leverage this acquisition to deliver an even more compelling value proposition across its customer base and prospect pipeline within the public sector.
The MSP said Farsight brings a complementary skillset, augmenting the company's capabilities in areas such as analysis and research, problem-solving, and user-centric design.
The company hopes this expertise will position it to conceptualise, develop, and transform digital services even in the most intricate and complex environments.
"Version 1's success is based on a model called Strength in Balance which is a balanced focus and equal priority placed on empowered people, customer first and a strong organisation," Enda Diggins, MD of digital, data and cloud at Version 1 tells CRN.
"This is underscored by values that are not just words but a set of principles that all employees live and breathe. Farsight's core values and people focus are perfectly aligned to this, so the value proposition to customers is delivered by a powerful human-centric approach.
"Version 1 has a dedicated integration team that has been working hard behind the scenes to ensure a smooth transition and integration. This represents the 17th acquisition for Version 1, so we are experienced in integrating and onboarding companies in a way that is minimally disruptive for our customers and respectful of new employees."
Diggins says that Farsight's annual revenue for April to March 2023 was £15m, with customers such as the Ministry of Justice and the Department for Education.
"Version 1's revenue for January to December 2023 was €345m. The acquisition provides a very compelling offer for customers in light of other providers, particularly with some of the proof points and projects already completed by both companies either individually or combined, such as Companies House and the MoJ," he explained.
Pete Masters, founder and chairman of Farsight, added: "We're excited to be joining Version 1. We share a common set of values and aspirations, and Version 1 has demonstrated a similar commitment to developing people and providing high-quality services to customers.
"Our combined efforts will accelerate our mission which has always been to solve complex problems in a way that makes a real difference to users and to society. We're proud of what we've achieved so far and by combining our capabilities, we think we can achieve even more together."
As Diggins said this is Version 1's 17th acquisition in its history, and its third in the last year.
In early 2023, the MSP landed two acquisitions of London-headquartered Automation Logic and Finance transformation expert Qubix.
Partner consolidation
This acquisition is the latest in a busy round of partner consolidation that has seen several channel companies go out on a shopping spree, as channel partners join forces to achieve greater scale.
Yesterday, Westcoast confirmed it had acquired Spire Technology to bolster its UK distribution presence.
The day before, CRN exclusively reported that Saepio had been acquired by tech veterans Amir Nooriala and Daniel Cardenas-Clark, who took the helm as co-CEOs to spearhead growth in Europe.
Not long before that, CloudClevr reeled in its fourth acquisition with Twisted Fish IT.