Deloitte announced the formation of Olympus with Amazon Web Services (AWS), a global investment fund focused on building industry cloud solutions. IBM entered into an agreement to acquire Octo, a US-based IT modernization and digital transformation services provider, exclusively serving the US federal government. EY acquired ifb SE, international finance, risk transformation, and compliance consultancy, to strengthen capabilities and enhance offerings. The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) and Microsoft have entered into a new long-term strategic partnership to architect LSEG’s data infrastructure using the Microsoft Cloud and to jointly develop new products and services for data and analytics. Unanet, a project-based ERP and CRM solutions provider for government contractors and architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) firms, announced it has closed a new round of strategic financing from Onex Corporation.
Hi and welcome to episode 68 of The ERP Minute. I am your host, Rebekah McCabe.
In the ERP news this week, we see clear indicators that the software industry is entering a new world of service delivery. Vendors are reaching deeper and deeper with the acquisitions of different service providers and the creation of strategic relationships with global technology providers; with clear strategic movement from Deloitte, IBM, and EY.
First, Deloitte announced the formation of Olympus with Amazon Web Services (AWS), a global investment fund focused on building industry cloud solutions. This initiative combines the engineering and industry domain knowledge of Deloitte with the security and scale of AWS to co-innovate and engineer solutions that tackle the toughest challenges in key industries, employing the principles of modern software engineering.
Additionally, IBM entered into an agreement to acquire Octo, a US-based IT modernization and digital transformation services provider, exclusively serving the US federal government. This acquisition will see approximately 1,500 Octo employees joining IBM Consulting’s US public and federal market organization, enhancing IBM’s ability to support federal agencies' digital transformations.
Finally, EY acquired ifb SE, international finance, risk transformation, and compliance consultancy, to strengthen capabilities and enhance offerings. This acquisition will enhance the breadth and depth of EY finance and risk transformation and compliance capabilities, creating greater opportunities for EY to support its clients.
While these are not new trends, the depth of these relationships is extremely unique. The market is now being defined in a contemporary services-centric technology universe to provide the next generation of cloud innovations, AI, machine learning, quantum computing, and more to be competitive.
Additionally, technology providers are partnering with customers in innovative ways to deliver mutually beneficial advancements. For example, the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) and Microsoft have entered into a new long-term strategic partnership to architect LSEG’s data infrastructure using the Microsoft Cloud and to jointly develop new products and services for data and analytics. This partnership is expected to drive LSEG’s total incremental cash costs over 2023 through 2025 expected to be in the range of £250-300 million. Contractual commitment by LSEG for minimum cloud-related spend with Microsoft of $2.8 billion (£2.3 billion) over the term of the partnership, reflecting minimum cloud consumption expectations and consistent with existing long-term opex and capex plans.
As we enter the next decade, we expect to see these trends continue far into the future, as vendors reach the next era of economical advancement.
In other investment news, Unanet, a project-based ERP and CRM solutions provider for government contractors and architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) firms, announced it has closed a new round of strategic financing from Onex Corporation. The investment will help Unanet accelerate its product innovation, go-to-market strategies, and plans for continued growth.
This year has been dominated by the presence of Private Equity firms making key investments to expand upon their product offerings, especially in the ERP space where so many niche products have been created by specialized developers. By investing in these products, PE firms can deliver greater value more efficiently and cost-effectively.
Thanks for tuning into The ERP Minute. We are always looking for newsworthy material to share with our listeners, so send us breaking ERP news! Be sure to subscribe to our Apple Podcast, Spotify, and YouTube channels so you never miss an episode. We’ll see you next week.
