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26 November 2024
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I know that you don’t have a team of BD analysts helping you navigate consultancy trends or your growth strategy, so if there are datapoints or angles you'd like us to explore (on the house) then do let me know!
Ejaaz (Founder & Editor at KnowPro Market Intelligence)
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Here were the top Government Departments and Large Public Bodies that awarded consulting-related contracts, ranked by award value 👇
Among the standout contracts was DfT’s £20M contract award to Specialist Computer Centres Plc, to help the department in "handling large-scale procurement, deployment, and asset management of devices and software provided to DfT employees".
Additionally, we saw the Government Property Agency award 2 contracts to digital transformation consultancies, Swift Strategies and M4 Digital Group, for £8M and £6M respectively.
The DfE issued a £4.9M contract to SME Scroll to support digital content design and editorial services, in a government-wide move to optimise the accessibility & user-friendliness of cross-stakeholder information and content. Throughout the year, 4 government departments including DWP, DESNZ, and DSIT have awarded contracts worth more than £39.3M for the provision of digital content designs and user experience designs. The DfE also awarded a £13M contract award to Engine Partners, for user-centred design & digital skills to support the DfE in its delivery of it’s Operations & Infrastructure Group - a division responsible for physical & digital infrastructure of the entire educational system.
Back to the November’s contract awards so far - they fell into the following categories 👇
A total of 168 public sector contracts have been awarded so far, with the majority being in “IT services” (89) and “Business related services” (44).
Of the 44 IT services contracts, 19 were explicitly focused on software implementation. Two of the MoD's software implementation contracts were for further development and implementation of the MODCloud platform - a cloud platform that hosts the MoD’s applications, data and related services. The contracts were worth an aggregate of £125k and were awarded to 6point6 and Macs EU. Bain & Company won a £350k contract to help the MoD’s National Armament Director with operating model support.
The MoJ’s awards primarily involved the procurement of IT and managed services. It spent £2.4M on cloud-related managed services, £1.8M on an IT service management tool. A key strategic procurement, valued at £8.3M, was awarded large consultancy Opencast Software Europe for software development of the MoJ’s Digital Bench Model.
IT Related Services Breakdown (All Departments & Agencies)
Top Consultancy Providers
Within the top 10 consultancy providers, Engine Partners and TPXimpact each won 2 contracts within the month of November. 3 of the Top 10 consultancy-service providers were SMEs.
None of the Big 4 or blue-chip consultancies won contracts that would place them within the top 10 suppliers in November.
The Top 10 SMEs of the Month
Each of the Top 10 SMEs won a single contract in November (to date).
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*Correction as of 12th Dec 2024
6 Notable IT & Digital Transformation Deals
Digital transformation firm, Nextview Consulting acquired Sabio Group's Salesforce division, marking Nextview's entry into the UK and Ireland market. The deal adds 35 Sabio professionals, bringing total headcount to 250+ employees with more than 1,100 Salesforce certifications. Following the acquisition, Nextview expects to achieve over €30 million in revenue, making it one of the largest pure-play Salesforce partners in Europe.
Technology transformation and cybersecurity provider, Actica Consulting has acquired software and data engineering business, Gemba Advantage. This acquisition marks Actica's second strategic purchase since Sovereign's investment in 2022. Gemba Advantage, founded in 2020, specialises in delivering secure, scalable, and sustainable technology solutions for complex operational environments, particularly for UK public sector bodies with high security requirements. Gemba employs over 70 professionals, mostly application, infrastructure, and data specialists with high-level security clearance.
IT & Digital Transformation giant, Advania UK has acquired IT solutions specialist, CCS Media. CCS Media, with annual revenues of around £280 million, brings expertise in delivering IT products, solutions, and services across the UK. The deal is expected to accelerate Advania’s growth in the UK, with the combined company projected to achieve revenues exceeding £450 million.
We covered three deals in last week's recap: Cooper Parry’s acquisition of ERP implementation consultancy, MacroFin (it’s second tech consultancy purchase, following that of Salesforce implementation firm, Cloud Orca). Arc Systems acquired the UK-based, IT consultancy, Nationwide IT Consultancy (NITC) (Arc’s second deal since receiving investment from Beech Tree Private Equity). **Buy-and-build PE firm, Omni Partners acquired the public sector data management firm, Infoshare.
2 Notable Growth Financings
Growth capital investor, BGF invested £5M in Welsh managed cybersecurity services firm, PureCyber. The company employs a team of 37 specialists and has built up an impressive client roster of SME and global, household names. This investment was made in July 2024, not November 2024 as originally reported.
Growth capital investor, Mercia, has lent £500,000 to energy and sustainability consultancy, Inteb following the investor’s buy-out of the same consultancy in October this year**.** Inteb has more than doubled its turnover to £3.6m in the past three years and has increased its staff from 21 to 33.
3 Notable Sustainability Deals
Palatine's Impact Fund acquired a significant shareholding in newly created environmental services group, Cura Terrae. The group includes a single consultancy practice, Environmental Monitoring Solutions (EMS).
Global sustainability consultancy SLR acquired UK-based Wardell Armstrong, an environmental, engineering, and mining consultancy. The merger brings together nearly 1,800 employees across Europe. Wardell Armstrong reported a turnover of £44 million and pre-tax profit of £13.4 million in its latest financial year.
Origin Enterprises plc acquired Brooks Ecological and GE Consulting Services. Brooks, based in Leeds, provides environmental consultancy services, while GE Consulting, operating across southern England and South Wales, offers ecological consulting services.
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