Fast-growing Raleigh financial reporting software firm insightsoftware is zeroing in on yet another acquisition – its biggest yet, said CEOJim Triandiflou.
Its buy of Austin, Texas-based Magnitude, an operational reporting firm, is expected to close in November. Triandiflou declined to provide financials on the deal, but said Magnitude’s strength “is with really large companies.” It partners with firms such as SAP (NYSE: SAP) and Oracle (NYSE: ORCL).
Insight, on the other hand, has as its “bread and butter” mid-market companies.
“That’s a great combination,” he said.
The firm had been on insightsoftware’s radar for some time, with deal talks “heating up” over the summer. Triandiflou said he and Magnitude’s Boston-based CEO Jeff Shoreman met up a few times, sitting outside at a restaurant near Boston Harbor to “talk about business and make it happen.” Triandiflou admits deals take on a new dynamic in the pandemic. But whether talks are virtual or at an outdoor restaurant, “it’s about building trust.”
“It’s harder over Zoom, but you can still do it” he said. “You just have to have real conversations and not just high-level B-S. … And a lot of times that means sharing the good and the bad.”
He credited Shoreman’s transparency with helping deal negotiations move quickly.
With the addition of Magnitude, insightsoftware is at about 2,000 employees, with close to half located outside of the U.S. That ratio got a big boost from Magnitude, as it brings with it a 250-person operation in India.
Insightsoftware is looking for other opportunities, but Triandiflou said to expect “a little breather,” with no more deals to be announced in 2021.
“As we get into next year, we’ll certainly do more,” he said.
Recent acquisitions include Logi Analytics, Exago and Izenda. Earlier this year, Hg Capitalmade a $1 billion investment in insightsoftware that valued the firm at $4 billion. The move positioned Hg as a “significant minority shareholder” alongside existing backer TA Associates.