Accenture has acquired Blackcomb Consultants, a leading independent Guidewire partner in North America. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
This is technology M&A deal number 865 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2022.
Accenture Acquires Blackcomb Consultants
Accenture, founded in 1989, is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland and has more than 70 locations around the globe. The company has 710,000 employees listed on LinkedIn. Accenture’s areas of expertise include management consulting, systems integration and technology, business process outsourcing and application and infrastructure outsourcing.
Blackcomb, founded in 2011, is based in Warrenville, Illinois. The company has 158 employees listed on LinkedIn. Blackcomb’s areas of expertise include IT consulting, Guidewire, digital transformation, core systems implementation, Guidewire upgrades, cloud hosting, managed cloud, hybrid cloud, production support, Guidewire Cloud, AWS Cloud, Guidewire implementations and Guidewire production support.
The acquisition enhances Accenture’s ability to deliver Guidewire solutions to insurers globally to help them become “cloud-first” businesses. Guidewire’s end-to-end technology platform combines digital, core analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities across the underwriting, billing, claims and customer relationship management functions, helping property and casualty (P&C) insurers reimagine their operations in the cloud, the company said.
Blackcomb's 158 employees will join Accenture’s Industry & Function Platforms Group, where they will be focused on Guidewire project delivery, the companies said.
John Koepke, Accenture’s Technology lead for Insurance in North America, commented on the news:
“This acquisition strengthens our ability to help insurance carriers use technologies like artificial intelligence and analytics to improve productivity and provide hyper-personalized offerings to their customers.”
Jim Bramblet, leader of Accenture’s Insurance industry group in North America, added:
“Blackcomb Consultants’ highly regarded Guidewire capabilities will allow us to deliver even greater agility and speed to market for our clients.”
Victor Voss, co-founder of Blackcomb Consultants, said:
“Amid market disruption and heightened consumer expectations, insurers are turning to platforms such as Guidewire to drive strategic digital and business transformation. Accenture and Blackcomb Consultants share a vision focused on delivering innovation to P&C carriers of all sizes, and by joining Accenture, we will be able to scale and expand our solutions for insurers worldwide, helping them create a sustained competitive advantage.”
Accenture’s M&A Activity
Accenture estimated that it spent about $2.5 billion on acquisitions during the company’s 2022 fiscal year, which ended on August 31, 2022. Already in fiscal 2023, Accenture acquired Word Class Manufacturing (WCM) business in aerospace and defense, automotive & consumer goods, The Beacon Group, a Fortune 500 growth strategy consultancy, supply chain management consultancy MacGregor Partners, climate change and sustainability consultancy Carbon Intelligence and Oracle supply chain management consultancy Inspirage.
