IBM buys UK’s Optevia to revamp its cloud-based CRM services

PanARMENIAN.Net - IBM has made an acquisition to help grow its business in cloud services for government and other public sector organizations — cloud services being of the areas that IBM hopes will offset declines in its legacy business. The company has acquired Optevia, a UK-based consultancy that specializes in customer relationship management solutions, specifically cloud-based CRM delivered by way of software as a service, and even more specifically Microsoft Dynamics CRM implementations for public sector organizations, TechCrunch said.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Optevia’s business reported record results last year, but abbreviated accounts filed earlier this year did not disclose the company’s revenues, according to the news agency.

Optevia will become a part of IBM’s Global Business Services division. While it will help IBM grow its public sector business in the UK, IBM also has bigger plans to scale up and market Optevia’s software — up to now focusing only on the UK market — to customers globally, TechCrunch reports.

“By acquiring Optevia, IBM will be able to provide Public Sector clients and prospects with a range of unique, industry focused CRM based solutions,” said Joanna Davinson, IBM Public Sector Leader – Europe, in a statement. “This strategic acquisition will help strengthen IBM as a SaaS provider and Global Software Integrator.”

An IBM spokesperson says that IBM will use Optevia to expand its business around Microsoft’s Dynamics CRM in the public sector market, but it won’t limit itself to that platform alone. “We will continue to develop and enhance our portfolio to include relevant vendor solutions in order to meet client demands,” the spokesperson said.

IBM has made at least 151 acquisitions, with many focusing on expanding business with specific verticals, such as its recent acquisition of Truven Health Analytics, reportedly for $2.6 billion. The company reported over $22 billion in revenues last quarter but its sales have been in consistent decline for years now, and so it’s been making a big effort to boost new areas of growth to offset older parts of its IT operations, TechCrunch said.