IBM gobbles Bluewolf in cloud consulting 'consolidation race'
Rival cloud consultancy Appirio says rumoured $200m deal is no surprise given recent consolidation in cloud consulting sector
Bluewolf has become the latest specialist cloud consultancy to be acquired by a global giant in a trend one rival claims is creating a "void" in the market.
IBM yesterday confirmed its intention to buy Bluewolf, a Salesforce consultancy with 500 staff and offices in the US, Europe and Australia in a deal rumoured to be valued at $200m (£140m).
It joins a growing line of specialist cloud shops to fall victim to market consolidation in recent months.
IBM itself recently acquired Workday consultancy Meteorix, Accenture recently pounced on Google Apps consultancy Cloud Sherpas and Salesforce partner Tquila UK, and Capgemini has acquired Oinio.
Chris Barbin, chief executive of Appirio, claimed this consolidation could spell bad news for innovation and plays into the hands of the "few remaining independent consultancies focused solely on cloud" such as his firm.
"The recent news of IBM acquiring Bluewolf isn't a huge surprise to those following the industry closely," he said.
"Clearly, there is a real market consolidation race going on here. As mega [global systems integrators] acquire independent consultancies, a void in the marketplace widens. We're in the age of the customer, and those customers are demanding white-glove treatment, agility, and a strong cultural fit from their implementation partners."
Founded in 2000, Bluewolf claims to have delivered more than 9,500 successful Salesforce projects and bills itself as the vendor's first ever consulting partner.
IBM confirmed Bluewolf will join the Interactive Experience practice within IBM Global Business Services upon completion of the transaction.
"There is no question that the consumer-grade experience has emerged as a fundamental element in modern business strategy," said Bridget van Kralingen, senior vice president, IBM Global Business Services. "Meeting that expectation defines next-generation differentiation and competitive position, and with Bluewolf, we add expertise to scale that capability to the cloud-based capabilities of Salesforce."