QUANTIQ acquired by Microsoft giant Avanade

CEO and founder Stuart Fenton to leave QUANTIQ in November

Microsoft Dynamics specialist QUANTIQ has been acquired by global giant Avanade in a deal which will see CEO and founder Stuart Fenton leave the London-based firm after more than eight years.

Fenton told CRN that he will leave the business in mid-November, adding that the decision to sell up to Avanade would allow the company to more quickly realise its "ambitious" goals.

Announcing the acquisition, Avanade said combining QUANTIQ's ERP customer experience with its expertise across the Microsoft platform would allow clients to benefit from solutions that will help accelerate digital transformation across all industry sectors, globally.

"This is an enormous market growing at a terrific rate. We had some big ambitions, and it was going to take some years to reach them, so it made enormous sense to join Avanade and instantly get the benefit of their depth of resources, financial strength, and geographic coverage," Fenton said.

"It's a bittersweet thing, but I walk away with immense pride having worked with the best team I've ever worked with in my career."

Fenton previously said that he was unconvinced about whether private equity is good for the channel, and revealed that several private equity firms have approached QUANTIQ.

Fenton told CRN that opting instead for a trade sale with Avanade was an easy decision based on the Microsoft partner's approach to previous acquisitions.

"Avanade did an amazing job when they acquired Altius and how they retained that organisation and what made that organisation great. Their approach for QUANTIQ, it appears, is going to be pretty much the same."

"I've never put the company up for sale but I've had lots of people inquire. Avanade was the first time that I'd met an organisation that had the same shared values, goals and objectives and passion for the people that I do. From those initial conversations, it was incredibly easy to consider being part of their larger family."

He added that he is now considering acquiring another business which does not compete with QUANTIQ, as well as take on some new board roles "if something interesting comes up".

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed but Avanade said the acquisition would "add approximately 300 new professionals" to its existing Business Applications team.

QUANTIQ saw its revenues reach £31.1m for its year ending 31 December 2020, a 31 per cent increase from its 2019 figure, and joins the Accenture-owned business' team of more than 50,000 professionals across 26 countries.

"Microsoft continues to make strong investments in Dynamics 365 as a key pillar of digital transformation," said Andy Gillett, general manager for Avanade UK and Ireland.

"With QUANTIQ and its strong reputation as a trusted Microsoft partner, we see a huge opportunity for Avanade to quickly scale up to meet the growing need for solutions that help organisations realise, much needed business efficiencies, agility and resilience, and also help overcome barriers to growth."