30. ANS

Revenue: £129.9m

ANS Group is a Manchester-based IT services provider delivering digital transformation, managed services, and cloud hosting platforms to public and private sector customers. The business operates through its wholly owned subsidiary ANS Group Limited and is backed by private equity firm Inflexion.

Revenue grew 7 per centto £130m in the year to 31 December 2023, with adjusted EBITDA rising by 9 per centto £27.4m. While the group posted a loss after tax of £107.2m, this was driven largely by non-cash items, including £56.1m in goodwill amortisation and £70.8m in interest charges, of which only £16m was paid in cash. Net cash from operating activities more than doubled to £10m.

ANS continued to refine its operating model during the year, building on its 2021 business combination and integrating the operations of Microsoft Dynamics CRM specialist Preact, which it acquired in December 2022. Headcount rose to 749, up from 686 the previous year.

The group’s service lines include public and private cloud, virtual private clouds, and security and digital solutions. It holds key vendor accreditations including Microsoft Azure Expert MSP, VMware Principal Partner, and Cisco Gold Partner status. Microsoft named ANS its UK Services Partner of the Year in 2023.

ANS reports that many of its customer relationships are long-term and built on multi-year contracts. The firm assigns named account managers and executive sponsors to accounts and tracks satisfaction via regular reviews and surveys. Gross margin expanded to 50 per cent during the year, up from 46 per cent.

On the people front, the business offers 12 personal development days annually, supports nine employee-led EDI groups, and gives all staff up to five volunteering days a year. Its apprentice academy is rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted. ANS also claims to be the UK’s first 100 per centcarbon-neutral hosting provider, certified under the PAS2060 standard.