DUBLIN and Belfast-based technology and digital transformation provider Version 1 has completed another significant acquisition, this time in the north east of England.
It has bought UK-based service design and digital transformation specialists Evoco Digital Services for an undisclosed sum as part of its ambitious growth strategy.
It's the 13th purchase for Version 1 and follows the acquisition last June of Belfast-based Neueda, which took the business to beyond 2,000 employees and took revenue projections to €200 million this year.
And it comes as Version 1 - which also has operations in Spain and India - announced plans earlier this week to create 200 additional jobs over the next two years at a new base in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne.
Evoco will become part of Version 1’s rapidly-growing UK digital, data and cloud practice adding specialist expertise in service design and digital transformation in the public sector.
Evoco is led by directors John Dunnet, Chris Hewitt, Peter Stansbury, Steve Walton and Enda McCormack, who between them have 125 years of business leadership, change and technology experience.
With a staff of 41, Evoco has delivered £8 million in savings across 52 successful projects to 18 UK public sector customers.
The full Evoco team will remain with the business following the merger and become an integral part of Version 1’s growth plans.
Version 1 chief executive Tom O’Connor said: “This acquisition brings a team with advanced service design and digital transformation expertise to help our customers navigate the many challenges of the increasingly complex digital environments they operate in.
“Version 1 is growing rapidly across the UK public sector with customers such as Highways England, Ofgem, Ordnance Survey, Home Office, and Harrow Council to name a few.
“This acquisition further consolidates our position as a market-leader in delivering digital transformation across the UK public sector and further afield.
“We are excited about the opportunity to help illuminate a way forward for our customers across both public and private sectors alike with specialist service design expertise and digital transformation capabilities to drive significant business benefits for them.”
John Dunnet from the Evoco leadership team added: “We are delighted to be joining a rapidly growing technology and digital transformation organisation like Version 1, which shares the same values as we do, including our focus on impactful customer outcomes and excellence in delivery.
“We see the acquisition as being hugely positive in enabling our growth ambitions, helping to accelerate digital transformation in the UK public sector market and bringing our specialist service design expertise to Version 1’s existing customers.”
