Accenture Makes 20th Acquisition In 2020 With CreativeDrive Buy

The acquisition of content production specialist CreativeDrive signals that the solution provider powerhouse’s M&A engine is roaring during the coronavirus pandemic.

With Accenture’s Friday acquisition of CreativeDrive, the solution provider goliath has made a whopping 20 acquisitions in 2020 as the $43 billion company’s M&A engine is on high during the coronavirus pandemic.

“Speed is today’s currency, particularly as the COVID-19 pandemic accelerates the massive disruption that brands are experiencing as consumers shift to online channels at an unprecedented pace,” said Brian Whipple, CEO of Accenture Interactive, in a statement.

Services superstar Accenture has acquired a wide variety of companies and businesses units with a big focus on security and big data analytics. These include the cybersecurity acquisitions of Context, Revolutionary Security and Symantec’s Cyber Security Services business, along with data analytics experts AlphaBeta Advisors, Byte Prophecy, Clarity Insights, Mudano and Sentelis.

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Accenture, which ranks No. 2 on CRN’s 2020 Solution Provider 500 list, has purchased vendor-focused companies such as SAP specialists Maihiro and Icon Integration, Amazon Web Services services standout Gekko, top ServiceNow partner Organize Cloud Labs, as well as the Workday, Salesforce and U.S. MuleSoft practices from Sierra-Cedar.

The company has also acquired unique niche players like vehicle embedded software developer ERS Labs, financial consulting firm NIKE Group, manufacturing services specialist Callisto Integration, IoT-focused VanBerlo, customer growth strategy expert Kates Kesler, marketing services firm Yesler, and life-cycle management system integrator PLM Systems.

When the coronavirus pandemic was first hitting the U.S. in March, Accenture CEO Julie Sweet said the company is in a “position of strength” to weather COVID-19.

“As you think about what is actually happening … our services will be even more relevant,” Sweet told investors during the company’s second-quarter earnings call in March. “At the end of the day, we have to serve our clients. We need to help them adjust. We need to make sure their mission-critical services are continuing. And then help them evaluate how to navigate, grow and address it. That will be very different, in different industries and companies. This is where our relationships matter so much. … I feel very confident, and I think we’re in a very significant position of strength as we go into this chapter.”

Although Accenture did announce 900 U.K.-based job cuts in July, the company has a massive head count of more than 510,000 employees worldwide.

In the Chicago-based company’s most recent acquisition of CreativeDrive, Accenture said the content production player will help its customers reinvent content creation on digital and commerce channels.

“The acquisition of CreativeDrive is an investment in our clients and their future success—positioning us even more strongly to help them rise to this challenge and create a content revolution in a creative, cost-effective and agile manner.”

Financial terms of the deal were not provided.

Founded in 2015, New York-based CreativeDrive has 700 employees with locations across the U.S., Australia, Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Singapore, South Africa and the U.K.