Forrester acquires SiriusDecisions with plans for APAC expansion
Market research leader Forrester has picked up fellow US-based research firm SiriusDecisions in a deal worth $245 million.
International market research and advisory firm Forrester, which provides in-depth analysis of firms within the consulting sector among others, has acquired research and marketing consultancy SiriusDecisions for $245 million in cash. Among the motivations for Forrester was the opportunity for accelerated international growth, with expanded distribution channels in the APAC and EMEA markets.
In a joint press statement, the firms said the combination of Forrester and SiriusDecisions will ‘create an innovative strategy and operations platform that can help business and technology leaders make the far-reaching changes needed to adapt to a customer-led, disruption-rich market’, with the purchase expected to bring in an additional $100 million in revenues for Forrester – which last year stood at nearly $340 million, up 3 percent on 2016.
“Today’s announcement was driven by our clients,” said Forrester Chairman and CEO George F. Colony. “Empowered customers and the disruptive power of technology are forcing business and technology leaders to take decisive action and make deep-rooted changes while delivering quarterly results. The combined value of Forrester’s strategic and SiriusDecisions’ operational capabilities will help our clients change and grow in tumultuous times.”Founded in 2001 by former Gartner executives and current managing directors John Neeson and Richard Eldh, SiriusDecisions has since then grown to a headcount of more than 150, with the US-based firm expanding its presence to include offices in London, San Francisco, Austin, Toronto and Singapore. “Allying with Forrester changes the game for our clients and accelerates our growth across industries, regions, and business functions,” commented Eldh.
Forrester, meanwhile, has ten international outlets across Europe and the Asia Pacific in addition to its US offices, including research centres based in Singapore and Beijing – with the firm conducting more than 675,000 annual surveys with consumers and business leaders worldwide. As well as an expanded distribution network for its products, Forrester states that the purchase of SiriusDecisions will open up further opportunities for growth.
With SiriusDecisions focused on the marketing, sales and product segment of the business-to-business market, with plans now to expand its platform to the information technology and customer experience domains, Forrester notes the greater possibilities for cross-selling and broader access to research and advisory content and tools for clients, as well as aiding the push into new vertical markets such as financial services, retail, healthcare, and energy.
“Digitally-savvy customers are changing the rules of business, creating extraordinary opportunity for companies that adapt and existential threat to those that don’t,” concluded Colony, who has been at the helm of Forrester from more than 35 years since its founding in 1983. “The combined company creates a robust platform to help our clients not only navigate these rough waters but thrive in the age of the customer.”