Published on the 06/10/2020 | Written by Heather Wright
Zag zigs into big four consulting firm’s stable…
Professional services behemoth Accenture has bought Kiwi SAP and cloud solutions technology firm Zag for an undisclosed sum, bolstering Accenture’s SAP practice and cloud-first capabilities across Australia and New Zealand.
The deal comes as SAP customers move to upgrade their legacy offerings ahead of a 2027 deadline and as Accenture invests heavily globally in pushing clients to become ‘cloud first’.
Ben Morgan (pictured right), Accenture New Zealand managing director, says the acquisition will strengthen Accenture’s ability to help clients accelerate their business transformation using SAP and cloud technologies delivering more value from the new platforms.
“By acquiring Zag, Accenture is now perfectly positioned to assist these organisations with their systems overhaul.”
Zag, which was previously known as Soltius, has more than 200 staff across Auckland, Wellington, Sydney and Melbourne, with more than 100 clients including farmer-owned cooperative Ballance and Australian energy provider Hydro Tasmania.
The announcement coincides with SAP recently setting a 2027 deadline on support ending for all legacy products. That announcement means a significant number of organisations will need to upgrade their SAP installs with a large percentage migrating to S/4HANA by the deadline.
“By acquiring Zag, Accenture is now perfectly positioned to assist these organisations with their systems overhaul,” the company says.
Nick Mulcahy (pictured left), Zag CEO, says the combination of Accenture and Zag is a great opportunity for clients and teams.
“We look forward to offering an unrivalled SAP offering.”
Scott Hahn, Accenture’s technology lead for Australia and New Zealand, says Zag’s experience in delivering cloud and SAP solutions for a wide range of complex businesses will be pivotal to the expansion of Accenture’s local technology offerings.
“Their extensive expertise and knowledge further deepen our networks and capabilities to meet the anticipated growth in demand for SAP and cloud services and we are delighted to welcome them to the team,” Hahn says.
Mulcahy says Zag has grown from an idea to a thriving business that has helped over 100 organisations to become stronger, safer and more prosperous through the best possible use of technology, tailored to their specifications.
“Since 1996, Zag has led the SAP market in New Zealand through our drive to think creatively, the close relationships we build with our customers and our firm belief that our people are our strength,” he says.
Accenture has been aggressively acquiring businesses across Australia and New Zealand in the past 18 months, investing in data analytics and supply chain management company Icon Integration and business strategy and econometrics firm AlphaBeta in February; specialist government consultancy Apis Group in December; big data and analytics company Analytics8 in August 2019 and cybersecurity and technology company BCT Solutions in June 2019.
Accenture recently announced the formation of Accenture Cloud First, a $USD3 billion investment over three years to help clients across all industries rapidly become ‘cloud first’ businesses.
Zag’s experience in delivering cloud and SAP solutions for a wide range of complex businesses will be pivotal to the expansion of Accenture’s local technology offerings.
