West Monroe sells managed services division to private equity firm
Business and technology consultancy West Monroe Partners has agreed to sell its managed services division to M/C Partners, a Boston-based private equity firm which focuses on communications and IT services. The sale was finalized on December 30. Wayne Kiphart will act as CEO of the newly acquired practice.
“I am excited to join the talented team at West Monroe Managed Services and to lead the company in this next chapter of growth,” Kiphart said. “Our focus will continue to be on driving the highest satisfaction for our customers – some of whom have been customers for over 10 years – through additional investments in service delivery and IT capabilities. Over the next few months, I will spend considerable time with our customers to better understand their needs so that we can continue to deliver services that help them be successful. We also plan to launch a new brand, including a company name. It’s an exciting time for both myself and for our employees, who will now have a greater ability to impact the future of this organization.”
Prior to West Monroe, Kiphart worked at cybersecurity-focused managed services provider Gratia. He is also the former president of OnX Managed Services and served as vice president of managed services at Logicalis. His expertise runs particularly deep in areas such as sales, operations, and client services.
West Monroe Managed Partners is based in Chicago and offers IT solutions to small and medium-sized business throughout the Midwest US. The division was founded in 2009, and currently serves more than 50 clients with its team of approximately 100 employees.
The division’s sale makes M/C Partners its primary financial investor – something to which the equity firm is no stranger, especially in the technology and communications services markets. To date, M/C Partners has invested more than $2 billion into more than 130 companies – Cavalier Telephone, Ensono, Everstream, ICG Communications, NuVox, and Zayo Group, to name a few – valued between $25 million and $250 million.
“West Monroe Managed Services represents an exceptional technology services platform,” Gillis Cashman, managing partner at M/C Partners, said. “As a standalone, well-capitalized company with a highly experienced leadership team and passionate, talented employees, we feel the business will be in a stronger position to address the existing and future needs of its customers.”
“West Monroe Managed Services has built a differentiated application management expertise that is highly valued by its customers,” Abhishek Rampuria, vice president at M/C Partners, added. “We are excited to begin this partnership and to provide the financial and operational resources to facilitate future growth and continued success.”
