January 07, 2020

Accenture to Acquire Maihiro, Boosting Customer Experience and Experience Management Capabilities for SAP Solutions

MUNICH and NEW YORK; Jan. 7, 2020 – Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has entered into an agreement to acquire maihiro, a provider of customer experience and customer relationship management consulting, optimization and ongoing enhancement services. The acquisition will help Accenture create solutions for clients that drive innovation and transformation in marketing, sales and customer service.

Founded in 2000 and an SAP® Gold Partner, maihiro is a leading provider of SAP-based customer experience (CX), customer relationship management (CRM), and commerce services. The acquisition aims to strengthen Accenture’s world-class SAP capabilities that help organizations elevate customer experiences beyond expectations. With headquarters in Munich, maihiro has approximately 160 skilled professionals in offices across Germany and Austria.

“Today’s brands compete in the experience economy. Only those capable of delivering the most engaging and differentiated experiences will continue to win and retain customers’ loyalty,” said Bhaskar Ghosh, group chief executive, Accenture Technology Services. “With this acquisition, we will amplify our experience and knowledge to help clients drive growth by developing and deploying superior experience management. This will enable clients to better understand their customers, evolve business processes to align with customer needs, and enjoy higher customer retention and purchase frequency.”

“Together with maihiro, we will have more expertise and capacity to serve clients in Austria, Switzerland, Germany and across Europe, and guide them in their journey to transform customer experiences. Combined with Accenture’s end-to-end capabilities, client relationships and global delivery capabilities, we can provide scale and global reach for multinational clients,” added Dirk Appelhoff, Accenture SAP Business Group lead in Europe.

“Like Accenture, we are committed to guiding clients in marketing, sales and customer service, and developing and implementing competitive strategies that increase their performance,” said Uwe May, CEO, Sales & Marketing, maihiro.

Bernd Hesse, CEO, Consulting & Human Resources, maihiro, added: “Our collective, comprehensive capabilities will help clients design and operate CX and CRM solutions that enable maximum benefits from the SAP Customer Experience portfolio, including integration with SAP S/4HANA® and SAP intelligent technologies to enable seamless, end-to-end processes and drive innovation.”

As part of Accenture’s strategy to enable clients to gain the most value from SAP solutions, in May 2019, Accenture and SAP announced that they are co-developing and co-innovating to accelerate development of the SAP® C/4HANA platform and build industry-specific solutions that elevate digital customer experiences. In November 2018, Accenture also acquired U.S.-based Intrigo Systems, a leading provider of advisory and systems integration services for SAP enterprise and cloud solutions in e-commerce, supply chain and procurement. In its 2019 fiscal year, Accenture invested nearly US$1.2 billion on 33 acquisitions globally to acquire critical skills and capabilities in strategic, high-growth areas of the market.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in early 2020.

About Accenture
Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions — underpinned by the world’s largest delivery network — Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With 505,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. Visit us at www.accenture.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “likely,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “projects,” “believes,” “estimates,” “positioned,” “outlook” and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. These include, without limitation, risks that: Accenture and maihiro will not be able to close the transaction in the time period anticipated, or at all, which is dependent on the parties’ ability to satisfy certain closing conditions; the transaction might not achieve the anticipated benefits for Accenture; Accenture’s results of operations could be adversely affected by volatile, negative or uncertain economic and political conditions and the effects of these conditions on the company’s clients’ businesses and levels of business activity; Accenture’s business depends on generating and maintaining ongoing, profitable client demand for the company’s services and solutions including through the adaptation and expansion of its services and solutions in response to ongoing changes in technology and offerings, and a significant reduction in such demand or an inability to respond to the evolving technological environment could materially affect the company’s results of operations; if Accenture is unable to keep its supply of skills and resources in balance with client demand around the world and attract and retain professionals with strong leadership skills, the company’s business, the utilization rate of the company’s professionals and the company’s results of operations may be materially adversely affected; Accenture could face legal, reputational and financial risks if the company fails to protect client and/or company data from security breaches or cyberattacks; the markets in which Accenture operates are highly competitive, and Accenture might not be able to compete effectively; changes in Accenture’s level of taxes, as well as audits, investigations and tax proceedings, or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the company’s effective tax rate, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition; Accenture’s profitability could materially suffer if the company is unable to obtain favorable pricing for its services and solutions, if the company is unable to remain competitive, if its cost-management strategies are unsuccessful or if it experiences delivery inefficiencies; Accenture’s results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; as a result of Accenture’s geographically diverse operations and its growth strategy to continue to expand in its key markets around the world, the company is more susceptible to certain risks; Accenture’s business could be materially adversely affected if the company incurs legal liability; Accenture’s work with government clients exposes the company to additional risks inherent in the government contracting environment; if Accenture is unable to manage the organizational challenges associated with its size, the company might be unable to achieve its business objectives; Accenture’s ability to attract and retain business and employees may depend on its reputation in the marketplace; if Accenture does not successfully manage and develop its relationships with key alliance partners or fails to anticipate and establish new alliances in new technologies, the company’s results of operations could be adversely affected; Accenture might not be successful at acquiring, investing in or integrating businesses, entering into joint ventures or divesting businesses; if Accenture is unable to protect or enforce its intellectual property rights or if Accenture’s services or solutions infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others or the company loses its ability to utilize the intellectual property of others, its business could be adversely affected; Accenture’s results of operations and share price could be adversely affected if it is unable to maintain effective internal controls; changes to accounting standards or in the estimates and assumptions Accenture makes in connection with the preparation of its consolidated financial statements could adversely affect its financial results; many of Accenture’s contracts include fees subject to the attainment of targets or specific service levels, which could increase the variability of the company’s revenues and impact its margins; Accenture might be unable to access additional capital on favorable terms or at all and if the company raises equity capital, it may dilute its shareholders’ ownership interest in the company; Accenture may be subject to criticism and negative publicity related to its incorporation in Ireland; as well as the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the “Risk Factors” heading in Accenture plc’s most recent annual report on Form 10-K and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this news release speak only as of the date they were made, and Accenture undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release or to conform such statements to actual results or changes in Accenture’s expectations.

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Contacts:

Julie Bennink
Accenture
+1 312 693 7301
julie.l.bennink@accenture.com

Diana Büchner
Accenture
+49 6173 94 69081
diana.buechner@accenture.com

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