December 01, 2019

Accenture Acquires Australian Government Specialist Consultancy Apis Group

Acquisition will enhance Accenture’s services to government and health clients in Australia

CANBERRA, Australia; Dec. 1, 2019 – Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has acquired Apis Group, a privately held Australian consultancy with deep industry expertise providing strategic advisory, digital design and delivery services to government organisations. This acquisition will bring additional capacity and further strengthen Accenture’s services to government and health clients in Australia.

Headquartered in Canberra, Apis Group was founded in 1999 and employs more than 120 professionals. The firm works with some of Australia’s largest federal public service organisations, providing strategic advisory services, project management, business and digital design services. The diverse team has extensive experience working on service delivery reform initiatives, including social services, health, aged care, education, employment and environment sectors, with a track record of helping government shape and deliver major transformation programs.

Pictured L-R: Louise May, Accenture’s Health & Public Service lead for Australia and New Zealand with
Anthony Honeyman, Chairman and a partner at Apis Group,
and Tim Ryan, Managing Partner at Apis Group.\

“Apis Group’s extensive experience working with public service organisations complements Accenture’s established credentials across government,” said Louise May, who leads Accenture’s Health & Public Service practice in Australia and New Zealand. “Apis Group’s talented team of professionals brings in-demand industry expertise and consulting skills that align with our offerings to government clients. This acquisition will bolster our position as partner of choice for government and health organisations, who will benefit from the deep specialist expertise of Apis combined with Accenture’s world-class digital transformation capabilities.”

“The opportunity to become part of Accenture presents new potential and great possibilities for our business, our clients and our people,” said Anthony Honeyman, Chairman and a partner at
Apis Group. “We are particularly excited about the opportunity to leverage Accenture’s deep digital and analytics capabilities. By combining our skills, expertise and client relationships, we can enhance our offerings to government clients including deploying digital services that deliver enhanced experience to citizens in their dealings with government.”

Bob Easton, chairman of Accenture in Australia and New Zealand, said, “The acquisition of Apis Group is the latest demonstration of our continued investment in Australia and our commitment to growing our capabilities in areas where we have ongoing client demand and new opportunities.”

This transaction follows other acquisitions by Accenture in Australia over the past year, including those of cybersecurity and technology company BCT Solutions in June 2019; big data and analytics company Analytics8 in August 2019, and PrimeQ, an Oracle software-as-a-service cloud implementation service provider, in December 2018.

In its 2019 fiscal year, Accenture invested nearly US$1.2 billion globally on 33 acquisitions to acquire critical skills and capabilities in strategic, high-growth areas of the market.

Terms of the transaction are not being disclosed.

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 specialised 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 492,000 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.

About Apis Group
Apis Group is an established Canberra-based Australian consulting firm with deep industry expertise providing advisory, design and delivery, and digital services to government. Employing experienced and highly qualified designers, change management specialists, business and systems analysts, and project managers, Apis Group has built a proven reputation for shaping and delivering major business transformation programs over the last 20 years.

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 Apis Group 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 changing 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 utilisation 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 favourable 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 organisational 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 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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Contact:

Sinéad Moore
Accenture Australia
+61 419 468 985
sinead.moore@accenture.com

Joe Doyle
Accenture Health & Public Service
+353 87 2507583
joe.x.doyle@accenture.com