Here’s the story from the TimesTranscript…
By Craig Babstock
Times & Transcript Staff
Published Thursday August 2nd, 2007
Appeared on page A1
A Texas-based software company has reached an agreement to purchase a homegrown Moncton success story.
Skywire Software yesterday announced plans to buy Whitehill Technologies and the deal will be completed by the end of this month. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
“It’s been a busy 48 hours,” said Whitehill Technologies president and CEO Paul McSpurren late yesterday afternoon.
McSpurren, who was the fifth employee hired by Whitehill when it was formed in 1997, said the two companies began talking back in April and it was immediately obvious they were a good fit and had the same focus. He said all that’s left now is for the accountants and lawyers to finalize the deal.
McSpurren said the goal has always been to grow the Moncton software company and this sale allows them to do that.
“It’s a logical next step in the growth of Whitehill,” he said, adding Whitehill has purchased smaller companies in the recent past. “Size matters in the software business and consolidation is the norm.”
Whitehill has approximately 190 employees, including just under 100 in Moncton. Its head office is on MacNaughton Avenue and it also has offices in Markham, Ont., Roanoke, Virginia and the United Kingdom. The company’s products include software for legal firms and insurance companies.
McSpurren said it’s not known at this point if there will be any changes in store for the Moncton operation.
“That’s to be determined,” said the company president. “After announcing a deal like this, you get into real integration planning.”
But McSpurren said he doesn’t think there will be extensive changes for Moncton, such as job losses. One of the reasons Whitehill is an attractive purchase is its expertise in the legal field, which is based in Moncton. He said Skywire is aware of the value of the current employees and the Moncton location.
“They understand this model works here,” he said.
McSpurren said to buy Whitehill, only to move jobs to Texas or some other location, wouldn’t make sense.
“You’d really question that business decision,” he said, adding the potential exists for the sale to lead to expansion of the Moncton operation.
As far as the future of the Whitehill Technologies name and whether or not it survives the merger, McSpurren said that’s also to be determined. But he did point out that the Whitehill brand carries a lot of equity in the legal field, just as the Skywire name carries much weight in the insurance field.
“The message we’re trying to give to customers and the media is it’s business as usual.”
Whitehill has more than 1,000 customers in 45 countries and has served more than half of the 100 largest insurance companies in North America and more than two-thirds of the world’s largest law firms. McSpurren said the company has local investors, employee shareholders and investors from outside New Brunswick.
Skywire Software serves the insurance, health-care, utility and financial services industries and has more than 1,600 customers worldwide. The company is headquartered in Frisco, Texas, and is a privately-held subsidiary of Hall Financial Group, a $2-billion private, diversified financial firm.
McSpurren said Skywire has formed a Canadian version of the company to oversee Whitehill.
