Private equity, Midmarket, MSP, Content

MSP Acquisition: Thrive Buys Managed IT Services Provider Howard Tech Advisors

Thrive has acquired Howard Tech Advisors, a managed IT services provider (MSP) that supports customers across the Baltimore, Annapolis, and Columbia, Maryland area. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

This is M&A deal number 165 that ChannelE2E has covered so far in 2021. See all technology M&A deals for 2021 and 2020 listed here.

Thrive, which has grown into a powerful midsize MSP, is backed by Court Square Capital Partners, a private equity firm that recapitalized Thrive in January 2021. As part of the recapitalization, Thrive continues to expand its focus on ServiceNow-related automation and self-service capabilities.

On a somewhat related note, M&A activity among ServiceNow partners is extremely strong.

Thrive Acquires Howard Tech Advisors: MSP Executive Perspectives

Ananta Hejeebu, managing partner, Howard Tech Advisors
Ananta Hejeebu, managing partner, Howard Tech Advisors
Thrive CEO Rob Stephenson

In a prepared statement about the Howard Tech Advisors deal, Thrive CEO Rob Stephenson said:

“We’re very excited to broaden Thrive’s footprint in the Maryland and Mid-Atlantic region by acquiring the highly reputable Howard Tech Advisors. Howard Tech aligns perfectly with our growth strategy as we continue to help optimize our clients’ business application performance with Thrive’s NextGen Platform of Cloud, Security, Networking and Business Continuity services, powered by the automation and self-service capabilities of ServiceNow.”

Added Ananta Hejeebu, managing partner at Howard Tech Advisors:

“From the beginning, Howard Tech has been committed to building community and delivering world-class customer service. We’re excited to join the Thrive family and leverage its NextGen solutions to better serve our clients and create growth opportunities for our team members.”

This is Thrive’s tenth acquisition since 2016. Other recent deals include buying Apex IT Group in December 2020 and EaseTech in 2019.

Joe Panettieri

Joe Panettieri is co-founder & editorial director of MSSP Alert and ChannelE2E, the two leading news & analysis sites for managed service providers in the cybersecurity market.