Soterra Capital, which bought SinglePoint in 2016, is keeping equity in the combined company

February 6, 2023  ||  Written by James Anderson for Channel Futures

Bluewave Technology Group has acquired SinglePoint Communications Group in a move that doubles down on its Louisville, Kentucky-area presence and strengthens its East Coast footprint.

The deal represents one of the first instances of a private equity company selling its purchased technology advisor (agent) partner. Soterra Capital, which bought SinglePoint Solutions in 2016 and later bought other technology advisory firms, will be a minority equity holder in Bluewave following the sale.

Executives involved with the deal said SinglePoint and Soterra were pursuing a business model similar to that of Bluewave. The latter aims to unify acquired companies into a single platform for full life-cycle technology advisory services.

“The Bluewave team shares our DNA of ensuring that customer outcomes are top of mind,” SinglePoint president Nic Jones said. “As we envisioned all of us as one team, it became apparent that our people and clients would greatly benefit by locking arms with Bluewave to lead customers through the IT procurement landscape moving forward. The added scale and expertise will bring significant value to clients as we look to disrupt and set a new standard for IT procurement and consulting.”

Jones, a former Schneider Electric sales manager, has signed on as Bluewave’s vice president of sales.

Bluewave, which has been using funding from Columbia Capital to bring agents and life-cycle management partners into its family, now employs 140 people as a result of the acquisition. It has also bolstered its disaster-recovery-as-a-service capabilities through the deal.

The parties did not disclose the financial terms of the transaction.

Background

Louisville-based SinglePoint has existed since 1999 but has seen significant transformation over the last seven years. Soterra Capital acquired the company and Louisville-based Palladium Communication Group in 2016. It went on to buy four more companies: Louisville-based Engaged Pro, New Jersey-based Sky Technology Partners in 2021, and Lexington, Kentucky-based SinglePoint Solutions of central Kentucky.

SinglePoint and Bluewave maintain similar geographical footprints. Bluewave in November 2022 announced the acquisition of Louisville-based Virtual Telecomm.

“With SinglePoint, we are strengthening our presence in Kentucky, New York, and New Jersey. And we are doubling down on our enterprise focus with investments in experienced technologists who are vital in enabling organizations to stay ahead in the fast-changing market,” Bluewave founder and CEO Seth Penland said.

The Seller: Soterra Capital

Penland described Soterra Capital as a “family-backed” group that had built strong roots in the channel. Soterra has offices in Louisville and Austin, Texas. Its website lists its preferred targets as majority investments in businesses of $2 million-$30 million in revenue and $1 million-$10 million in EBITDA.

Moreover, Penland and Soterra managing partner Jeremy Carter said the private equity firm hadn’t wanted to sell SinglePoint; however, that changed when it met Bluewave, Carter said.

“Our expectations and plan were for SinglePoint to be a near-permanent hold, but as we came to understand Bluewave’s strategy and team, we realized we have a similar view of this market and how to best position for the future,” Carter said. “By coming together with Bluewave, we decided that we could generate more value with lower risk for our team and owners and deliver a better experience to our customers. We are excited and eager to continue transforming this industry together.”

Penland said Soterra as a minority equity holder will play a key role in M&A going forward.

“They really spent a lot of time building up relationships in the industry,” Penland told Channel Futures. “Some those transactions have been consummated, and others are still kind of in the pipeline.”

Bluewave’s other acquisitions include iSymplify and Compass Solutions. In a blockbuster move for the partner space, the company recently bought Pennsylvania-based Helm Partners.

Media contacts

Lisa Guillaume
press@bluewave.net

Latest acquisition makes Bluewave the most significant IT advisory firm in Kentucky, with expanded presence in New York and New Jersey

Parsippany, N.J., February 6, 2023 – Bluewave Technology Group (“Bluewave”), a strategic, high-growth technology advisory and lifecycle management company, today announced that it has acquired Single Point Communications Group, LLC (“SinglePoint”), a Louisville technology consulting and advisory agency. This transaction further expands the company’s footprint in Louisville following the announcement of Virtual Telecomm, making it the most significant IT advisory firm in the region. Bluewave now has nearly 140 employees and offices throughout the U.S., serving over 6,000 clients.

SinglePoint has a rich history in IT advisory, having been formed in 2016 when Soterra Capital, an investment and asset management firm, acquired Kentucky-based SinglePoint Solutions and Palladium Communications Group. To expand its footprint, SinglePoint acquired two leading IT agencies in 2021: Engaged Pro, based in Louisville, Kentucky, and Sky Technology Partners in Wayne, New Jersey. In 2022, the company acquired SinglePoint Solutions of Central Kentucky, another IT agency based in Lexington, Kentucky. The combined entity operated under the SinglePoint Solutions brand, providing an enhanced single-point-of-contact experience to support their clients’ long-term IT solutions, sourcing, and service needs.

With deep IT specialization capabilities in the healthcare industry and a strong track record of delivering value and driving cost savings to customers in retail, logistics, banking, and finance segments, SinglePoint has built trusted partnerships with enterprise clients. SinglePoint has focused on optimizing critical infrastructure and applications through its expertise in building and executing high-value cloud computing, Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS), and data center solutions for clients with mission-critical needs.

“Soterra is a unique, long-term focused, family-office-backed sponsor that had no interest in selling SinglePoint,” said Jeremy Carter, Managing Partner at Soterra. “Our expectations and plan were for SinglePoint to be a near-permanent hold, but as we came to understand Bluewave’s strategy and team, we realized we have a similar view of this market and how to best position for the future. By coming together with Bluewave, we decided that we could generate more value with lower risk for our team and owners and deliver a better experience to our customers. We are excited and eager to continue transforming this industry together.”

“The Bluewave team shares our DNA of ensuring that customer outcomes are top of mind,” said Nic Jones, President of SinglePoint. “As we envisioned all of us as one team, it became apparent that our people and clients would greatly benefit by locking arms with Bluewave to lead customers through the IT procurement landscape moving forward. The added scale and expertise will bring significant value to clients as we look to disrupt and set a new standard for IT procurement and consulting.”

“SinglePoint was embracing a similar strategy as our company. And after four successful acquisitions, Soterra determined that joining forces with Bluewave to create a leading national IT advisory business was a better strategy than going it alone,” said Seth Penland, Founder and CEO of Bluewave. “With SinglePoint, we are strengthening our presence in Kentucky, New York, and New Jersey. And we are doubling down on our enterprise focus with investments in experienced technologists who are vital in enabling organizations to stay ahead in the fast-changing market.”

The SinglePoint Solutions acquisition further enhances the level of support Bluewave delivers to clients while expanding its portfolio of IT advisory expertise and capabilities. It marks an essential milestone in the company’s aggressive growth plan with Columbia Capital, a sector-focused investment firm with investments in enterprise IT, digital infrastructure, and mobility, to build a national technology advisory services provider. The financial terms of this transaction were not disclosed. Following this transaction, Soterra will continue to work with Bluewave to leverage relationships to broaden the Bluewave ecosystem, and Nic Jones will be joining Bluewave as Vice President of Sales.

About Bluewave Technology Group

Bluewave is a premier technology advisory and lifecycle management company with a comprehensive approach to optimizing clients’ ability to grow revenue, reduce costs, and improve efficiency. Bluewave streamlines the technology buying and management process for businesses of all sizes across the United States with four key services: Technology Evaluation, Strategic Sourcing, Expense Management, and Operations Support. Specializing in modernizing the IT and telecom infrastructure, Bluewave partners with proven cloud, network, security, and collaboration service providers to develop the best solution while maximizing the clients’ technology investment.

About SinglePoint Solutions

SinglePoint Solutions was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky. It operates as a technology solutions consultant that serves medium-sized enterprises. The company offers comprehensive technology audits and sells a broad array of communications, connectivity, security, and data services custom-architected to meet customers’ needs and deliver substantial cost savings.

About Soterra Capital

Soterra Capital is a private investment firm with offices in Austin, Texas, and Louisville, Kentucky. The firm takes a fundamental, long-term investment approach, focused on private companies in the lower middle market with capable management teams, strong operations, and a commitment to excellence, integrity, family, and faith. The managing partners are Mark Franco and Jeremy Carter. For more information, visit Soterra’s website at https://www.soterracap.com/about-us.

Media contacts

Lisa Guillaume
press@bluewave.net

iSymplify, a Bluewave Company, is recognized for enabling and delivering success in helping organizations reimagine their customer experiences

St. Louis, MO, January 31, 2023 – iSymplify, a Bluewave Company, has been named Breakthrough Partner of the Year by Five9, a leading provider of the intelligent cloud contact center. The Five9 2022 Global Partner Awards recognize the achievements of the Five9 global ecosystem of channel partners including Systems Integrators, strategic alliance partners, and Independent Software Vendors (ISVs).

iSymplify, a Bluewave Company, has been working with Five9 since 2016 and was the first agent partner to officially close a project in the Channel. iSymplify and the rest of the Bluewave team drive successful CX outcomes for clients by providing CX assessments and strategy as well as managed execution and optimization support. The Five9 partnership with Bluewave has strengthened over the years as the two organizations work together to drive client ROI in CX transformations.

“Five9 is the definition of what a true partnership looks like. Our trust and respect for their team spans across all departments from sales to implementation and ongoing support,” advised Lorie Burkemper, Managing Partner, iSymplify, a Bluewave Company. “The leadership team has always focused on client outcomes and doing the right thing. I have confidence that our clients will not only be happy with the solution but will see the value resulting in meeting their strategic objectives and improving their client experiences. That’s exactly what I’m looking for when we make supplier recommendations to our clients.”

The growing Five9 partner ecosystem reflects the company’s “build with” philosophy and the recognition that delivering customer engagement solutions of the future will require co-innovating with software and service providers that can extend Five9 capabilities, as well as its reach.

“At Five9, we recognize that our partners play a key role in delivering excellence,” said Jake Butterbaugh, Senior Vice President, Global Partner Organization, Five9. “Our partnerships of all types and sizes are critical to our success. Moreover, our partnerships are critical to our mutual customers’ successes, and our 2022 would not have been the same without iSymplify, a Bluewave Company. We congratulate and thank them, along with all our 2022 Five9 Global Partner Award winners and look forward to many more reasons to celebrate in 2023.”

To learn more about the Five9 2022 Global Partner Award winners, click here.

About Bluewave Technology Group

Bluewave is a premier technology advisory and lifecycle management company with a comprehensive approach to optimizing clients’ ability to grow revenue, reduce costs, and improve efficiency. Bluewave streamlines the technology buying and management process for businesses of all sizes across the United States with four key services: Technology Evaluation, Strategic Sourcing, Expense Management, and Operations Support. Specializing in modernizing the IT and telecom infrastructure, Bluewave partners with proven cloud, network, security, and collaboration service providers to develop the best solution while maximizing the clients’ technology investment. Learn more at Bluewave.net.

About Five9

Five9 brings the power of cloud innovation to more than 2,500 customers worldwide and facilitates billions of call minutes annually. The Five9 Intelligent Cloud Contact Center provides digital engagement, analytics, workflow automation, workforce optimization, and practical AI to create more human customer experiences, engage and empower agents, and deliver tangible business results.

Media contacts

Lisa Guillaume
press@bluewave.net

The transaction accelerates Bluewave’s growth as it expands geographically and adds expertise in expansive, multi-location retail solutions

Parsippany, N.J., December 20, 2022 – Bluewave Technology Group (“Bluewave”), a strategic, high-growth technology advisory and lifecycle management company, today announced that it has acquired Compass Solutions, a technology and telecom advisory agency headquartered in Cuyahoga Falls, OH. This is the fourth acquisition for Bluewave this quarter that expands the company’s reach to now serve over 4000 customers.

For more than 21 years, Compass Solutions has worked with clients to navigate the complex and ever-changing IT and telecommunication infrastructure landscape to meet the needs of their business. Founded by the company’s president, Marty Lyman, an active leader in the Akron community, the firm grew quickly to provide global solutions to mid-to large enterprises, with a special focus on nationwide retailers with a presence of 50 or more locations. The firm’s focus on providing excellent client support helped retain and grow many clients into long-term relationships averaging more than ten years.

Lyman will join Bluewave as an Ambassador and equity partner, continuing to focus on client success and Bluewave’s growth. The Compass Solutions team will also join Bluewave, enhancing its already strong technology advisory and management services.

“We are constantly evaluating how we must grow and evolve as an organization to meet our customer needs,” said Marty Lyman, Founder and President, Compass Solutions. “We believe the model for success is exactly what Bluewave has built and will continue to capitalize on. Their experienced management team has built and scaled organizations successfully. And their core values, a keen focus on customer lifecycle success, and a scalable suite of service offerings make this next phase of growth the right fit for us.”

“Clients are looking for a strategic partner that can consistently deliver results that optimize client outcomes, and Marty and the Compass Solutions team have built long-term relationships over the years doing just that,” said Seth Penland, Founder and CEO of Bluewave. “Their ability to actively manage all phases in the customer technology lifecycle is a complementary fit to Bluewave. And their unique expertise in multi-location retail solutions will strengthen the breadth of our combined services, creating even greater opportunities for us to support clients.”

Bluewave has a history of investing in technology and telecom advisory agencies, including recently acquired Helm Partners, iSymplify, and Virtual Telecomm, which are part of the company’s aggressive growth plan. Bringing the combined talent and resources together across these organizations empowers Bluewave to deliver greater value to customers throughout the lifecycle of their technology investments. The terms of this transaction were not disclosed.

Sampford Advisors acted as the exclusive investment banking advisor to Compass Solutions.

About Bluewave Technology Group

Bluewave is a premier technology advisory and lifecycle management company with a comprehensive approach to optimizing clients’ ability to grow revenue, reduce costs, and improve efficiency. Bluewave streamlines the technology buying and management process for businesses of all sizes across the United States with four key services: Technology Evaluation, Strategic Sourcing, Expense Management, and Operations Support. Specializing in modernizing the IT and telecom infrastructure, Bluewave partners with proven cloud, network, security, and collaboration service providers to develop the best solution while maximizing the clients’ technology investment.

About Compass Solutions

Compass Solutions was founded in 2001 to bridge the gap between the dizzying array of technology options and suppliers and what enterprise companies need. Compass Solutions is a trusted and agnostic IT partner that is data and process driven. Specializing in vendor advisory, technology lifecycle management, and IT team augments, Compass Solutions is a consistent source of guidance, institutional knowledge, and support.

Media contacts

Lisa Guillaume
press@bluewave.net

Combined Company to Offer White Glove Advisory and Lifecycle Management Solutions with Founding Members of Helm Partners Joining Bluewave as Equity Partners and in Key Management Roles

Parsippany, N.J., December 14, 2022 – Bluewave Technology Group (“Bluewave”), a strategic, high-growth technology advisory and lifecycle management company, today announced that it has merged with Helm Partners (“Helm”), a large technology advisory and IT transformation agency.

The combination of Helm and Bluewave will create one of the largest national technology agencies that offers white glove lifecycle management solutions with deep expertise and critical capabilities such as security and customer experience. Richard Wilson, Helm’s CEO, joins as an equity partner and assumes the role of Chief Strategy Officer for Bluewave. Managing Partners David Grau and Paul Weiss will join as equity partners and Bill Quinlan in a senior management role. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Helm was established to guide companies through the complex and rapidly changing IT and telecommunications landscape by identifying and implementing solutions that deliver impactful business outcomes. The company serves a portfolio of over 2000 clients from midmarket to enterprise with its advanced and highly specialized technical go-to-market approach in the areas of contact center, unified communications, cybersecurity, and next generation network services. Its team of experts led the company to become a recognized channel industry leader, most recently winning top-producer awards from Avant and Intelisys, and top technology advisor award from RingCentral for the past five consecutive years.

With roots back to 2001, Helm is a product of several successful organizations coming together in 2017 when The Apella Group, a strategy consulting firm, purchased Expert Technology Associates, a leader in the trusted advisor space. Most recently, Helm acquired Cory Communications and Convergent Technologies Inc. in November 2021, to further propel its growth initiatives.

“The combination of Helm and Bluewave aligns with the strategic objectives of both companies to help clients navigate the complex technology shifts with the best-in-class resources,” said Richard Wilson, CEO and Managing Partner of Helm. “We are able to expand our offerings and create further value for our clients in areas that require more assets and investments, and our employees will benefit with new opportunities for career advancement and professional growth.”

“We are at an inflection point in the transformation to digital where the technology ecosystem is changing rapidly and becoming increasingly complex. Helping our clients embrace these changes requires our combined capabilities with Helm,” said Seth Penland, Founder and CEO of Bluewave. “Helm’s deep technical acumen, diligence, and consideration of client requirements, together with their substantial relationships with vendors, provide our clients with the advantage they need to stay ahead of the competition.”

Bluewave is headquartered in Parsippany, NJ, and Helm is headquartered in Plymouth Meeting, PA. Both locations will be maintained, and the combined entity will operate under the Bluewave Technology Group brand.

This transaction is the latest move in an aggressive growth plan for Bluewave, in partnership with Columbia Capital, a sector-focused investment firm with investments in enterprise IT, digital infrastructure, and mobility, to build a national technology advisory services provider.

About Bluewave Technology Group

Bluewave is a premier technology advisory and lifecycle management company with a comprehensive approach to optimizing clients’ ability to grow revenue, reduce costs, and improve efficiency. Bluewave streamlines the technology buying and management process for businesses of all sizes across the United States with four key services: Technology Evaluation, Strategic Sourcing, Expense Management, and Operations Support. Specializing in modernizing the IT and telecom infrastructure, Bluewave partners with proven cloud, network, security, and collaboration service providers to develop the best solution while maximizing the clients’ technology investment.

About Helm Partners

Helm Partners is a technology advisory service firm helping reshape businesses for growth and achieve better outcomes throughout their digital transformation journey. We are your roadmap for purposeful change. Located in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, Helm has been a trusted advocate for their global client base since 2001. Helm’s core practice focuses on cloud communications, contact center solutions, next generation network strategies, cybersecurity, cloud and managed services, and expense management, supporting clients from assessment through implementation and the ongoing lifecycle.

Media contacts

Lisa Guillaume
press@bluewave.net

iSymplify Owners Lorie Burkemper and Brad Burkemper Join as Managing Partners at Bluewave

Parsippany, N.J., November 21, 2022 – Bluewave Technology Group (“Bluewave”), a strategic, high-growth technology advisory and lifecycle management company, today announced that it has acquired iSymplify, a cloud and telecom advisory agency. This is the sixth acquisition for Bluewave in the past 12 months and marks another expansion milestone for the company as it now has offices in five cities across the U.S., with nearly 100 employees offering technology lifecycle management services.

Serving the cloud technology industry since 2008, Brad and Lorie Burkemper founded iSymplify with ambitions of helping business clients migrate to the cloud with the best solutions and providers available. Seeing first-hand the difficulties their clients had tracking down inventory, proposals, contract expiration dates, and billing issues, iSymplify was formed to streamline the account lifecycle when procuring technology.

Almost 15 years later, iSymplify serves mid-market and enterprise clients nationwide and has a team of experienced and respected technical advisors. Important in the greater St. Louis community, they grew the company into an industry-leading firm and have ensured successful deployments of 15,000+ cloud-ready network nodes and over 50,000 cloud seats. In addition, iSymplify has received numerous community and partner awards. Lorie has been recognized as one of St. Louis’ Top Women Business owners and co-founded the group Women in Tech Connect – St. Louis.

As part of the acquisition, iSymplify’s owners, Lorie Burkemper and Brad Burkemper will join as Managing Partners at Bluewave. The iSymplify team will also join the company and continue providing first-class IT advisory services to the expansive suite of clients.

Driving business growth today demands specialized advisory and consulting resources with the technical knowledge to deliver meaningful client innovation and experience to scale operations. iSymplify’s philosophy for its clients and technical expertise provide even further scale and capabilities that complement Bluewave’s well-established service portfolio and ever-expanding geographic presence. Together, this acquisition bolsters the combined portfolio of services that accelerates innovation and automation at scale for clients.

“Our goal is to help businesses scale their operations efficiently and effectively while seizing innovation with the guidance of our best-in-class industry advisors,” said Seth Penland, Founder and CEO of Bluewave. “We are excited to welcome the iSymplify team and expand our presence in the greater St. Louis area. Together, our joint resources expand our capabilities and emphasize our commitment to clients who need first-class technology advisory services.”

“After almost 15 years of growth, we considered many options to expand our capabilities and better support our clients’ evolving technology needs,” said Lorie Burkemper, Founder and President of iSymplify. “Joining like-minded Bluewave allows us to further invest in our team and clients around solution consulting, expense management, and high-touch account management, as well as gain access to more robust processes and systems to provide clients with better insights and data to drive the best technology decisions.”

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Bluewave has partnered with Columbia Capital, a sector-focused investment firm with investments in enterprise IT, digital infrastructure, and mobility, to build a national technology advisory services provider.

About Bluewave Technology Group

Bluewave is a premier technology advisory and lifecycle management company with a comprehensive approach to optimizing clients’ ability to grow revenue, reduce costs, and improve efficiency. Bluewave streamlines the technology buying and management process for businesses of all sizes across the United States with four key services: Technology Evaluation, Strategic Sourcing, Expense Management, and Operations Support. Specializing in modernizing the IT and telecom infrastructure, Bluewave partners with proven cloud, network, security, and collaboration service providers to develop the best solution while maximizing the clients’ technology investment.

About iSymplify

iSymplify is a St. Louis-based cloud and telecom advisory agency that delivers telecommunications, cloud services, unified communications, and contact centers. The company serves its clients by providing exceptional customer service throughout the entire lifecycle of cloud-based technology projects. The company’s goal is to achieve business outcomes that grow its clients’ business, provide business efficiencies and savings, and to have fun doing it!

Media contacts

Lisa Guillaume
press@bluewave.net