JANUARY 2021 Industry Report Key Sector Trends and M&A Activity in the “New Normal” IN THIS REPORT: • Key themes driving deal activity in business services • M&A activity update • Most active sectors • Market data Business Services BUSINESS SERVICES INDUSTRY REPORT Key Sector Trends and M&A Activity in the “New Normal” Innovative solutions is being built on the innovation (CX), successful business focused on digitization, of AI and IoT hosted on cloud services companies must be outsourcing, and platforms. With global deploy- able to unify processes and customer experience ment of 5G, com panies that personalize end-to-end customer will continue to drive are able to leverage IoT infra- journeys. Customers are increas- business services M&A. structure are expected to gain ingly connected and transparent a competitive edge. Com panies in sharing experiences across In the wake of the COVID-19 with differentiated digital solu- multiple social media platforms. pandemic, business services tions will experience strong The quality of experience, which companies that embrace market share gains, especially includes ongoing interaction, has shifting paradigms and deploy in the post-COVID-19 world. an equal if not greater impact leading technology to meet on brand loyalty and recurring changing client demands are The pandemic further accelerated sales as compared to the product well-positioned for growth. In the megatrend of cloud migration or service alone. Innovative CX particular, we expect companies from on-premise platforms. We technology solutions that power that focus on creating highly see ongoing robust demand for this customer experience at defensible, niche capabilities to cloud-based solutions, espe- scale, such as AI-powered solu- see the strongest attention from cially for technology focused on tions that enhance interaction potential acquirers. Based on our improving the customer expe- with customers, are particularly research and conversations with rience, such as intelligent auto- well-positioned for growth. business owners and dealmakers mation from on-premise users. in the sector, we highlight the key For businesses to thrive going THEME 3: From Remote to trends shaping M&A activity in the forward, rapid innovation backed Flexible Work Solutions: business services industry today. by sophisticated data analytics, Remote working, which was such as artificial intelligence (AI) already on the rise due to Business Services: and machine learning (ML), will be changing demographics and Key Themes Driving crucial as part of an organization’s technology advances, was Deal Activity digital transformation initiative. hugely accelerated by COVID- THEME 1: Cloud Migration 19. According to YPulse1, before and Intelligent Digitization: THEME 2: Direct-to-Consumer the pandemic, 85% of millen- The next wave of business (DTC) Revolution: With the nials prioritized flexible work services technology solutions emphasis on customer experience hours and the ability to work 1 YPulse. “Millennials wanted to work from home.” https://www.ypulse.com/article/2020/05/07/millennials-wanted-to-work-from-home-this-isnt-what-they-meant/ 2 | OBJECTIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS BUSINESS SERVICES INDUSTRY REPORT from anywhere as important $1.7 trillion—its highest level Business services will continue to their future careers. They in the last five years. to be an extremely active space are getting their wishes in a for M&A due to the sector’s big way in 2020. Recent data We expect this heightened level strong potential for long-term suggests, interestingly, that of deal activity to continue over growth. The sector is actively millennials also prefer to have the near term. As covered in our benefiting from tailwinds of the flexibility to work onsite. September 2020 Monthly Trans- digital transformation, cloud action Monitor: “Deal Volumes migration, and customer THEME 4: Outsourcing: in the Age of COVID-19,” there demand for more personalized Outsourcing continues to be a key is currently a significant supply/ experiences. Companies with theme driving company growth demand mismatch between the innovative solutions tied to these and M&A activity in the business number of attractive compa- secular trends will continue services industry as companies nies available for sale and the to draw strong interest, albeit focus on their core capabilities massive amount of capital in varying degrees due to the and look to external partners to available from private equity wide range of subsegments help drive operational efficiency. and strategic acquirers. that the sector represents. As discussed in more detail in the sections that follow, a few key areas where technology-enabled TOTAL M&A DEAL VALUE outsourcing is driving compelling (USD BILLIONS) growth include customer-facing M&A activity was down in early 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 solutions for cloud migration, pandemic, but an extremely active fourth quarter led to the back-end operations in the insur- highest annual deal volume in five years, with $1.7 trillion in total ance sector, and pharmaceutical transaction volume. services such as drug develop- 762 ment and commercialization. 611 M&A Activity Update: With all of the challenges in 2020, 458 414 409 408 one may have expected M&A 359 346 310 315 activity to be down overall. 306 306 299 291 257 267 But 2020 ended up being an extremely active year for deal- making. After being down 51% on a year-over-year basis in May 2020, deal activity exploded in Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q4, up 87% relative to 2019. 2017 2018 2019 2020 Total M&A transaction volume Source: Pitchbook, S&P Capital IQ for 2020 was approximately 3 | OBJECTIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS BUSINESS SERVICES INDUSTRY REPORT Business Services: the flexibility of having both California recently passed Sectors of Focus the option to work on-site Prop 22, or the “App-Based Based on our analysis of the or remotely, as the ability to Drivers as Contractors and broad business services industry, work onsite fosters corporate Labor Policies Initiative,” that as well as observations from culture and team building. side-steps Assembly Bill 5, our ongoing conversations with Companies are focusing on which had required com panies business owners and deal- building the systems and such as Uber and Lyft to makers in our network, we are processes required to allow classify drivers as employees. paying close attention to the employees to work from We expect continued growth following sectors of the broader anywhere and to shift their for human capital services business services industry. work locations seamlessly. companies who can help This will require the proper large companies navigate Human Capital Services: systems and tools, which will these shifts in regulations. Pre-pandemic, amid record low be increasingly important in unemployment in the United attracting talent. These trends Human capital services busi- States, enhancing employee are driving innovative solutions nesses that have proven, retention solutions was a key that could lead to increased innovative capabilities remain trend that benefited human deal activity in the sector. the most sought-after compa- capital services companies. nies and continue to command While the COVID-19 pandemic • Regulatory Mandates attractive valuations from both resulted in an unemployment Impacting Human Capital private equity sponsors and crisis that could continue to Services: We also note strategic corporate buyers. Last dampen demand for this sector, ongoing regulatory drivers that year, Objective Capital Partners the following secular trends continue to shape demand for served as the M&A advisor are driving long-term demand human capital services. For for the sale of Toft Group, a for human capital services: example, last year, the state boutique recruiting firm with a of California passed Senate focus on leadership positions • Secular Demographic Shift Bill 826, “Women on Board,” placement, to ZRG, a leading to Flexible Working: As to ensure equitable gender global executive search firm. Toft previously mentioned, while representation on boards of Group has a strong reputation millennials have long prior- companies in the state. We for actively promoting diver- itized flexible employment also note the recent positive sity in recruiting, which was a arrangements, COVID-19 developments surrounding compelling strategic fit for ZRG. has drastically accelerated the “gig economy” debate in In addition, Toft’s decision to remote working for the the United States: the U.S. partner with ZRG was driven by entire employment base. Department of Labor (DOL) their leading digital platform, It is important to note that is proposing a new regulation which will further enhance while many employees prefer intended to loosen restrictions Toft’s ability to service their working remotely, others enjoy on independent workers, and clients. Objective also acted 4 | OBJECTIVE CAPITAL PARTNERS BUSINESS SERVICES INDUSTRY REPORT as a financial advisor to Prac- with a few leading partners that the full life cycle of claims ticing Excellence, provider of a can deliver tangible outcomes processing, from pre- and leading healthcare training SaaS with an integrated solution. A post-payment reviews to audits. platform designed to improve great example of this is the recent the clinician experience, in its sale of Bell Canyon Consulting, As with every previous reces- strategic alliance and invest- a data management solutions sion, we expect insurance claims ment from NRC Health in 2017. company, by Objective to TRINITY to continue to rise. Broad-based to enhance the global commer- COVID-19-related claims— Business Process Manage- cialization partner’s digital capa- ranging from business interrup- ment, Tech-Enabled Services, bilities. In the medium term, we tion and supply chain disruption and IT Services: Cloud migra- anticipate further consolidation to event and travel cancella- tion outsourcing is now focused in the space, as scale is crucial tions—should continue to drive on front-end customer-facing to manage outsized cyberse- demand for outsourced solu- solutions. Customer-centric curity risks.