Rising Giant RoundTower Grows Stronger Through Data Center Partner Merger
One of America's fastest-growing solution providers just added a little more firepower to its arsenal, merging with a small infrastructure partner to bolster its data center prowess.
Cincinnati-based RoundTower Technologies -- No. 150 on the CRN Solution Provider 500 -- has joined forces with Wakefield, Mass.-based Par 4 Technology Group, creating a $250 million, 200-employee data center infrastructure power with expertise in everything from storage and virtualization to automation and consulting.
"There are tremendous synergies between our companies and the integration will bring an immense amount of additional value to our clients and business partners," Gary Halloran, president of Par 4, said in a statement." "Aligning with RoundTower broadens our portfolio of services significantly."
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The combined company will operate under the RoundTower name and be headquartered in Cincinnati, the companies said, with Halloran joining the executive leadership team. Terms of the deal, announced Thursday, were not disclosed.
The combined company will be a one-stop shop for all things data center, running the gamut from storage, virtualization and data protection to cloud and security. On the non-infrastructure front, RoundTower and Par 4 have expertise in DevOps, automation, big data, consulting and managed services, according to the companies.
"We are very excited by the opportunity to merge two great organizations," Stephen Power, RoundTower managing partner, said in a statement. "Our goal is to enhance our clients' experience and add value that positively impacts their bottom line."
RoundTower has routinely appeared on CRN's Fast Growth 250 list since its founding in 2007, coming in 16th this year with a two-year growth rate of 170 percent. RoundTower was ranked 29th on the 2014 Fast Growth list and 18th on the 2012 Fast Growth list, in addition to appearing on the 2014 Tech Elite 250.
That rate of growth is expected to continue, with the combined company projected to go from sales of $250 million this year to more than $300 million next year. RoundTower had 136 employees before the merger, according to the company's website, while Par 4 -- which was also founded in 2007 -- has 11 to 50 employees, according to LinkedIn.
The combined company holds more than 1,200 technical certifications from vendors ranging from Cisco and Hewlett-Packard to EMC and VMware.
Both companies have strengthened their hand with vendors over the past year, with Par 4 recognized as EMC's Marketing Excellence Partner of the Year in 2014, while RoundTower became a Cisco ATP-UCS Invicta partner in December and won Cisco's Channel Customer Satisfaction Excellence Award this year.
The combined company will have eight regional offices: Boston; Columbus, Ohio; Indianapolis; Louisville, Ky.; Miami; Nashville, Tenn.; Philadelphia; and Tampa, Fla.
RoundTower has focused most of its efforts around data storage, data protection, virtualization, networking, computing, service desk and managed services, according to the company. Par 4's technological priorities, meanwhile, include big data, cloud services, continuity and disaster recovery, desktop virtualization and storage virtualization, with a significant focus on health-care services.
The company has been looking to streamline its financial accounting systems by creating processes around cash management, accounts payable, accounts receivable and credit control, Ariane Johnson, Par 4's director of finance, wrote in a Women of the Channel profile in June.
PUBLISHED SEPT. 24, 2015