Global legal technology consultancy Pinnacle has acquired Microsoft Gold partner Enable Business Solutions, which was founded by former Tikit founder Liam Flanagan in 2013. The tie-up will see Enable’s two products, PitchPerfect and RevenueManager, embedded within the consultancy and managed services capability of Pinnacle. It is hoped that the move will accelerate the joint company’s global expansion, bringing together its risk, finance and business development expertise.
The entire Enable team including Flanagan and CEO David Lumsden will join Pinnacle, which was formed from the three-way merger of Pinnacle, Opes and Athenian in 2018. Pinnacle has over 100 people based in the UK, Continental Europe and North America.
The acquisition is something of a Tikit reunion – Pinnacle’s finance director Giles Coates, CEO Mike Bailey, chairman Neil Renfrew, and risk practice lead Christopher Young all worked at Tikit together with Flanagan and Lumsden.
Speaking to Legal IT Insider, Bailey said: “We’ve known Liam and David for years and this is a real opportunity. We have grown organically and didn’t think of ourselves as an acquiring business but when we got into the details there is a real strategic fit and it opens up lots of possibilities.”
He added: “One thing that we’ve learned from the merger in 2018 is that by bringing like-minded people together you get where you need to go faster. I don’t think we could have achieved what we have in the last two years on our own in terms of scale and capability. Together with Enable we will be able to further accelerate our offering, which makes the expanded busines extremely exciting.”
Pinnacle helps law firms to implement and manage software from Thomson Reuters, Intapp and Peppermint. While in the UK it is focussed heavily on finance and risk, in the United States Pinnacle has made inroads in business development working with Intapp’s OnePlace for Marketing CRM solution (led by US CEO Bob Beach, who joined from NexLaw Partners in 2018.) Unusually the UK-headquartered company is looking to build out on the US success, and the plan is to leverage Enable’s BD-focused technology to further grow that customer base globally.
PitchPerfect helps firms to insert content directly into Microsoft Word and PowerPoint without upsetting their rigid wizard functionality. As a result of the acquisition, Enable says it will accelerate planned investment in PitchPerfect’s product support and development capabilities. PitchPerfect has key clients in North America, the UK, Europe and Australia, including international firms Reed Smith; Gibson Dunn; Baker Botts; and Clyde & Co, leading Australian firm Gilbert & Tobin, and leading Irish firm Arthur Cox.
RevenueManager, meanwhile, helps businesses to reduce lock up through the enforcement of time recording policies, working alongside and complementing most leading time recording applications.
Pinnacle is strong in consulting and managed services but has not developed its own products and Bailey said in a statement: “Through the acquisition of Enable we will now have two of our own industry leading software solutions that will fit seamlessly into our strategy of being able to help our existing and future clients (both international and domestic) to improve profits and efficiencies as well as manage risk. The acquisition also provides a platform for the launch of Pinnacle’s UK business development and experience consulting practice, both areas where we are particularly strong in the US.”
Pinnacle’s managed services offering accounts for around 15% of revenue, under which firms outsource their Thomson Reuters 3E and Intapp work to Pinnacle. It has a three-year managed services agreement with a large international law firm and plans to expand this area further, including looking at further acquisitions.
Flanagan said: “I have known Mike Bailey and the other directors of Pinnacle for many years and know that they will continue to support and develop our industry leading solutions to meet our clients ever evolving and complex requirements.”
