WCP Sells iOFFICE to Thoma Bravo, Makes Minority Investment in Leading Workplace Software Platform
July 01, 2021
July 01, 2021
On July 1, 2021, WCP completed the sale of iOFFICE to Thoma Bravo following an auction process led by Raymond James and co-advised by Software Equity Group.
The WCP IV investment in iOFFICE closed in October 2018 following an executive-led process undertaken in partnership with Mark Peterson, current CEO of iOFFICE. Mr. Peterson had previously been a key member of the executive team at Tririga, a leading workplace management software business built by WCP Operating Partner George Ahn and acquired by IBM. In partnership with Messrs. Ahn and Peterson, WCP developed a thesis of building a leading cloud-based platform in the workplace management software market. The WCP Ecosystem identified iOFFICE as an attractive entry point and a platform for organic and M&A-based growth. At the time of acquisition, iOFFICE was a small, founder-run business with a high-quality cloud platform that was in need of executive leadership talent and growth capital. The founders chose to partner with WCP over several other highly credentialed software private equity investors because of the partnership with Mr. Peterson and the resources WCP could bring to the company through the Ecosystem.
Together, Mr. Peterson and WCP recruited a new executive leadership team, built an enterprise-class sales and marketing organization, completed and integrated three additional acquisitions, developed a leading presence in the adjacent asset management software market, invested in product development, and professionalized the back-office. Through these efforts, iOFFICE became a unique, leading platform of scale in the cloud-based workplace and asset management software markets, demonstrating impressive bookings growth and revenue retention metrics. Management’s and WCP’s initiatives succeeded in transforming the financial profile of the company in two and a half years, increasing revenues fivefold from the time of initial investment to exit.
iOFFICE’s exceptional bookings growth, strong SaaS financial profile, enterprise-class cloud platform, leadership position in a large end market with accelerating cloud software adoption, track record of successful acquisition integrations, and numerous actionable organic and inorganic growth levers meant the company was a potential fit for a large number of buyers, leading to a robust auction process. This investment outcome is a strong testament to the WCP investment model and the value proposition of the WCP Ecosystem. As part of the transaction, WCP will make a minority investment in the go-forward company from its fourth fund. The go-forward entity will pursue an acquisition strategy that WCP believes represents an attractive opportunity for the company. The WCP team is excited to partner with leading software investor Thoma Bravo to support iOFFICE in this next phase of growth.