Moncton’s TKS Poised for Growth After Acquisition by Assumption Group
MONCTON– A Moncton-based technology services company is gearing up for growth after it was acquired last month.
Tech Software Solutions (TKS) specializes in project management, solutions architecture and optimization, software development and quality assurance testing. The company was acquired by Assumption Group, a Moncton-based insurance company, from TSI, a Moncton-based data intelligence company for the automotive industry in mid-August.
For TKS’s chief operating officer Sean Cook, the acquisition was a natural fit.
“At the time of inception, TKS had three business partners. We had backgrounds in three primary industries, insurance being one, automotive being a second and casinos and lottery being the third,” says Cook. “The fit in with Assumption Life, one of Canada’s biggest insurance providers, was very much in line with the markets that we were working in and Assumption has been a client of ours right from the beginning of TKS. We have a long history of providing services and solutions to Assumption.”
Cook says the acquisition allows TKS to narrow their focus and helps differentiate themselves in a competitive market.
“There are a lot of technology services companies out there. I mean let’s be honest, we can brand ourselves as having the smartest people but there’s a lot of companies and competitors out there,” says Cook.
“I believe our key advantage is that we understand and learn the business, not just the technology needs. We understand the insurance business. We understand the lottery and casino business. We understand the automotive business and it gives us a competitive edge in those industries because our clients are asking us for solutions that meet their business needs and unless we understand their business it’s difficult to give them a good solution.”
TKS has a large breadth of clients ranging from smaller family-owned businesses that are as small as 60 employees, to larger international clients in Europe and other areas. Now that they are acquired by Assumption, they will also be playing a bigger role in their future plans. This means their current staff of 15 employees is no longer going to be enough.
“We are focusing our attention on the insurance industry as well with the other industries that came with us from inception such as casinos and lotteries. We need more people,” says Cook. “Assumption Life is looking at broadening their horizons. The reason that they invested in us is they want to diversify their product distribution. They want to leverage new technologies. And being a vested partner with us allows them to expose their long-term strategy that we have to mirror for them including internal projects.”
The company is looking to hire five to 10 more staff immediately with plans to hire more in the new year. They’re on the hunt for project managers solution, technical architects, solution architects, system software developers. system integrators and quality assurance testers.
TKS has already been going to provincial job fairs looking to recruit local talent and have been leveraging their long-standing connections with colleges and universities. Positions they can’t fill locally will be posted outside the region. Cook says TKS also works to train junior personnel for positions too.
“If we can’t get the skills and the exact skills match that we need within the region that’s when we’ll take junior resources and we’ll mentor and coach them into the positions that we need them to be. We’ve been very successful at doing that,” says Cook.
“We have a core group of senior individuals right now that have been with us for well over five years bringing in junior resources and pairing them up with the mentors has helped us rapidly develop them into very high performing system integrators and software developers.”
Being acquired can mean a lot of changes for a company, but Cook says TKS is feeling positive about the future.
“There’s no doubt that the Assumption Life in the Assumption Group gives us huge credibility,” he says. “There’s a reason that they have they have invested into us. We’re looking to fit into their long-term vision for the Assumption Group in the Assumption Life in particular, and it does give us a tremendous amount of credibility and we’re looking forward to working with them.”