Accenture (NYSE: ACN) will acquire Clarity Insights, a Chicago-based data consultancy with artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), and deep data science expertise. This strategic move adds nearly 350 employees and will expand Accenture’s Applied Intelligence business. According to the announcement from Accenture, these additions will further provide clients with leading capabilities to meet the growing demand for enterprise-scale AI, analytics, and automation solutions. Accenture uses its Applied Intelligence business to scale AI for its clients by embedding AI-powered data, analytics, and automation capabilities into workflows to accelerate time to value.
Accenture has set new goals to expand its technical capabilities to help its clients scale Artificial Intelligence (AI) to meet cross-industry demands. While the terms of the deal haven’t been disclosed, AI and data analytics talent is in high demand and short supply. Accenture hopes that this acquisition provides them with a source of both. In the announcement, Neil Huse, President, and CEO of Clarity Insights said “We were drawn to Accenture, in large part, because of the synergies in how we approach clients. Fully understanding clients’ business goals and objectives is the first step to a successful AI deployment.”
Clarity Insights combination of strong technical talent, combined with deep industry expertise, will fortify and broaden our ability to help our client’s scale AI across their businesses. – Athina Kanioura, Chief Analytics Officer and Global Lead for Applied Intelligence at Accenture
90% of the data in the world was created in just the past 10 years, with 175 zettabytes of data expected to be created by 2025. Accenture has been focused on improving its tech capabilities, with additional plans to add 600 jobs in the Chicago area by 2022. These new jobs involved will be tech positions and will be added to the organizations existing Innovation Hub. In Accenture’s 2019 fiscal year, it has invested nearly $1.2 billion globally on 33 acquisitions to gain crucial skills and capabilities in strategic, high-growth areas of the market. However, acquisitions do not equal AI scalability success. To successfully scale, companies need structure and governance in place with specified processes and clear accountability, including leadership support.
Their [Clarity Insights’] focus on insight-driven transformation for healthcare bolsters Accenture’s capabilities and is particularly critical now when our research shows that 87% of healthcare executives surveyed report that they know how to pilot, but struggle to scale AI across their business. – Athina Kanioura, Chief Analytics Officer and Global Lead for Applied Intelligence at Accenture
Fulfillment of the acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including antitrust clearance. Accenture Applied Intelligence currently employs more than 20,000 professionals, working to help clients scale AI, including 6,000 data scientists, data engineers, and AI professionals worldwide. Accenture has received numerous recognitions from leading industry analyst firms in 2019, including being labeled a worldwide leader in AI vendor services by IDC MarketScape. The IDC MarketScape recognized Accenture’s deep industry and technical expertise to help clients use analytics, AI, and automation to achieve intelligence at scale.
About Accenture
Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions — underpinned by the world’s largest delivery network — Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With 492,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. To learn more visit the Accenture website. Visit Accenture’s Applied Intelligence website to learn more about their approach to scaling AI.
About Clarity Insights
Clarity Insights, founded in 2008 and headquartered in Chicago, is a partner to the nation’s leading data-driven organizations. With a team unrivaled in both technical expertise and business acumen in data strategy, data science and visualization, and data architecture, it partners with Fortune 1000 organizations to build an intelligent enterprise guided by analytics and insights, not intuition. Serving as trusted advisors, it helps organizations leverage their data as a corporate asset and extract insights to improve business outcomes and to thrive in a competitive market by enabling real continuous intelligence. To learn more visit the Clarity Insights website.
