One of Charlotte's fastest-growing technology companies has been acquired by a London-based firm.
Levvel, a tech consulting business, was acquired by Endava (NYSE: DAVA) on April 1. Financial details were not disclosed. The two had been in talks for a few months.
Scott Harkey, chief strategy officer at Levvel, said there will not be a heavy emphasis on integration this year. Local leadership will remain in place. Employees will continue with their regular projects already in progress. There will be no headcount reductions.
"It's growth," Harkey said. "We'll spend a lot of time this year just focusing on business as usual as we learn more about them and the way they do things."
Endava is a tech services provider with about 7,500 employees across multiple continents. Its target industries include payments and financial services, consumer products, retail, mobility and health care. The firm's shares, logging some of its highest prices to date, have a market cap at about $4.4 billion, according to MarketWatch.
Harkey said multiple companies have talked with Levvel about potential deals. Endava fit from a culture and values perspective. The deal also adds scale and instant access to more talent. Endava works in similar industries and has customer overlap with Levvel, he said.
Endava's leadership team is experienced with adjusting operations to accommodate scale, Harkey said. Levvel was challenged in the past year to grow fast enough to meet client demands. The company saw its work accelerate in the second half of 2020, he said. It added about 50 employees in the past two quarters, a more than 25% jump.
Levvel landed on last year's Inc. 5000 list for fast-growing, private companies with a three-year growth rate of 189%.
Levvel CEO Chris Hart said there were limits to how quickly the firm could grow organically. The acquisition also gives employees opportunities to work on new projects and pursue career development, he said.
Hart said Levvel will play a key role in expanding business in the United States. He expects to keep operations in Charlotte.
"We bring a much larger team to the U.S. than what Endava had here previously," Hart said. "Where we really can lead is in creating the ability to deliver for clients using our U.S.-based workforce."
Endava has had a team in the U.S. for several years, said Justin Marcucci, chief digital officer at Endava. It's a market the firm is continually trying to grow. About 29% of Endava's revenue in the last quarter came from the U.S. The company is working toward balanced revenue from its U.S., United Kingdom and European markets, he said.
Endava also sees growth potential for its Latin American and Asia Pacific operations, Marcucci said.
He said Endava wants to be close to clients. It places engineers where their working hours overlap with clients' hours. It also has staff in the regions where clients are. The firm had about 100 employees in the U.S. prior to the Levvel acquisition.
Planning has started for integrating leadership teams, Hart said, but no decisions have been made. He said he wants to play the role that makes the most sense for the firm's continued growth. Hart said leaving to pursue other ventures hasn't crossed his mind yet. He is still excited about building a U.S. presence.
The firm wants to grow its work in insurance and transportation and logistics. It plans to keep growing its existing offices and may look for opportunities closer to the West Coast, Harkey said.
Levvel has offices in Charlotte, Raleigh, Atlanta, New York City, the Washington, D.C., area and in Monterrey, Mexico, according to its website. Only about half of Levvel's 225 employees are based near an office, Harkey said. The whole team has been working remotely during the pandemic.
Hart and former CEO John Espey founded the company in 2014.
