A pair of Raleigh companies are combining in a deal focused on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).
Workplace Options, which provides well-being and mental health solutions, has acquired The Diversity Movement, a consulting firm focused on diversity-led programming.
According to the companies, the buy further advances WPO’s capabilities and expertise across the full spectrum of workplace wellbeing and mental health services.
In an interview, WPO CEO Alan King declined to give the financials behind the deal.
“It is, we think, a great fit between the two organizations,” he said. “We have a strong belief that the heart of workplace wellness and organizational health comes from every individual in that organization feeling that they are supported to authentically be who they are. That’s the heart of what’s behind The Diversity Movement.”
All 20 Diversity Movement employees will join WPO, which has about 1,400 team members.
King said the firm had been evaluating acquisition options for sometime. The goal was to find an organization that could complement the work it was already doing – and it came across The Diversity Movement during that search. Acquisition talks began in earnest over the second half of summer, he said.
With the deal, WPO is acquiring the entirety of the organization, including its client roster and its intellectual property.
“Quite honestly, we were very attracted to what they were doing to technologically be able to support both education and growth when it comes to DEI initiatives and organizations,” he said.
The Diversity Movement brand name will continue as a wholly-owned division of WPO.
King declined to give WPO’s finances, but said it covers nearly 80 million employees around the world.
The Diversity Movement’s CEO, Donald Thompson, was not available to talk for this story.