Health Care Bet Pays Off

Towers Watson has leveraged the acquisition of a private Medicare exchange to launch a broad exchange strategy. It's a story that others looking to buy or sell in the middle market information technology space can learn from. In May 2012, professional services firm Towers Watson acquired Extend...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Mergers and Acquisitions 2014-01, Vol.49 (1), p.36
Main Author: Grover, Sunil
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Acquisitions & mergers
Consulting firms
Domestic partners
Employers
Fiscal years
Health care policy
Health insurance
Health insurance exchanges
Information technology
Insurance coverage
Medicare
Retirees
Stock prices
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Towers Watson has leveraged the acquisition of a private Medicare exchange to launch a broad exchange strategy. It's a story that others looking to buy or sell in the middle market information technology space can learn from. In May 2012, professional services firm Towers Watson acquired Extend Health Inc, which operates a large private Medicare exchange, for $435 million. While public exchanges aim to provide health insurance for uninsured Americans, private Medicare exchanges enable large employers to continue funding retiree health care benefits while managing costs. The Towers Watson/Extend Health example presents three compelling messages for other buyers and sellers in the middle-market IT space: 1. The higher the value of your offerings to customers, the higher your valuations will be. 2. Being in a fast-growing vertical niche or industry creates opportunities. 3. A company is worth more to a buyer that can unlock or accelerate value.
ISSN:0026-0010