ConvergeOne Hooks Juma As Avaya Channel M&A Continues

"With our strategy of investing in and developing technology companies that demonstrate strong viability and industry leadership, we are excited about the prospect of bringing Juma Technology into our organization," said John McKenna, ConvergeOne CEO, in a statement. "This acquisition would enhance our ability to drive business growth and deliver more value for customers seeking the latest technology solutions services."

Juma, an Avaya Platinum Business Partner and Farmingdale, N.Y.-based solution provider, carries not only Avaya but also Cisco, Juniper, Extreme, Polycom and other networking vendors. In a statement, ConvergeOne, based in Eagan, Minn., said it would integrate the Juma business into NACR, one of ConvergeOne's operating companies and one of Avaya's largest global channel partners.

"With their impressive experience, certifications and skills, the people of Juma would be a great addition to NACR -- putting more resources on the ground in our Northeast region and further strengthening our ability to serve customers there," said Tom Roles, NACR's president and CEO, in a statement.

Financial terms are not mentioned, but ConvergeOne expects the deal to be finalized before the end of 2010. Neither Nectar Services Corp., Juma's IP managed services and software arm, nor Juma's intellectual property is part of the acquisition. Nectar will operate as a separate company going forward, according to Juma.

"We believe that NACR is an excellent home for the Juma systems integration base," said Anthony M. Servidio, CEO of Juma Technology, in a statement. "This is a great opportunity for Juma to thrive under the umbrella of NACR while enabling us to turn our full focus on our Nectar software division, which will now operate as its own stand alone enterprise."

The Juma deal is the latest of a string of VAR and integrator mergers and acquisitions in the Avaya and former Nortel channels -- a continuing trend as valuations for some VAR companies are seen as affordable and solution providers look to add scale and competencies.

Heavyweight Avaya partner Xeta Technologies, a Broken Arrow, Okla.-based solution provider, has been particularly active buying up Avaya and Nortel partners in the past few months, most recently in a purchase of Data-Com Telecommunications, Union, N.J..

Elsewhere, Strategic Products and Services, a Parsippany, N.J. Avaya Platinum partner, acquired another Platinum partner, Whippany, N.J.-based Consultedge, last month. And one of the biggest deals of all came not from a VAR but from a distributor: Arrow ECS' pickup of Shared Technologies, the Coppell, Texas-based Nortel giant and one of Avaya's largest North American partners.