IBIS Builds Up MBS Expertise, Reach With InfoVision Buy

This week, Atlanta-based solution provider IBIS plans to buy the MBS portion of InfoVision, a Microsoft partner, according to IBIS CEO Andy Vabulas. Terms of the agreement weren&t disclosed.

Plans call for InfoVision to continue as a Microsoft infrastructure partner. The deal would give IBIS additional Great Plains and Microsoft CRM expertise as well as geographical coverage in Charlotte, N.C., where InfoVision is based. IBIS already has offices in Atlanta, Washington, New York and the greater Boston area, Vabulas said.

To date, IBIS has focused on growing its business via its own hiring and expansion plans, rather than pursuing an aggressive acquisition strategy like that followed by Tectura.

"I'm a big proponent of organic growth, but the opportunity to put these two companies together--it lets us extend into the Carolinas--was too good to pass up," Vabulas told CRN.

Even as MBS channel partners jockey for position, Microsoft's internal business solutions unit has been pulled in with the Information Worker product group under group vice president Jeff Raikes. Industry observers say Microsoft must put a full-court press on to make its business solutions unit profitable.

MBS encompasses the Axapta, Navision, Solomon, Great Plains and Microsoft CRM product lines. Going into Microsoft&s recent reorganization, the Dynamics label was applied to all of those offerings.