Overview

When technology consultancies Innablr and DevOps1 separately approached Emanda seeking support to scale, neither anticipated that the conversations would lead to something far more transformative than strategy or positioning advice, it would lead to a full-scale merger.

‍

Emanda recognised early that the two companies were not just aligned in ambition, but culturally, strategically, and commercially complementary. Rather than treating them as separate growth engagements, Emanda played matchmaker, guiding both organisations into a merger that would accelerate their shared vision for market leadership in cloud, data, and security services.

‍

The Challenge

Both Innablr and DevOps1 were successful boutique IT consultancies at critical inflection points. Innablr, deep capability in cloud and data, with emerging focus on AI, wanted to scale faster, refine market positioning, and grow beyond organic expansion. DevOps1, strong in cloud platform engineering and security, wanted to double down on data, expand capability and reach, and accelerate growth. 

They were each seeking strategic guidance, not necessarily an acquisition at first, but both were asking similar questions: How do we scale smarter? How do we evolve our market voice? What’s the right path to accelerated growth?

‍

The Emanda Approach

Rather than running a traditional M&A process, Emanda focused first on narrative alignment and strategic intent:

• Recognised Parallel Journeys: Both companies were trying to solve the same problem from opposite ends.
• Identified Cultural Compatibility Early: Matching size, geography, leadership style, and values.
• Enabled Conversation, Not Just Due Diligence: The process focused less on checking boxes and more on “How will we operate together?”
• Balanced Advocacy Across Both Sides: As Alex Rea noted, “Pete always understood both sides of the argument; that’s rare.”

‍

This wasn’t a legalistic transaction. It was a strategic union shaped through honest conversations, pragmatic problem-solving, and mutual belief in the long-term vision.

‍

The Outcome

The merger between Innablr and DevOps1 created a unified force with end-to-end capability across Data, AI, Security, Cloud and Platform, immediately unlocking Quality Engineering:

‍

• Faster market relevance through combined brand presence
• Expanded delivery capacity and depth across core disciplines
• Shared leadership with prior acquisition experience, accelerating decision-making
• A future-focused strategy rather than backwards-looking due diligence

‍

As Peter described:

“It was less about checking every line in a spreadsheet and more about: how are we going to win together?”

‍

Client Reflections

“It was almost a perfect match, culturally, capability-wise, even geographically. The way Emanda handled the balancing act between two founder-led businesses was incredible.”- Alex Rea

‍