22 Jul 2008

ICON has successfully advised on the sale of Practique Associates to Merced Systems, a Silicon Valley-based software company.

Practique is the European market leader in Incentive Compensation Management (ICM) solutions. Its flagship web-based application INCA automates sales commissions and bonuses and is responsible for managing the commission of over 120,000 employees and channel partners across Europe.

INCA embraces all aspects of performance incentive programmes, it reduces costs such as compensation overpayment and unnecessary administration overheads and directly links performance measures to top line company growth targets. It can cut operational costs by 37% and drive up sales volume by 22% within a 12 months period of implementation.

Practique's customers include Carphone Warehouse, The Royal Bank of Scotland, O2 Germany, Cable & Wireless, BT and British Gas Business which is part of Centrica Plc.

The acquisition by Merced Systems, a leader in Sales and Service Performance Management software which is based in Silicon Valley, means the combined two companies are able to offer the only performance management solution on the market today that serves both sales and service organizations in a unified fashion. These organizations include contact centers, field sales, retail sales, partner operations, back office functions, and field service groups.

The marriage of these two sector leaders will bring together two critical product categories and two expert teams, strength in multiple geographies and a common vision. Practique Associates will operate in Europe as a wholly owned subsidiary of Merced Systems, allowing the company to continue its impressive track record of growth and profitability.

Sales and Service Performance Management is one of the least penetrated and fastest growing sectors in the Performance Management software market.