DISYS Acquires Signature Consultants, Forming One of the Nation’s Top 10 IT Staffing Companies

Digital Intelligence Systems, LLC (DISYS) and Signature Consultants, LLC announce today that an agreement was signed for DISYS to acquire the legal entities of Signature, combine operations, and create one of the largest providers of information technology (IT) staffing services in the U.S. With combined annual revenues of $860M, the organization will also be the second largest minority-owned staffing firm in the nation. Both businesses will maintain their respective brands in the marketplace for the foreseeable future.

The combined operations will draw on the resources of more than 7,500 employees and consultants, serving clients from more than 40 offices, eight countries, and four delivery centers worldwide. Together, the IT firm will offer capabilities in staffing and recruiting, managed services programs (MSPs), consulting and project management, and automation support.

The current DISYS CEO, Mahfuz Ahmed, will serve as the CEO of the combined organization. Dr. Jay Cohen, founder and former CEO of Signature, will remain with the new entity to continue his oversight of day-to-day functioning of Signature operations and to focus on the cultural integration of the newly- combined organization. The senior leadership teams of both organizations will also remain intact.

“For DISYS, combining forces with Signature is a great strategic fit for both of our organizations, this brings expanded opportunities as we continue to diversify our account portfolio and puts us within striking distance of becoming a $1B firm,” said Mahfuz Ahmed, DISYS’ CEO. “DISYS and Signature share attributes that create a synergistic whole and we believe our complementary service offering will enable us to reach new levels of growth. We are stronger together and look ahead to a bright future as we continue to set the standard for the staffing and solutions industry.”

Both companies take great pride in sharing similar values, including collaboration, respect, accountability, fairness, and ingenuity, as well as bringing deep expertise to engagements. The combined company will continue to deepen its technical leadership to deliver high quality service and client-driven results.

“DISYS’ strong operations, successful brand, core values, and exceptional industry practices make them an excellent strategic partner for us,” says Dr. Jay Cohen, founder of Signature. “The combination of our two organizations creates a powerful force in the industry, expanding our clients’ access to an even greater array of IT and professional talent and specialized services and providing enhanced opportunities for our consultants and employees to further their skill development and careers.”

The transaction will be funded through debt financing provided by Wells Fargo Bank and The Carlyle Group. Carlyle’s $56 billion Global Credit platform made the investment with capital primarily from its Credit Opportunities franchise. The Credit Opportunities franchise invests in privately negotiated capital solutions primarily for upper middle market borrowers, including both private equity sponsored and family or entrepreneur-owned companies.

Alex Popov, Carlyle’s Head of Illiquid Credit Strategies, said, “We are excited to partner with industry-leading founders at DISYS and Signature, who have built strong, complementary businesses meeting a growing need for IT staffing, and to provide capital to help them better serve clients and support strategic growth objectives.”

“Wells Fargo is proud to continue our longstanding relationship with DISYS and provide a flexible, asset-based lending solution to support this exciting growth,” said Raphael Torres, Managing Director, Wells Fargo Commercial Capital, Staffing Services Group. “We are honored to be part of this next chapter alongside DISYS’s innovative management team and to continue supporting this strong, minority-owned business with their working capital needs.”

Wells Fargo Commercial Capital continues as the asset-based lender for DISYS. Wells Fargo Securities, LLC served as the exclusive financial advisor to Signature Consultants while Deloitte Consulting provided advisory services on behalf of DISYS.

About Digital Intelligence Systems, LLC (DISYS)

DISYS, founded in 1994 and headquartered in McLean, Virginia, is a global managed services and staffing firm with 33 offices and 4 delivery centers worldwide. As a leading global enterprise, DISYS’ experts are thought leaders in the industry, who bring best-in-class expertise to more than 250 Fortune 500 companies. Recognized as a Top 20 Staffing Provider and one of the Largest Staffing Firms in the U.S., as well as a leading Diversity Staffing Firm by Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA), DISYS is also a certified Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) and Top Supplier to 7 of 10 leading global MSPs. With the support of almost 5,000 internal and external (consultant) employees, DISYS specializes in Global Staffing, Application Development Services, Business Intelligence Services, Cloud Enablement Services, Infrastructure Support Services, Enterprise Apps as-a-Service, Automated Testing, and Process Automation. For more information on the company, please visit www.disys.com.

About Signature Consultants, LLC

Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Signature Consultants was established in 1997 with a singular focus: to provide clients and consultants with superior staffing solutions. With 29 locations throughout North America, Signature annually deploys thousands of consultants to support, run and manage their clients’ technology needs. Signature offers IT staffing, consulting, managed solutions, and direct placement services. For more information on the company, please visit https://www.sigconsult.com. Signature Consultants is the parent company to Hunter Hollis and Madison Gunn.

About The Carlyle Group

The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG) is a global investment firm with deep industry expertise that deploys private capital across three business segments: Global Private Equity, Global Credit and Investment Solutions. With $246 billion of assets under management as of December 31, 2020, Carlyle’s purpose is to invest wisely and create value on behalf of its investors, portfolio companies and the communities in which we live and invest. The Carlyle Group employs 1,825 people in 29 offices across five continents. Further information is available at www.carlyle.com. Follow The Carlyle Group on Twitter @OneCarlyle

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Contact information

Media:
DISYS/Signature: Sandra Schwartzman
VP, Public Relations
RMR & Associates
(301) 230-0045 x 100
sschwartzman@rmr.com

Carlyle: Christa Zipf
347-621-8967
Christa.Zipf@carlyle.com