2 accounting today | Aug. 16-Sept.
12, 2010 VAR100
VAR 100: Bloodied but unbowed
Brutal punishment from the economy may have prompted cuts
and consolidations, but the top resellers remain in the ring
BY SETH FINEBERG
To say 2009 was a challenging year for accounting and ERP resellers would barely
scrape the surface of what most had to endure just to survive, but as a result of
downsizing, trimming product lines, and consolidations, many persevered.
It should be no surprise that many VARs struggled over the
past 18 months or so, with some existing solely on residuals,
maintenance fees and the occasional upgrade, while having
to make it through.
Baltimore-based SSI Consulting is like many similar-sized
90 and Abra practice and are now solely focused on Microsoft
Dynamics SL and GP,” said chief executive Bill Aiton. “We are
currently operating lean and mean to get through the tough
economy. We are, of course, concerned about the lack of new
customers. Everyone has an automated accounting system
and the economy is making them keep what they have. Fewer
people are outgrowing QuickBooks.”
Suwanee, Ga.-based Sage and Deltek reseller Strategies
revenue declines — approximately 50 percent hits to each —
expanding our focus into other industries outside of the con-
stabilize and lay a foundation for expansion,” explained Craig
Russell, vice president of sales and marketing. “Our ability to
Sponsored by
cial decisions for top VARs.
Other comparatively small firms, such as Birmingham,
did so by adding some services based on their own expertise
and client knowledge. “Our practice has invested in getting a
better understanding of the challenges our clients face. With
this knowledge we have added more of a
focus on business intelligence across all ar-
“In addition, we have used our expertise to
develop a few applications that integrate
with our ERP systems to give clients more
of the information they need.”
Resellers such as Miami-based NextLevel Information Ser-
saw a modest uptick in revenue and spent more time on sales
“Basically, we have just been content with ‘weathering the
economic storm’ and have been exploring additional prod-
uct lines and revenue opportunities, but have not made any
decisions yet,” he said. “We are hopeful that pent-up demand
will drive decision-makers to make decisions to purchase. We
have seen more deals lost to ‘no-decision’ than ever during
the last 12 months.”
CONSOLIDATION AND CLOSURE
there were several noteworthy acquisitions.
Among the most notable were the merger of Tribridge and
Rochester, N.Y.-based Navint (ranked No. 8 and No. 7, respec-
tively, in last year’s VAR 100); the sale of the entire Microsoft
Dynamics practice of Technologies to Columbus, Ohio-
based Socius; Innovative Solutions Group merging with Jewel
& Associates; Edgewater Technology Inc. purchasing Full-
scope; and Blytheco’s purchase of CRI Business Solutions.
While consolidation was expected, the shuttering of one
Sage reseller MIS Group, which ranked No. 10 in last year’s
operations last July, a victim of the economy and the credit
crunch. Some of MIS’s top people ended up joining the Dallas
merger talks with MIS.
Last year Net@Work acquired the ERP and CRM practice of
Cranford, N.J.-based Solutions Strategists, while more recently
it purchased Boston’s Fitzgerald & Co. to further establish its
Northeast presence. Net@Work does not plan to stop there, as
at least one more transaction is in the pipeline this year.
“When you are in acquisition mode, it does force changes
to happen. When we buy a company, we want to show them
that there is no one better to go to,” said Net@Work co-founder
Alex Solomon. “Acquisitions aren’t just about getting bigger,
but maximizing revenue as you are getting bigger. Last year
was a hard year, but we got a lot more residuals and made
some smart decisions.”
Former MIS Group director of support, training and opti-
mization services Eddie Provencio is now consulting manager
ferentiators in Net@Work’s philosophy and corporate vision
acquisitions and other companies fail.”
nally, thus keeping our balance sheet strong. By not leverag-
ing our company’s assets, we are able to remain strong and
throughout the year,” said Provencio.
GOING VERTICAL
Going forward, while some VARs may con-
sider growth through M&A, there are many
that are looking towards becoming more
vertically focused. For example, top 10 re-
seller Tribridge, though still eyeing strategic acquisitions, is
seeing increased demand to grow its vertical business. As an
example, in May, Tribridge, which ranked No. 4 in this year’s
roster, purchased privately held Mercatus, a Chicago-based
providers. “More than ever, our customers are demanding
vertical expertise and proven, comprehensive solutions. As a
result, our dedicated industry practices ... are accounting for
a much larger share of overall revenues,” said chief executive
and chairman Tony DiBenedetto. AT
4 accounting today | Aug. 16-Sept. 12, 2010 VAR100 Sponsored by

The 2010 VAR 100

Revenue
Company / Location ($ mns) Offices Staff Top executive(s) Accounting software
1 Tectura / Tempe, Ariz 229.20 45 1,600 Terry Petrzelka Dynamics GP, NAV, SL, AX
2 Columbus IT Partners / Copenhagen 138.20 44 934 Claus Hansen Dynamics AX, NAV
3 RSM McGladrey / Bloomington, Minn. 93.10 90 320 Brian Becker Dynamics GP, SL; SAP BusinessOne; MAS 90/200/500, MIP; Deltek
4 Tribridge / Tampa, Fla. 60.00 13 300 Tony DiBenedetto Dynamics GP, AX, SL, NAV
5 Professional Advantage / Sydney, Australia 42.00 7 236 Brent Hitterdal Dynamics GP, AX
6 ePartners / Dallas 40.00 15 175 Michael McCarthy Dynamics AX, GP, SL
7 Crowe Horwath / Columbus, Ohio 37.10 26 143 Joe Santucci Dynamics AX, GP
8 Wipfli / Wausau, Wis. 22.70 14 148 Rick Dreher Dynamics GP, AX; QuickBooks; Peachtree, Sage MIP
9 Net@Work / New York City 22.30 7 133 Alex & Edward Solomon Sage X3, MAS 90/200/500, Accpac Pro
10 Fullscope1 / Athens, Ala. 21.90 7 85 Russell Smith Dynamics AX
11 Blytheco / Laguna Hills, Calif. 20.00 10 115 Stephen Blythe Sage MAS 90/200/500, BusinessWorks, X3, FAS, MIP
12 Socius / Columbus, Ohio 19.00 6 81 Jeffrey Geisler Dynamics GP, AX, SL; Sage MAS 90/200/500; Syspro
13 BKD Technologies / Springfield, Mo. 18.30 30 80 Mike Burlew Dynamics AX, GP; Sage X3, MAS 90/500
14 Sikich / Aurora, Ill. 18.30 6 78 Jeff Rudolph Dynamics GP, NAV, SL; Sage MIP
15 ADSS Global / Miami and Philadelphia 17.50 23 90 Robert Campbell Sage Accpac ERP, MAS 90/200, MIP, Pro ERP, FAS
16 BroadPoint Technologies / Bethesda, Md. 15.70 3 83 Lee Raesly Dynamics GP
17 SCS Inc. / Santa Monica, Calif. 14.80 3 60 Helen Russell Dynamics NAV, AX
18 Infinity Info Systems / New York City 14.01 9 75 Yacov Wrocherinsky Dynamics GP, NAV; Sage MAS 500
19 Caturano & Co.2 / Boston 14.00 1 80 Richard Caturano Dynamics GP, SL; SAP Business One; Intacct; QuickBooks
20 I.B.I.S. Inc. / Norcross, Ga. 14.00 5 70 Andy Vabulas Dynamics AX, GP
21 LBMC Technologies† / Nashville, Tenn. 12.87 3 50 Jeff McCorpin Dynamics SL, GP
22 Clients First Business Solutions / Holmdel, N.J.
†
12.69 5 NR Alan Rothstein SAP BusinessOne; Dynamics AX, GP, NAV, SL; Sage MAS 90/200/500
23 Rand Group / Houston 12.50 3 56 Ron Rand Dynamics AX, NAV, GP; Sage X3, Timberline
24 Emergence Corp. / Miami 12.25 9 101 Kent McLean Sage XRT; Dynamics GP, AX
25 Sunrise Technologies / Winston-Salem, N.C. 12.20 4 73 John Pence Dynamics AX
26 Clifton Gunderson Technology Solutions / Peoria, Ill. 12.10 12 60 Kris McMasters MAS 90/200, Accpac, MIP; Deltek Vision; Dynamics GP; QuickBooks
27 Advanced Systems Integration† / Lake Forest, Calif. 11.52 1 20 David Payne Dynamics AX
28 InterDyn AKA / New York City 11.50 4 48 A. Kahn & J. Ades Dynamics AX, GP
29 NexTec Group Inc. / Seattle 11.22 6 66 Eric Frank Dynamics GP, SL; Sage MAS 500, X3
30 SBS Group / Woodbridge, N.J. 11.10 10 60 James Bowman Dynamics SL, GP; Sage MAS 500; Deltek Vision
31 Collins Computing Inc. / Mission Viejo, Calif. 11.00 5 48 Randy Forkner Dynamics AX, GP
32 Cole Systems / New York City 10.00 1 35 Ivan Cole Dynamics AX, GP, SL
33 BCG Systems / Akron, Ohio 8.80 3 40 Mark Goodson Dynamics GP; Sage MAS 90/200/500
34 Acumen Advisors3 / Mooresville, N.C. 8.78 8 29 Kevin O’Connor Deltek Vision, Deltek GCS Premier
35 Grace-Hunt / Hudson, Mass. 8.50 2 26 Kevin Comerford Dynamics GP, SL, NAV
36 Aztec Systems / Carrollton, Texas 8.14 6 53 Andrew Levi Dynamics GP, NAV, SL; Sage MAS 90/200
37 InterDyn BMI / St. Paul, Minn. 8.06 3 52 John Hendrickson Dynamics GP, AX
38 BAASS Business Solutions Inc. / Thornhill, Ont. 8.00 6 48 J. Arnone & E. Benigni Sage Accpac ERP, X3; Dynamics NAV
39 SIS Software / Atlanta 7.50 5 31 Steven Mulka Dynamics SL
40 SWK Technologies Inc. / Livingston, N.J. 7.42 5 38 Jeffrey Roth Sage X3, MAS 90/200/500, BusinessWorks
41 Saratoga Technologies / Johnson City, Tenn. 7.38 5 65 David Temple Dynamics GP; Sage MAS 90/200; QuickBooks Pro
42 CompuData Inc. / Philadelphia 7.30 3 37 Steve Ciarciello Sage MAS 90/200/500; Epicor; QuickBooks Enterprise
43 MIG Group / New York City 7.25 3 37 Eric McGuardian Dynamics GP, NAV; SAP Business Objects
44 InterDyn Lanac Technology / Chicago 7.00 1 30 Dale May Dynamics GP
45 OmniVue Business Solutions / Alpharetta, Ga. 6.82 1 24 Jeff Pyden Dynamics GP, NAV, AX

Key: All revenues are FY 2009, in U.S. dollars. In cases of ties in revenue, the firm with the larger staff was given the higher ranking. † Accounting Today estimate NR Not reported
Notes: 1 Fullscope Inc. was acquired by Edgewater Technology Inc., a public company, on Dec. 31, 2009. Revenue and staff numbers were quoted in a Jan. 4, 2010, press release on
ThomasNet News. 2 In May 2010, Caturano agreed to be acquired by RSM McGladrey. 3 Created in May 2010 from merger of Jewel & Associates and Innovative Solutions Group.