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Merger to create global tech company [Deseret News (UT)](Deseret News (UT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) SOUTH JORDAN - A newly announced merger will create a Utah technology firm that company officials say will be the biggest of its kind worldwide. Maritz Holdings Inc. and South Jordan-based Allegiance Software Inc. announced Wednesday the intent to establish a new independent company, MaritzCX, through the acquisition of Allegiance and subsequent combination with Maritz Research Inc. Carine Clark, president and chief executive officer of Allegiance, will be CEO of MaritzCX, which will be headquartered in South Jordan. The new firm will employ 100 people in Utah with more to come, she said. MaritzCX will have combined revenues of nearly $200 million in its first year, Clark explained, making it the largest in the industry. The company plans to significantly increase the number of software developers, account teams, sales and customer service staff in Utah over the next three years, she said. "I expect to double the engineering team and within the next two to three years that 100 people in Utah could easily be 200," Clark said. The company will likely increase its global workforce significantly as well, she said. "The company could be (valued at) $1 billion in five years," Clark said. "We have a very strong trajectory because nobody else can bring together the technology, services and expertise that we can." The merger of Maritz Research's experience and Allegiance's software and information technology capability was motivated by a gap in the industry, Clark explained. Traditional research and customer relationship management offerings don't have the capability to collect, evaluate and respond to customers in real time, she said. Retailers and other companies are seeking a loyalty tool to help them understand and influence the customer experience, or CX, Clark said. Companies want to get information about what customers think, feel, say and need so they can respond faster and ultimately increase customer retention, conversion and lifetime value, she added. Maritz Research is recognized globally for its CX traditional research, mystery shopping, data collection, analysis and consulting, Clark said. Allegiance is the developer of a voice of the customer software platform and data mining software that is now used by more than 350 companies, explained Chris Cottle, Allegiance executive vice president for marketing. The new company is now introducing a CX software platform to deliver a customizable big data architecture using cloud-based, multiple survey programs, along with integrated data mining that provides instant customer information, Cottle said. "The CX industry is growing at a staggering rate," said Steve Maritz, chairman of Maritz Holdings and the largest investor in MaritzCX. "As the pace of business steadily increases, we have to turn customer experience programs into operational business processes that run in real time." Factors contributing to the more mainstream adoption of CX include social media and technology innovations that enable consumers to share opinions and push companies to distill big data into meaningful information that can drive better customer relationships, as well as business improvements, Cottle noted. Industries that regularly use CX tools for communication and marketing include automotive, health care, hospitality/tourism, financial services, technology, telecom and retail. Clark said that MaritzCX already has more than 900 full-time employees in 18 offices and five global regions. The company will serve 500 clients and 1 million users in 100 countries speaking 60 languages, she added. MaritzCX clients will include midsize to large companies worldwide. Email: [email protected] Twitter: JasenLee1 (c) 2014 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |