Fortlane Partners advised NTT DATA Business Solutions AG 

Fortlane Partners acted as the exclusive financial advisor to NTT DATA Business Solutions AG, a leading global IT services provider specialized in SAP, in its successful acquisition of The Cloud People Group AS, a Norwegian company headquartered in Oslo and one of Europe’s largest pure-play ServiceNow partners. 

As described by NTT DATA:

The acquisition comes at a time when ServiceNow and NTT DATA are expanding their strategic partnership, which is aimed at accelerating AI-driven transformation for global enterprises. As part of this collaboration, ServiceNow named NTT DATA a strategic AI delivery partner. Both organizations are committed to co-developing and marketing AI-powered solutions that enable large-scale automation and operational efficiency. This strengthened alliance provides a robust platform for NTT DATA Business Solutions and The Cloud People to collaborate in driving innovation and delivering next-generation, AI-enabled ServiceNow offerings to customers worldwide.

The Cloud People is at the forefront of ServiceNow’s AI evolution with its dedicated AI Center of Excellence. Having already delivered measurable results for more than 20 clients across Northern Europe, the company’s proven innovation capabilities—now strengthened by NTT DATA Business Solutions’ global expertise—are set to accelerate the development of smarter workflows and advanced AI solutions designed to meet the evolving needs of people and organizations.

“With the acquisition of The Cloud People, we are strengthening our presence in the Nordics and Central Europe,” says Norbert Rotter, CEO of NTT DATA Business Solutions. “SAP remains at the core of our business. By combining our more than 35 years of deep SAP expertise with The Cloud People’s proven strength in ServiceNow we are expanding our portfolio with complementary services. I am confident that The Cloud People’s dynamic growth and commitment to excellence perfectly align with our values of economic stability and outstanding service.”

As a leading provider of ServiceNow solutions for medium and large enterprises, The Cloud People offer a focused value proposition covering the entire ServiceNow platform. The company delivers services across multiple workflows including IT service management, incident, problem and change management, automation of routine tasks, resource planning, onboarding and offboarding of employees, as well as customer service and security operations. The acquisition of The Cloud People will add 130 active customers to NTT DATA Business Solutions’ portfolio.

“For The Cloud People, this means achieving growth with stability that no financial investor could provide, along with a platform for expansion that surpasses even our most ambitious expectations. NTT DATA Business Solutions is a Top Employer-certified organization with deep process and industry expertise, completing our ServiceNow proposition as the Platform of Platforms,” says Bjørn Jarl, CEO of The Cloud People.

About NTT DATA Business Solutions
NTT DATA Business Solutions is a leading global IT service provider focused on SAP with a powerful ecosystem of partners. With more than 35 years of in-depth experience, we enable companies worldwide to become Intelligent Enterprises. We deliver end-to-end solutions that accelerate sustainable growth and success – from strategic consulting and implementation to managed services and beyond. As a global strategic SAP partner, we drive innovation and leverage the latest technologies to support our customers individually and across all industries. Our more than 18,300 dedicated employees in over 30 countries work passionately every day to make it happen. 

NTT DATA Business Solutions is part of NTT DATA, a $30+ billion trusted global innovator of AI, business and technology services headquartered in Tokyo. As One NTT DATA we serve 75% of the Fortune Global 100 and are committed to helping customers innovate, optimize, and transform for long-term success. NTT DATA is part of NTT Group.

Transaction Team

Dr. Herbert Werle
Managing Director

Dr. Adelin Trusculescu

Managing Director
Email

Christoph Litke
Associate