Eric Boulay

Transcript

Eric Boulet, I am the CEO and founder of Arismore and Memority. Arismore, a digital transformation consulting company, Memority, a SaaS security software publisher. I sold Arismore and Memority to Accenture in 2017. At the time, we had a turnover of 35 million, we were 250 people, a bit more than 250. So on one side there was Arismore, the service company, and on the other side Memority which was a software startup. The first identity logistics solution in SaaS, it was a small R&D group and a small sales force at the time working on a very innovative project. I chose to work with IPTP because I quickly understood that IPTP brought together the three major characteristics. Sales expertise, expertise in strategic aspects and implementation of the best business cases for each deal, and the ability to be supported by senior partners for an indefinite period. All of this came together perfectly at IPTP, and still does today. So for me the choice was very simple. Choosing the right time to sell is absolutely key. And you have to sell when the company is doing well. We always have the impression that when everything is going well, we have all the time to sell and elsewhere we shouldn't sell, we should continue to develop the company. You have to listen to the market. When an opportunity presents itself, as was the case with Accenture, which created Accenture Security, that's the right time. IPTP was always there to maintain momentum and balance out the moods a bit. This is very important and also the fact that the company was doing well, ultimately we had no pressure and we had all the time to wait for the best offer, the right offer to finalize. All of this should be a pleasant process, which was partly thanks to IPTP and also thanks to the fact that Arismore was doing well. When you're at the head of your company, you're young, you don't see yourself aging. In my case, it was clear that at 65, I preferred to have handed over the reins to other people and to live other adventures. It obviously allows you to provide security for your family, help your friends, but it also allows you to become a business angel and entrepreneur, so to live vicariously through many other projects. And then it allows you to fulfill some pleasures, pleasure investments in wine, in automobiles, so to do things that we weren't doing before. I think there was no debate, I would do it again with IPTP because the adventure was great, it was very well managed, it was really conducted very professionally. And if the data room is perfect, the data is spotless and the budget unfolds perfectly, we're in a position of strength to negotiate and IPTP did this remarkably well. It's behind-the-scenes work but the lawyer is very important. In fact, I make a connection between the lawyer and the negotiations of the Term Sheet and LOI. And there, IPTP came with Master Philippe Didier who did absolutely remarkable work. Once again, if I had to do it over, without hesitation, I would go back.