Professional Services Acquisitions in Pennsylvania

Wolf & Company, P.C. has acquired The Kafafian Group, Inc., a Pennsylvania-based bank consulting firm, bringing the two firms together under the Wolf & Company brand to expand advisory capabilities for banks and credit unions. The combination is intended to create a more comprehensive financial-institution advisory platform covering strategy, performance measurement, regulatory assistance and related services.

Swoogo, the Los Angeles–based event management platform, has acquired Amae Live, a bespoke event technology and development firm founded by Leonora Valvo. The deal expands Swoogo’s Professional Services capabilities—adding custom development, creative builds, and deeper technical support for customers building branded and complex event experiences.

Command Investigations, a national investigations firm headquartered in Lake Mary, Florida, has acquired Merge Investigations, Inc., a Lancaster, Pennsylvania–based provider of insurance defense and SIU investigative services. The acquisition expands Command's national footprint and strengthens its SIU and web (OSINT) investigation capabilities through Merge's S.C.A.N. program and experienced field teams.

The K Team, LLC, led by Kristi (Yodis) May, has acquired J&E Business Group, a Lancaster-area business brokerage co-founded by Harry Jefferies and Larry Etherton. The founders will remain in advisory roles as The K Team modernizes and expands J&E's marketing, systems, and service offerings to better serve Mid-Atlantic small-business owners preparing to grow or exit.

Security 101, a portfolio company of Gemspring Capital, has acquired Dorrian Properties LLC, a long-standing franchise partner with operations in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. The deal expands Security 101's Northeast footprint and strengthens its ability to serve higher-education and other complex commercial clients across Pennsylvania.

Gainline Capital Partners, a Stamford-based private equity firm, announced a partnership investment in IMS Technology Services, a Garnet Valley, Pennsylvania audiovisual event staging, systems integration and managed services provider. The investment will support IMS's growth plans to expand offerings and geographic footprint while maintaining company culture and customer service.

Pye-Barker Fire & Safety has acquired Altronics Security Solutions, a Bethlehem, Pennsylvania-based provider of security alarms, video surveillance, access control and 24-hour central monitoring. The Altronics team will join Pye-Barker’s Pennsylvania operations and continue to serve local commercial customers, strengthening Pye-Barker’s regional service footprint and customer retention.

Prime Pensions, Inc. has acquired Valley Forge Pension Management, a Muncy, Pennsylvania-based third-party administrator of retirement plans, expanding Prime Pensions' geographic footprint into Pennsylvania with its first office in the state. Terms were not disclosed; VFPM leaders Dena Hadzinikolov and Luci Hartman will continue to lead the Pennsylvania region as Prime Pensions now services ~11,000 retirement plans across eight offices nationwide.

Stout, a global advisory firm, has acquired Financial Research Associates, Inc. (FRA), a Pennsylvania-based financial consulting firm specializing in business valuation, forensic accounting, and litigation support. The deal brings FRA’s team of over 30 professionals into Stout’s Valuation Advisory group to expand Stout’s valuation and litigation support capabilities and strengthen its presence in the tri-state area.

TiER1 Impact has acquired Pro-Active Performance, an automotive-focused training and consulting firm founded by Jim Shute. Pro-Active will be integrated into TiER1 Performance to expand TiER1's learning & development, leadership development, and customer experience capabilities for automotive OEM and dealership clients.

Medical Technology Associates, a portfolio company of PNC Riverarch Capital, has acquired Air Filtration Management, a Bethlehem, Pennsylvania-based provider of cleanroom and controlled-environment testing and certification. The acquisition is MTA's second in the Northeast and expands its capabilities and footprint in life sciences and technology controlled-environment testing and validation.

Truelink Capital, a Los Angeles-based middle-market private equity firm, has acquired Philadelphia-based Richardson Sales Performance, a global sales training and performance-improvement firm founded in 1979. Truelink said it will support Richardson's growth through strategic investments, organic expansion and further M&A while Richardson's existing management team remains in place.

Docufree, a provider of enterprise information management and cloud-based document services, has acquired TrustFlow Digital Solutions to expand its digital mailroom and business process outsourcing capabilities. TrustFlow, headquartered in Moosic, Pennsylvania with ~200 employees and locations in New Jersey, Iowa and Ohio, serves large customers in insurance, healthcare and financial services.

Keystone Insurers Group announced it has fully acquired the member shares of East Coast Risk Management (ECRM) and will integrate ECRM as Keystone’s risk management division. The transaction brings over 60 ECRM risk, HR and safety specialists into Keystone’s organization to expand its service capabilities for member agencies and increase the network’s service staff to more than 200.

Odyssey Investment Partners, a growth-oriented middle-market private equity firm, has acquired Magna Legal Services, a Philadelphia-headquartered litigation support provider, from CIVC Partners. Magna — which serves law firms, corporations, insurance carriers and government agencies across all 50 U.S. states — will continue to be led by its existing management team, who have invested alongside Odyssey.

Cherry Bekaert has acquired Accume Partners, a risk, regulatory and cybersecurity advisory firm, from Nadavon Capital Partners. The deal expands Cherry Bekaert's internal audit, risk and compliance capabilities and strengthens its mid-Atlantic and Northeast presence to better serve financial services and other highly regulated clients.

Renovus Capital Partners has made a significant growth capital investment in SolomonEdwardsGroup, LLC, a national professional services firm focused on strategy execution. The capital will be used to invest in the team and delivery capabilities and to accelerate SolomonEdwards' expansion as a platform company.

Rimkus Consulting Group, a global provider of forensic engineering and technical consulting services, has acquired Core Human Factors, a human factors and usability consulting firm focused on medical and drug delivery devices. The deal expands Rimkus' Human Factors practice and adds regulatory guidance and medical-device-specific capabilities to better support clients across product development and post-market activities.

Foreside Financial Group has acquired Cipperman Compliance Services (CCS) to strengthen its outsourced chief compliance officer (CCO) capabilities and complement its distribution solutions. CCS, based in Wayne, Pennsylvania, brings approximately 25 employees and more than 100 clients and will maintain its Pennsylvania presence; financial terms were not disclosed.

kwx, the holding company of Keller Williams, has acquired CPros (Conveyance Pros), a Philadelphia-based provider of concierge transaction management services for real estate brokerages and agents. The CPros team, led by founder Jason Conner, will join kwx and its services will be integrated into KW's Command CRM and offered via the KW MarketPlace to scale transaction management support for Keller Williams agents.

VSS Capital Partners has completed a growth investment in GLOBO Language Solutions, a provider of technology-enabled, on-demand interpretation and translation services. The investment will fund organic and inorganic growth, expand GLOBO's service offerings and technology capabilities, and support expansion into existing and new end markets.

AnswerNet, a Willow Grove, Pennsylvania-based BPO and call center services provider, acquired Quality Contact Solutions (QCS) and its subsidiary QCS At Home, with the deal finalized December 31, 2021. The acquisition strengthens AnswerNet’s telemarketing, outbound/inbound and compliance capabilities; AnswerNet retained QCS employees and appointed Chris Grothe to oversee the business.

Eliassen Group, a Reading, Massachusetts-based strategic consulting and talent solutions firm, has acquired Fidato Partners, an accounting & finance, risk management, and IT consulting firm headquartered in the greater Philadelphia area. The acquisition expands Eliassen Group’s professional services capabilities—particularly in risk management, finance transformation, and technical accounting—and brings Fidato’s consulting and recruiting capabilities into Eliassen’s platform.

Pye-Barker Fire & Safety has acquired Yarnell Security Systems, a Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based commercial and residential security services provider. The deal adds Yarnell's 47 employees and more than 10,000 customers to Pye-Barker's national fire, life-safety and security platform and strengthens its CCTV, access control and alarm monitoring capabilities in central Pennsylvania.

Funds managed by New York-based private equity firm Lee Equity Partners acquired a majority ownership interest in Unlimited Technology, a Chester Springs, Pennsylvania-based security systems integrator. Management, led by John Palumbo (who will become CEO), will retain meaningful equity; former majority shareholder Richard Rockwell is retiring. Financial terms were not disclosed; Lee Equity said it will support Unlimited Technology’s organic and acquisition-driven growth and geographic/service expansion.

Foreside Financial Group acquired Hardin Compliance Consulting, a Wexford, Pennsylvania-based regulatory compliance consulting firm serving asset managers. The deal (financial terms undisclosed) adds 30+ Hardin employees to Foreside and strengthens its outsourced compliance and regulatory capabilities as part of the company's ongoing add-on acquisition strategy.

Pittsburgh-based private equity firm Stonewood Capital Management announced that an affiliate has acquired CMS East, Inc., a privately owned operator of memorial parks headquartered in Jeannette, Pennsylvania. CMS East operates cemetery and memorial park properties across Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland and the Carolinas; S&T Bank provided senior debt to support the acquisition.

FTI Consulting, Inc. has entered into an agreement to acquire The Rhodes Group, a construction consulting firm with offices in Pittsburgh and Houston. Approximately 40 billable professionals from The Rhodes Group will join FTI's Construction & Environmental Solutions practice to strengthen the company's construction advisory, dispute resolution and expert testimony capabilities in North America.

Brookside Capital Partners provided a unitranche debt facility to Avision Sales Group to support the company’s add-on investment activity. Avision, headquartered in Hershey, Pennsylvania, is an outsourced sales and marketing provider to manufacturers and is a portfolio company of Osceola Capital Management.

Insight Service Group (ISG) has acquired Social Detection LLC to expand and complement ISG's Social Media Technology platform. The deal combines ISG's national investigation, medical and record management capabilities with Social Detection's social media analytics and fraud-detection technology to enhance services for insurance and legal clients; terms were not disclosed.

Magna Legal Services, a portfolio company of CIVC Partners, has acquired RecordTrak, a King of Prussia, Pennsylvania–based provider of record retrieval and litigation support services. The deal expands Magna's record retrieval capabilities and broadens its litigation support offerings; RecordTrak's founder Martin Marshall will retain an ownership stake and the management team will remain in place.

The Clarke Companies, backed by Lightview Capital, has acquired Covex, LLC to integrate enterprise IT validation and compliance capabilities with Clarke's manufacturing automation and validation services. The add-on expands Clarke's geographic footprint into the Northeast and Southeast and strengthens its ability to serve FDA‑regulated life sciences customers.

Kartesia, an independent European private investor, acquired Richardson — a Philadelphia-based provider of tech-enabled enterprise sales training — from ClearLight Partners and will merge it with Kartesia’s existing portfolio company, Sales Performance International (SPI). The combination creates a global sales training leader with a comprehensive suite of classroom and digital learning, CRM-enabled execution tools, and measurement capabilities to serve large enterprise clients.