Pleasanton, Calif., June 11, 2015 – Blackhawk Network, a leading prepaid and payments network, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Achievers Corp. Achievers is a leading provider of employee recognition and rewards solutions designed to help companies increase employee engagement. The acquisition will broaden the reach of Blackhawk’s already extensive incentive and engagement business.
“Achievers’ award-winning employee recognition platform is a complementary addition to our employee engagement portfolio and will enhance Blackhawk’s leadership position in the corporate incentives market,” said Talbott Roche, Blackhawk Network’s president. “Blackhawk’s heritage is providing innovative prepaid products, solutions and technology to meet the needs of consumers, employees and corporations. The Achievers platform will expand our customers’ ability to engage employees with the best rewards, in the right places to drive organizational alignment.”
Achievers’ Employee Success Platform™ is a cloud-based platform designed to dramatically increase employee engagement and drive business success through social recognition and rewards. The platform empowers employees to recognize each other in real time from any desktop, mobile or tablet device, and aligns them to the goals of the company. The Employee Success Platform delivered more than seven million employee recognitions in 2014 and has fulfillment capabilities in more than 110 countries.
“This is such an exciting moment for Achievers and I couldn’t imagine a better pairing than Achievers and Blackhawk Network,” said Eric Lochner, Achievers president & CEO. “We have found an incredible partner who shares our mission to change the way the world works and we’re confident that our customers will benefit significantly from the expanded reach, products and services that Blackhawk has to offer.”
Earlier this year Blackhawk launched a new incentives division, Blackhawk Engagement Solutions, which is a leading global provider of customized incentive and engagement solutions for consumer promotions, direct and indirect sales channel incentive programs and employee rewards.
“We continuously monitor the marketplace for opportunities that can enhance our position as a leader in the prepaid and incentive industries,” said Bill Tauscher, CEO of Blackhawk Network. “Achievers fits extremely well with our overall direction and vision, and we are excited to welcome the organization to Blackhawk Network.”
Employee incentives are a significant component of corporate incentives, and are evolving from simply service awards and task-oriented incentives to broad-based peer recognition systems. According to Blackhawk Engagement Solutions’ new research, less than half of U.S. employees are happy with the rewards and recognition their employers currently offer.
Transaction Details
Blackhawk Network plans to finance the purchase using cash on hand. “On a non-GAAP adjusted basis, we expect the acquisition to be earnings neutral in fiscal 2015 and earnings accretive in 2016,” said Jerry Ulrich, Blackhawk Network’s chief financial and administrative officer. The transaction is expected to close by June 30, 2015, subject to customary closing conditions.
