Avaya Auction: Who’s Looking to Bid?
UC this week brought you news at the end of March that Avaya may well have been considering a leveraged buyout from an unknown private equity firm. The plot has now thickened with various sources intimating that an auction process may be underway or imminent.
Speculation has been fuelled by apparent buoyancy in the Avaya stock price on the NYSE with shares rising by several percentage points from their value at the start of this week. As we reported previously the potential value of Avaya far exceeds its stock market value, of around $2 billion, with estimates of around a $4-5 billion total acquisition value including the several billion dollars of company debt that was last reported at the end of 2018.
The situation has developed as it appears there are several, highly capable, interested parties who have made discreet enquires to major shareholders. Although unconfirmed, various reports have named private equity firms Permira Holdings, Searchlight Capital Partners and Apollo Global Management LLC. Some of the potential suitors already represent knowledge and have a vested interest in the global communications market. Searchlight Capital Partners acquired, Avaya rival, Mitel this time twelve months ago and Permira Holdings own contact centre solution specialist Genesys. Were either of the aforementioned parties to successfully acquire Avaya, in addition to their existing portfolios, speculation would undoubtedly continue with the possibilities of mergers or consolidations of the businesses. Apollo Global Management LLC also have their own interest as they own West Corp, the technology-enablement company who specialise in unified communication and collaboration services.
The exact logistics in terms of the potential upcoming auction process is still unknown. Market news giant Bloomberg first reported that Avaya was working in conjunction with an investment bank to assist with the auction process after receiving enquires from private-equity firms and, potentially, other parties in addition. Interested parties are likely to be contacted and consulted to provide concrete offers for Avaya, whether this forms part of blind or open auction process may never be revealed. The timeline for this process is yet to be determined but firm bids are expected to be lodged over the coming weeks.
The news of the leveraged buyout offer from March and now the potential auction follows an uncertain financial period for Avaya. After successfully surviving the Chapter 11 process at the end of 2017 the future seemed bright, but financials released since then have painted a different picture. The company has made a conscious and public effort to transition its business model from that of traditional hardware vendor to a more software and services orientated company. A transition such as this is never an easy process, which appeared to be part of the reasons that Mitel made a move back to private ownership in 2018. Despite quarterly revenues rising, Avaya’s revenue figures from Q1 2019 were down in comparison to the same period in 2018. These figures apparently have not appeared to match Wall Street’s forecasts.
Despite the apparent financial difficulties it does appear that Avaya’s shifting strategy is working, albeit more slowly than expected. Contract, software and services revenue increased recently and the widespread interest in the apparent auction process and Avaya’s stock can only be encouraging for shareholders, partners and customers.
UC Today have approached Avaya, and some of the suspected bidders, for comment but are yet to receive an official response.
Source: uctoday
Industry: Unified Communication news
Latest Jobs
-
- Public Sector Cyber Security Sales | UK
- England
- N/A
-
Public Sector Cyber Security Sales | UK UK | Remote / Hybrid A cyber security provider is seeking a Public Sector Sales professional to drive growth across UK government and public sector organisations. Must have current Cyber Security sales experience. Responsibilities Generate new business selling cyber security solutions into UK public sector Build relationships with CIO, CISO and senior technology stakeholders Manage the full sales cycle from opportunity to contract close Develop pipeline across central government, local government and public sector bodies Support bids, tenders and framework opportunities Experience Proven cyber security sales experience in the UK Track record selling into public sector organisations Familiarity with CCS, G Cloud or other government frameworks Strong stakeholder engagement and deal management skills Location UK based Security Requirements Eligible to obtain UK Security Clearance
-
- Security Architect | MoD - Security Cleared. OUTSIDE IR35 | Hampshire
- N/A
- Outside IR35
-
Security Architect | MOD | Security Cleared | Outside IR35 | Hampshire Commutable The successful candidate must be willing to undergo DV Clearance, ideally already holding active clearance. You will produce high and low level security architecture documentation, guiding and validating designs for systems deployed within sensitive environments. The role requires providing specialist security input into solution design, service transition and change initiatives, working closely with engineering, operations, client and third party stakeholders. You must have current hands on architectural experience, including VMware secure platform design and virtualisation architecture, alongside AWS expertise. This is an outside IR35 contract- 6 month rolling. Part of a longer term MoD project
-
- Active Directory | RBA engineer | UK Remote | SC Clearable
- United Kingdom
- N/A
-
Technical Active Directory (AD) and RBA specialist needed to play a key part in complex, enterprise scale Active Directory and access transformation programmes. You will work alongside senior team, helping reshape access models, modernise legacy directory structures and strengthen security posture across secure environments. This is hands on delivery within high impact projects where your work directly improves access control, compliance and operational resilience. Active UK Security Clearance required. This is a remote role with client travel. Implementation of Role Based Access Control across large AD estates Restructuring complex permission models, security groups and delegated access Supporting domain controller upgrades and core directory improvements Applying security hardening standards and remediating audit findings Enhancing authentication, policy and access governance frameworks Troubleshooting and resolving technical AD challenges within live environments Producing robust technical documentation and identifying project risks You must have the following technical experience Enterprise Active Directory administration Role Based Access and permission remediation OU design and governance Group Policy management Security group delegation models DNS and DHCP services Kerberos authentication / NTLM PowerShell scripting and automation Azure AD | Entra ID Hybrid identity environments Identity Governance PAM
-
- Identity and Access Management Consultant (Saviynt & Microsoft Entra) | UK
- United Kingdom
- N/A
-
Role summary Technical IAM consultant delivering identity governance and cloud identity solutions to enterprise clients. What you will do Implement / Configure / Deploy Saviynt IGA / Microsoft Entra solutions: Lead technical workshops, gather requirements and translate into solution designs. Troubleshoot complex issues, support testing and deployments. Produce technical artefacts and configuration guides. Key skills Hands-on Saviynt IGA experience (workflow, connectors, access governance). Strong practical knowledge of Microsoft Entra ID / Azure AD identity and access controls. Understanding of identity protocols (SAML, OAuth, OpenID Connect) and hybrid identity. Experience with APIs / REST for integrations and automation. What we are looking for Proven delivery experience in IAM / IGA projects, preferably in consulting. Confident communicator with client-facing delivery exposure.