Unlock stock picks and a broker-level newsfeed that powers Wall Street.
Accenture Acquires Ascendient Learning to Expand Learning and Certification Capabilities with Instructor-Led Training and Industry-Recognized Credentials
NEW YORK, May 06, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Accenture (NYSE: ACN) has acquired Ascendient Learning, a subsidiary of Axcel Learning, from Alpine Investors, a people-driven private equity firm. The acquisition will expand Accenture’s capabilities in instructor-led training and certification services and bolster its ability to provide customized, live training to help organizations and teams upskill, reskill, and meet the growing demand for technology development.
Ascendient Learning brings Accenture a wealth of experience and a proven track record in the IT-training industry in North America. An amalgamation of three companies—Accelebrate, ExitCertified, and Web Age Solutions—Ascendient Learning came together under one brand in 2025 to provide clients with tailored IT and digital skills training solutions, including instructor-led in-person learning, immersive virtual learning, digital certifications, and vendor-authorized IT training, across a course catalog of over 850 offerings. Such a robust and customizable suite of offerings empowers organizations with precise capabilities tailored to their ever-adapting business goals in the rapidly changing technology landscape.
With the acquisition of Ascendient Learning and its team of nearly 75 professionals, Accenture will expand the capabilities of its LearnVantage business by providing clients with a comprehensive suite of customizable technology training solutions designed to meet their evolving talent needs and help their people build the skills they need to grow and succeed in today’s AI economy. Ascendient Learning’s expertise in delivering high-quality, hands-on training programs will complement Accenture’s existing offerings, enabling the company to offer a more holistic range of learning and development services that supports growing demands for a wide array of industries and technologies.
"One of the biggest challenges our clients face is keeping pace with accelerating technology and maintaining an agile and skilled workforce. Ascendient Learning’s deep expertise in IT and digital instructor-led training and certifications, combined with our global reach and industry experience, greatly enhances our ability to deliver transformative learning solutions to our clients at scale," said Kishore Durg, global lead of Accenture LearnVantage. "This acquisition supports our vision to be the leader in the enterprise learning space by providing organizations with the expertise, tools and resources they need to thrive in the digital age."
The acquisition of Ascendient Learning will expand Accenture’s capabilities in several key areas:
Enhanced Instructor-Led Training – Ascendient Learning’s team of experienced instructors and its proven delivery methodologies will enable Accenture to offer a wider range of instructor-led training programs, both in-person and virtually.
Expanded Certification Offerings – Ascendient Learning’s extensive portfolio of industry-recognized certifications, including those from leading technology providers such as AWS, SAP, VMware, NVIDIA, and Microsoft, will allow clients to access a broader range of certifications.
Tailored Upskilling/Reskilling Programs – Ascendient Learning’s expertise in designing and delivering customized upskilling and reskilling programs will enable Accenture to help its clients’ workforces gain necessary competencies to drive innovation and growth.
"We are excited to become part of a global leader in learning and development and to contribute to Accenture’s mission of helping organizations transform their businesses through upskilling and reskilling their workforces," said Tim Toomey, Ascendient Learning CEO. "Together, we will continue to deliver exceptional training experiences and empower individuals and teams to achieve their full potential."
The acquisition of Ascendient Learning is part of Accenture’s ongoing investment in its learning and development capabilities. In March 2024, the company launched LearnVantage, part of a $1 billion investment to help clients reskill and upskill their workforces to reinvent their organizations and achieve greater business value.
With the addition of Ascendient Learning, Accenture is well-positioned to meet the growing demand for IT and digital skills training and help organizations build a workforce that is ready for the future.
Forward-Looking Statements
Except for the historical information and discussions contained herein, statements in this news release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as "may," "will," "should," "likely," "anticipates," "aspires," "expects," "intends," "plans," "projects," "believes," "estimates," "positioned," "outlook," "goal," "target" and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance nor promises that goals or targets will be met, and involve a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that are difficult to predict and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. These risks include, without limitation, risks that: the transaction might not achieve the anticipated benefits for Accenture; Accenture’s results of operations have been, and may in the future be, adversely affected by volatile, negative or uncertain economic and geopolitical conditions and the effects of these conditions on the company’s clients’ businesses and levels of business activity; Accenture’s business depends on generating and maintaining client demand for the company’s services and solutions including through the adaptation and expansion of its services and solutions in response to ongoing changes in technology and offerings, and a significant reduction in such demand or an inability to respond to the evolving technological environment could materially affect the company’s results of operations; risks and uncertainties related to the development and use of AI could harm the company’s business, damage its reputation or give rise to legal or regulatory action; if Accenture is unable to match people and their skills with client demand around the world and attract and retain professionals with strong leadership skills, the company’s business, the utilization rate of the company’s professionals and the company’s results of operations may be materially adversely affected; Accenture faces legal, reputational and financial risks from any failure to protect client and/or company data from security incidents or cyberattacks; the markets in which Accenture operates are highly competitive, and Accenture might not be able to compete effectively; Accenture’s ability to attract and retain business and employees may depend on its reputation in the marketplace; if Accenture does not successfully manage and develop its relationships with key ecosystem partners or fails to anticipate and establish new alliances in new technologies, the company’s results of operations could be adversely affected; Accenture’s profitability could materially suffer due to pricing pressure, if the company is unable to remain competitive, if its cost-management strategies are unsuccessful or if it experiences delivery inefficiencies or fail to satisfy certain agreed-upon targets or specific service levels; changes in Accenture’s level of taxes, as well as audits, investigations and tax proceedings, or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement, could have a material adverse effect on the company’s effective tax rate, results of operations, cash flows and financial condition; Accenture’s results of operations could be materially adversely affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; Accenture’s debt obligations could adversely affect its business and financial condition; changes to accounting standards or in the estimates and assumptions Accenture makes in connection with the preparation of its consolidated financial statements could adversely affect its financial results; as a result of Accenture’s geographically diverse operations and strategy to continue to grow in key markets around the world, the company is more susceptible to certain risks; if Accenture is unable to manage the organizational challenges associated with its size, the company might be unable to achieve its business objectives; Accenture might not be successful at acquiring, investing in or integrating businesses, entering into joint ventures or divesting businesses; Accenture’s business could be materially adversely affected if the company incurs legal liability; Accenture’s work with government clients exposes the company to additional risks inherent in the government contracting environment; Accenture’s global operations expose the company to numerous and sometimes conflicting legal and regulatory requirements; if Accenture is unable to protect or enforce its intellectual property rights or if Accenture’s services or solutions infringe upon the intellectual property rights of others or the company loses its ability to utilize the intellectual property of others, its business could be adversely affected; Accenture may be subject to criticism and negative publicity related to its incorporation in Ireland; as well as the risks, uncertainties and other factors discussed under the "Risk Factors" heading in Accenture plc’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, as updated in Item 1A, "Risk Factors" in its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the second quarter of fiscal 2025, and other documents filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Statements in this news release speak only as of the date they were made, and Accenture undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements made in this news release or to conform such statements to actual results or changes in Accenture’s expectations.
About Accenture
Accenture is a leading global professional services company that helps the world’s leading businesses, governments and other organizations build their digital core, optimize their operations, accelerate revenue growth and enhance citizen services—creating tangible value at speed and scale. We are a talent- and innovation-led company with approximately 801,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries. Technology is at the core of change today, and we are one of the world’s leaders in helping drive that change, with strong ecosystem relationships. We combine our strength in technology and leadership in cloud, data and AI with unmatched industry experience, functional expertise and global delivery capability. Our broad range of services, solutions and assets across Strategy & Consulting, Technology, Operations, Industry X and Song, together with our culture of shared success and commitment to creating 360° value, enable us to help our clients reinvent and build trusted, lasting relationships. We measure our success by the 360° value we create for our clients, each other, our shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at accenture.com
