Prophet acquires technology research firm Altimeter

Brand and marketing consultancy Prophet has acquired technology research firm Altimeter Group, a move it said will help clients get better understanding of a changing digital market.The combination of Prophet and Altimeter marries research-based frameworks with customer insight, consulting capabilities and digital expertise which aims to bridge the gap between strategy and execution.Altimeter will operate under the name "Altimeter, a Prophet company", and will continue to deliver research in digital transformation, social business and governance, customer experience, big data, and the Internet of Things.Altimeter will continue to publish research that helps companies understand and act on technology disruption, while Prophet’s global scale and resources will allow Altimeter to expand the breadth and depth of its research.In addition, Altimeter’s analysts will work closely with Prophet’s clients and internal strategists to provide insights on emerging business challenges and burgeoning technology trends.https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=22&v=TuaQSQ41sSI“The rapid advances in digital technology and data, along with seismic shifts in customer behavior have challenged many companies’ ability to stay relevant,” said Michael Dunn, CEO of Prophet."The addition of Altimeter’s roster of analysts – including Charlene Li, Brian Solis and Susan Etlinger, who have authored much of the influential research on these critical topics – is a key next step for our firm and our continued growth.”Altimeter Group founder and CEO Charlene Li added: “This partnership combines Altimeter’s pragmatic, insights-driven frameworks with Prophet’s deep consulting capabilities, enabling us to better partner with clients to unlock digital transformations.”“We saw a need in the market for forward-thinking, research-backed content to be coupled with the ability to act on those insights. The combination of Prophet and Altimeter enables us to help C-suite executives intelligently activate digital across their enterprise in a way few other consultancies can,” said Chan Suh, chief digital officer at Prophet.“The addition of the Altimeter team will allow us to bring global digital expertise to clients in Asia who are thirsting for that kind of knowledge”, added Jay Milliken, senior partner of Prophet Hong Kong.