Data warehousing and decision support software vendor, SAS Institute, will embark on a global campaign to raise its profile before its initial public offering. The local division says it will reap the benefits almost immediately.
As of last year, SAS is a billion dollar company and is the largest private software company in the world. It has previously stoically resisted the lure of floating the company, maintaining that it does not need the extra capital.
The rescinding of the decision was, according to Allan Russell, VP of strategy, mainly due to the desire to give the company a higher profile and offer share options to attract and retain staff.
We will not fall into the trap of buying revenue, which many IT companies succumb to.
Allan Russell, VP of strategy, SAS Institute
"The listing will change the ethos within the company and will encourage transparency. These changes all come naturally from a listing, but these will, I think, be particularly good for SAS," says Russell.
SAS strategy will include acquisitions, but the company is adamant that the acquisitions will be strategic.
"Acquisitions after the listing are on the cards, but it will not be anything flashy. They will be technology acquisitions, the kind that our customers expect from us. We will not fall into the trap of buying revenue, which many IT companies succumb to," notes Russell.
Richard King, marketing, SAS Institute Europe, Middle East and Africa, explains how the roll out is planned.
"On the financial side we are working with one of the large financial consultancies which has taken a large number of companies public. We'll be listing on one or more major stock markets in the US, some time next year. When we go public, our finances will be extremely solid. This is also why we are not fixing the date any more precisely than next year."
"Two of the main reasons for going public are to get the attention of the general public and to share wealth among employees. Since we are and always have been high into the profit level, raising additional capital is not one of our motivations, it's a side-effect," says King.
"Seniority and length of service will be criteria we're looking at for employees. Options will also form a part of the bonus package that SAS offers."
Frank Trivella, chief technology officer of SAS SA, is enthusiastic about the listing, saying it will facilitate new business.
"The higher profile will enable us to have more dealings within the executive levels of corporations. Previously we had most of our dealings with techies. The higher profile will also elevate our awareness within the high-end market, which is what we target."
Trivella says the competition SAS is facing from high profile IT companies like Oracle, Microsoft and SAP is reason for concern, but not alarm.
"The added benefit of listing is that we will be competing on a level playing field. We are in a more competitive market but I honestly believe we are the only company that can genuinely offer a complete end-to-end solution."
SAS is headquartered in North Carolina, US, with offices in 110 countries worldwide.
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