London, U.K., 13 May 2021 – Ascertus Limited announced today that the company has realised a 10 percent year-on-year growth in revenue in 2020-2021 over the previous financial year, despite all the challenges brought on by COVID-19. Underpinning this business growth has been a nearly 100 percent increase in iManage Work document and email management solution deployments in the cloud. Ascertus saw notable demand from law firms, especially in Northern Europe, accounting firms as well as corporate departments in many different vertical markets, including the pharmaceuticals and medical equipment, education and financial sectors. Ascertus provides document and information lifecycle management solutions to professional services firms and corporate departments across the UK and Europe.
Company well-poised to continue momentum in 2021 following re-organisation and investment in business
The key drivers for the uptake of iManage Work in the cloud across the professional services firms and corporate sector have been the ability to efficiently work from home, business need for agile collaboration similar to that in a physical workplace environment and company IP and data protection. During the COVID-19 lockdown periods Ascertus was able to efficiently deliver all projects virtually regardless of the client’s location.
“Despite the operational difficulties experienced by many in 2020, we ensured that our customer service didn’t suffer. We continued to look after all of our clients and employees whilst achieving business growth without impacting delivery costs and timescales, making staff redundancies or demanding salary sacrifices,” Roy Russell, CEO of Ascertus, comments. “Last year provided a good opportunity to also take stock, identify areas of improvement across all areas of business and make investments to poise ourselves well for this year and beyond. We are very optimistic about business in 2021 and have good reasons to be upbeat about the future.”
To reflect changed requirements of the market, Ascertus has re-organised the business and recruited new staff, growing the headcount by 30 percent in the last few months. The company has continued to increase resources in the Project Management and Consultancy teams. Notable appointments include experienced consultants with understanding of iManage products for Records Management and Contract Intelligence – both functions that are increasing in importance for enterprises, especially in light of GDPR compliance and Brexit. Ascertus has also invested in new customer relationship management (CRM) and support helpdesk systems and made significant improvements in internal processes across the implementation lifecycle of projects. These robust procedures will make a tangible difference to the service Ascertus provides by providing greater project transparency, improving delivery timescales and de-risking IT investment for customers.
Strengthening the Sales function, Ascertus has recruited new Sales Advocates who are well versed in customer care and problem solving to ensure that the sales and on-boarding process is smooth and painless for customers, end-to-end. Jon Wainwright, Sales Director at Ascertus explains,
“Client retention has always been among our top goals. Clients want a consistent and reliable service, and our Sales and Account teams are structured and resourced to provide the best support possible throughout customers’ lifetime with Ascertus, regardless of their size.”
In 2021, Ascertus has expanded its portfolio to include new solutions such as knowledge management, contract management, security process management, and case/matter management. Ascertus has once again been recognised for its expertise in cloud solution delivery – this year, iManage named the company Cloud Excellence Partner 2020, for the fourth consecutive year.
Last year, Ascertus jointly formed an alliance, The Global Efficiency Group, that brought together six leading specialists in information and document lifecycle management, to offer tailor-made solutions to some of the largest international professional services firms and big corporates across the globe. Membership of this alliance places Ascertus well to service customers worldwide.
Roy Russell concludes, “2020 has been quite a ride! As for many businesses, it wasn’t an easy year for us, and yet we have built up massive momentum. We’ve proved that we are a resilient business that can not only withstand the unforeseen vagaries of the world that we live in today, but also thrive despite the difficulties. We’re energised for the coming year and ready to welcome on board customers looking for a friendly, positive partner, who can provide a mutually beneficial business relationship.”