What You’re Actually Buying
An IT and software services business acquisition is a purchase of recurring revenue contracts, technical talent, customer relationships, and a position in a market that has been growing consistently for two decades. The key question in any IT services acquisition is the composition of revenue: managed services and recurring contracts versus project-based and break-fix work. These two revenue types have completely different valuation profiles, customer dynamics, and operational characteristics. Managed services revenue is the asset because contracts auto-renew, customers are dependent on the provider for daily operations, and there is predictable monthly recurring income that buyers price at premium multiples. Break-fix and project work is essentially the cost of customer acquisition for the recurring revenue that follows.