Brazil draws attention of Accenture International Headquarters
Valor Econômico
The CEO of Accenture, William Green, better known in the corporate world as "Bill Green", is enthusiastic about Brazil. Reasons for this are plenty. The country is currently the largest and fastest growing market of Accenture, multinational company of the areas of consulting, technology and outsourcing present in more than 120 countries. The American officer said in the beginning of the year the company continued growing above 20% in earnings in Brazil while in the rest of the world such growth was at one "low" digit. The performance of the company in the Brazilian market has even overcome China, where the earnings increased 18%, said Green. The percentages refer to the period between December 2008 and February 2009, the second quarter of the fiscal year of Accenture, which goes from September 1 to August 31. The figures of the third quarter will be announced on the 25th. In the 2008 tax year, the company sold US$ 23.4 billion worldwide. Of that total, 60% were obtained from consulting services and 40% from outsourcing.
In the same period, the earnings in the Brazilian market amounted to US$ 742 million, nearly 3.2% of the total income of the group. The earnings of the Brazilian operation remained 56% above the earnings of the fiscal year of 2007, in US dollars. In the local currency, accounting concept also applied by Accenture, the earnings in Brazil, in the 2008 fiscal year, amounted to R$ 1.3 billion (US$ 742 million), with an increase of 31% compared to the previous year. Even though the participation of Brazil in the total income of the group in Dollar is little, the activities of the company in the country grow fast.
In 2008, Accenture bought Atan, a company of the automation area, placed in Belo Horizonte, for an amount that was not disclosed. The acquisition is part of the strategy to increase the technological capacity of the company and should speed up the international growth of Accenture in automation and information technology services. It is an area in which Brazil has become, inside Accenture, an export platform, as pointed out the company CEO in Brazil, Roger Ingold. According to Ingold, the 31% increase in the income of Accenture in Brazil in the fiscal year of 2008 was determined by the rendering of services in the areas of communication and high technology, basic industry and financial services. He added the Brazilian operation follows the international trend of the group of participating in the main movements of merger and acquisition.
Green said Brazil is positioned as a priority market for Accenture among the Bric countries, the group of emerging economies formed by Brazil, Russia, India and China. Asked about which would come first at the time of deciding on investments, Green answered: "If I had US$ 100 to spend and were considering an investment in one of these four countries, I would do it in Brazil. He justified the decision referring to the maturity of the Brazilian market and of the very team of executives of Accenture.