Bates Communications, a leader in executive development, leadership coaching and consulting whose mission is to drive corporate performance by guiding executives to engage and inspire their organizations, was recently acquired by BTS GROUP AB (publ.), a leading global strategy implementation firm headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden.

With revenues exceeding $7 million in 2020 and a strong team of 23 experienced employees, Bates Communications has demonstrated resilience against the impacts of the pandemic in 2020.

Bates has an impressive client portfolio within a broad spectrum of industries that include financial services and insurance, technology, pharmaceuticals as well as the retail and consumer industries. Bates’ senior talent and consultants will bring complementary and sought-after capabilities to BTS. Team members have backgrounds and long experience in business, strategy, corporate communication, and management psychology.

“2020 was an acute reminder of the criticality of executive leadership. Bates brings expertise to leaders to help them achieve communication that is clear, powerful, and authentic. This enables organizations to drive their strategies forward, accelerate their adoption, and foster a caring culture. Bates’ world-class communication and executive presence capabilities bolster the executive leadership offerings of BTS,” said Henrik Ekelund, Founder and CEO of BTS in a company press release announcing the deal.

Bates Communications will be integrated with BTS USA Inc. and become BTS Boston, which gives BTS USA an important presence in a significant market in the Northeast.

“We are seeing significant demand for guidance for executives and their teams on their ever-evolving strategy implementations. Bates brings seasoned expertise and deepens our capabilities in helping the C-Suite with their challenges in these respects,” said Jessica Parisi, President of BTS USA.

Founder Suzanne Bates and all members of her leadership team have agreed to stay on with BTS for a minimum of three years to accelerate the integration and growth strategy.

“Our team is delighted to join BTS as we share similar values and entrepreneurial cultures. The global presence of BTS, its services and experience will be highly valued by our people and our customers,” said Suzanne Bates. She continued, “Bates’ executive communication & team services are a perfect complement to BTS, and we are excited to continue to innovate as we begin to work on client challenges together.”

The acquisition includes an initial cash consideration as well as a new issue of BTS shares up to $1 million USD. Additional amounts will be paid out in 2021-2024 provided Bates meets specific targets for 2020-2023. The transaction is effective as soon as completion procedures have been finalized.