 | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Nasdaq: GPSI[1] | |
| Industry | Information technology |
| Founded | 1981; 45 years ago (1981) |
| Founder | Joseph Larson |
| Defunct | 2001 (2001) |
| Fate | Acquired byMicrosoft |
| Headquarters | |
Area served | United States |
Key people |
|
Number of employees | 2,200 |
Great Plains Software, Inc. was an accounting software company located inFargo, North Dakota, whose products focused on small to medium-sized businesses.[2] It was founded in 1981,[3] went public in 1997,[4] and was sold toMicrosoft in 2001.[3][5][6] Prior to its acquisition, it had 2,200 employees.[2]
The company was founded in 1981 by Joseph Larson, who also served as the company's first president.[7]Doug Burgum, who later went on to become a futureGovernor of North Dakota andUnited States Secretary of the Interior, joined the company in March 1983 as a shareholder.[7] Burgum provided seed capital for the company; he bought out its other investors in early 1984 and became its new president.[8] Larson continued to serve as a company director until its acquisition.[7]
The company grew to about 170 employees by 1987,[9] and had around 290 employees by 1989.[10]PC Magazine in 1993 said "Its reputation for outstanding support and customer relations leads the industry".[11] Great Plains earned about $300 million in annual sales and had itsIPO in 1997, after using the Internet to help it expand beyond North Dakota.[12] In 1999 the company acquired Match Data Systems, a development team in thePhilippines.[13] In 2000, after severallayoffs, it announced its acquisition byMicrosoft for $1.1 billion.[14] The purchase was completed in 2001.[3]
Its products were rebranded "Microsoft Dynamics GP" in 2005,[6][15] part ofMicrosoft Dynamics 365 as of 2016.
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