 | |
| Nasdaq: MRCH | |
| Industry | Web development |
| Founded | March 1, 2000; 25 years ago (2000-03-01) |
| Defunct | May 2001; 23 years ago (2001-05) |
| Fate | Bankruptcy |
| Headquarters | Chicago |
Key people | Bob Bernard,CEO |
Whittman-Hart was a services company dealing with digital communications. Founded in 1984, it grew steadily until 1999, when it acquiredUS Web/CKS, more than doubling its size. The combined company was re-corporated on March 1, 2000, with the new name ofmarchFIRST, inc. In May 2001, marchFIRST, which had declared bankruptcy a month earlier, was liquidated.
Founded in 1984 byBob Bernard, Bill Merchantz, Rich Colson, and Bill Topol in theChicago area, the company initially specialized inIBM AS/400IT consulting. In 1990 the company split, with Merchantz leaving with the software side of the company, and Bernard in charge of the consulting business, which then had revenues of $9 million a year.[1]
The company grew steadily, for about 15 years, including some acquisitions, and went public in 1996. In 1997,Fortune magazine named it one of the fastest-growing companies in the US.[citation needed]
For the nine months ended September 30, 1999, the company reported net income of $21.3 million, or 35 cents a share, on revenue of $342.7 million.[2]
In November 1999 the company acquired Fulcrum Solutions Ltd, a UK-basedOracle technology specialist.[3] At that time, Whittman-Hart had approximately 3,900 employees in 22 branch offices throughout the United States and the United Kingdom.[4]
In December 1999, the company announced that it would acquire USWeb/CKS, aCalifornia-basedweb consulting firm, for $5.7 billion in company stock.[2] Although announced as an acquisition, USWeb shareholders would own 57% of the merged company after exchanging their shares for shares of Whittman-Hart, making the deal somewhat close to a merger.[5]
The new company, which changed its name to MarchFIRST Inc., on March 1, 2000, had 9,000 employees around the world, including about 1,500 in the Chicago area; about 8,000 were in the U.S.[2] It was the world's largest Internet services company, with annual sales of about $500 million.[1] Robert Shaw, the CEO at USWeb/CKS, became the company's chairman while Bernard continued as CEO in the now larger company.[6] marchFIRST was traded on theNasdaq; its peak stock price was around $52.[citation needed]
As the dot-com boom ended, MarchFIRST's fortunes began dropping quickly along with the high-tech Internet sector. In October 2000, its stock dropped nearly 60 percent after the reported reported a third-quarter loss of $437 million, compared with a profit of $9 million, a year earlier, and that sales were $369 million, 20 percent less than the prior quarter.[7][8]
In November 2000, Bernard announced that the company would focus on more traditional companies, helping with buildinge-commerce operations, and would drop more than 1,000 clients, concentrating on 500 of its best customers .[9]
In December 2000, Francisco Partners LP, a private equity firm, agreed to invest $150 million in the company in exchange for preferred stock, which, when converted, would equal a 32 percent share of the company.[10][11]
On February 13, 2001, the company missed earnings expectations again and its stock price fell another 35%.[12] On March 13, 2001, Bernard, the chairman and chief executive, resigned, along with Chief Operating Officer Thomas Metz and Joseph Bong, executive vice president of client services.[10] At that point, the company had laid off 1,500 employees in the prior four months.
By March 28, the company stock was trading for $0.16 per share. On April 2, the company announced 1,700 layoffs.[13][14]
On April 13, 2001, the company filedforChapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[15] On May 1, 2001, the company filed for aliquidation underChapter 7, Title 11, United States Code.[16]
The company sold most of its assets toDivine for $120 million;[17][18] that company went bankrupt in 2003.[19][20] Former management, including Bernard, also acquired some assets of the company.[21] SBI, a professional services company based in Salt Lake City, acquired additional assets of the company in June 2001.[22] marchFIRST Norway was acquired byItera ASA in July 2001.[23]
While the company's assets were liquidated in the middle of 2001, its remaining corporate shell remained mired in bankruptcy proceedings for the next two years.[24]
In mid-2003, Bernard launched a slimmed-down Internet technology consulting company. The new firm, operating in five Midwestern cities including Chicago, reincarnated the well-known WhittmanHart name (minus the hyphen).[1]
In 2005–2006 WhittmanHart acquired numerous organizations, includingOhio-based Infinis Inc,Philadelphia-based Insight Interactive Group Inc, Maryland-based Estco.net, LLC, Chicago-based Vision Enterprises, and Los Angeles-basedDNA Studio.[citation needed] Bernard died in February 2007.[25]
On July 29, 2008,Rolta acquired the consulting division of WhittmanHart Inc.[26] On September 28, 2010, WhittmanHart, Inc. was rebranded as Band Digital, Inc.[27]
