Anexinet adds West Coast mobile IT design firm

Anexinet, a 250-person, Blue Bell-based "digital architect" and analytics IT consulting firm, says it has agreed to buy Propelics, a San Jose, Calif.-based "enterprise-mobility strategies and applications" firm.

"We are breaking out of the Philadelphia and mid-Atlantic region, while bringing more services to current customers," said Anexinet CEO Brad Hokamp in an interview. The firms won't say how much Anexinet is paying.

Anexinet, which also has satellite offices in Center City and Baltimore, has grown in the past through acquisitions as it expanded its focus to meet its corporate clients' changing information-technology demand over the past 20 years. Hokamp was appointed to replace CEO Joe Lanzisera last year. Anexinet has been controlled since 2014 by Los Angeles-based Marlin Equity Partners.

Hokamp says the companies' services as well as their East Coast/West Coast geographies are complementary. "We focus a lot on customer engagement. Propelics is much more focused on employee engagement and partner engagement," he said. "It's really exciting for us to have that capability as we go to market together."

Propelics cofounder Adam Bookman and his three partners plan to remain with Anexinet, which will use the Propelics brand name for some products. Anexinet has focused particularly on health care, telecom, and financial customers, while Propelics clients include financial, health care, and manufacturing companies. Hokamp says that's largely a result of the companies in their respective markets; he says it's time they went national together.