PE Deals

Clearlake-backed Cornerstone OnDemand buys HR management software provider SumTotal

Cornerstone is a provider of cloud-based HR software solutions.

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  • Jim Gill, EVP Americas at Cornerstone, will serve as the general manager of Cornerstone’s SumTotal business unit
  • Centerview Partners LLC served as financial advisor to Cornerstone and Clearlake while PJT Partners served as financial advisor to Skillsoft
  • Currently, Clearlake Capital Group has over $72 billion of assets under management

Cornerstone OnDemand Inc, which is backed by Clearlake Capital Group LP, has acquired Gainesville, Florida-based SumTotal, a provider of human resource management software. No financial terms were disclosed.

Jim Gill, EVP Americas at Cornerstone will serve as the general manager of Cornerstone’s SumTotal business unit. Gill previously led teams at both SumTotal and Saba.

“This has been an incredibly important year for Cornerstone, and its acquisition of SumTotal underscores our commitment to the fundamental growth strategy we set out for the company a year ago,” said Prashant Mehrotra, a partner at Clearlake and Paul Huber, managing director, in a statement. “We are thrilled to see the growing strength of Cornerstone’s industry reputation with a focus on broader choice, greater innovation and a hyper-focus on customer success. The acquisition of SumTotal is yet another opportunity for Cornerstone to deliver more value to its customers and employees. Combined with our O.P.S.® improvement approach, we are confident this acquisition will drive growth and value for the business.”

Centerview Partners LLC served as financial advisor to Cornerstone and Clearlake while Sidley Austin LLP served as legal counsel. PJT Partners served as financial advisor to Skillsoft, and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP served as the company’s legal counsel.

Cornerstone serves over 7,000 customers and 90 million users and is available in 180 countries and 50 languages.

Currently, Clearlake Capital Group has over $72 billion of assets under management, and its senior investment principals have led or co-led over 400 investments. The firm is headquartered in Santa Monica, California.