Rio de Janeiro:015 - Accenture is to acquire Gapso, an advanced analytics services and solutions provider based in Brazil that specializes in solving complex supply chain and logistics challenges, mainly for companies in the natural resources and agribusiness sectors. Through the acquisition, Accenture says it will expand its analytics capabilities in Brazil and provide clients with advanced analytics talent and solutions that enable data-driven decisions that can optimize operations and reduce supply chain risk and costs. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

London: The MCA (Management Consultancies Association) says that it will once again be partnering with publishing house Raconteur to produce a series of special reports on top business topics. They will all be published in The Times. This follows a successful working partnership in 2014, which saw the publication of four reports across the year: The Digital Economy, Project Management, Business Strategies and M&A Outlook. The new deal will see collaboration across three projects: Business Transformation (April), Project Management (July) and Innovation & Growth (November).

London, Mumbai: Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), India's biggest IT consultancy, has been recognized as the fastest growing IT Services brand globally over the last five years by Brand Finance, the world's leading brand valuation firm. In the five year period 2010-2015, TCS emerged as the clear growth leader in the industry, increasing its brand value from US $2.3 billion to US $8.7 billion, while retaining the industry's highest brand strength rating of 'AA+'. It was also recognized as one of the top four global brands in IT Services for the fourth year in a row.

Bangalore: Indian IT consultancy Infosys is to acquire Californian software group Panaya, Inc, for $200 million in cash. Infosys says this acquisition reflects its Renew and New strategy to enhance the competitiveness and productivity of current service lines by" leveraging automation, innovation and artificial intelligence". Panaya's CloudQuality suite will position Infosys to bring automation to several of its service lines via an agile SaaS model, and helps mitigate risk, reduce costs and shorten time to market for clients. Commenting on the acquisition, Dr. Vishal Sikka, CEO and Managing Director of Infosys said, "The acquisition of Panaya is a key step in renewing and differentiating our service lines. This will help amplify the potential of our people, freeing us from the drudgery of many repetitive tasks, so we may focus more on the important, strategic challenges faced by our clients. At the same time, Panaya's proven technology helps dramatically simplify the costs and complexities faced by businesses in managing their enterprise application landscapes."