Cheops takes next step in its growth strategy

Edegem, 4 September 2017 – Cheops, the benchmark company in IT and Business Technology Services, has acquired the Managed & Cloud Services Department of Behind The Buttons. In so doing, the company strengthens its presence and expertise in East and West Flanders and will begin operating from Ghent, an economic hub for the region. “Our aim with this acquisition is to be closer to our customers in East and West Flanders,” says Filip Goos, the CEO of Cheops. The Ghent office is Cheops’s third office in Belgium.

Closer to the customer and employees

Behind The Buttons is an IT integrator specialising in IT infrastructure, IT management and software solutions. All the employees and customers of the Managed & Cloud Services Department will transfer to Cheops, guaranteeing continuity for current customers. In addition, Cheops will start recruiting talent to extend its expertise and increase the office’s impact. “In the following months, Behind The Buttons will assist Cheops to ensure that the integration goes seamlessly. We will then be able to focus exclusively on our software activities,” says Leander Naessens, the CEO of Behind The Buttons.

Cheops already works with numerous well-known companies in the region, including Arcelor Mittal, Honda and Ontex. Cheops regards the acquisition of Behind the Buttons’ Managed & Cloud Services Department as a way of improving its targeting of growth companies in this attractive market. Cheops strongly believes in customized service and, as a result of this acquisition, it is now based much closer to its existing customers in the region.

Christophe Vanmalleghem, Managing Director of Cheops: “Companies prefer to rely on a local player for their IT support and infrastructure, even when they outsource this. Following the acquisition of Behind The Buttons’ Managed & Cloud Services Department, we can now respond even faster to the needs of fast growers in and around the Ghent economic hub.”

Data centre

Cheops is also investing in a new data centre. The data centre will further support the company’s growth and should be operational by February 2018. “The new data centre will be good for our customers as it offers more capacity and guarantees the continuity of operations under all circumstances,” according to Managing Director Vanmalleghem.

Strategic impact

Cheops targets ambitious and fast-growing companies, including SMEs and large companies.

The Cheops model is based on choosing the right investments for the customer, working with proven technology and strengthening the customer’s business. Technology is not a goal in itself, but a resource that helps achieve that goal.

Filip Goos, CEO of Cheops: “Cheops’s growth strategy is bearing fruit. For over ten years, we have been growing much faster than the market, meaning our position on the IT market has also strengthened. While opening a Ghent office is a logical next step in the process, it is definitely not the final chapter of our story.”

In 2017, Cheops will hire 75 new employees across all its offices, seeking to attract IT profiles such as network, system and support engineers as well as Java and .NET consultants. The company expects to post a turnover of more than 30 million euros in 2017 (+28% compared with 2016).

About Cheops

Belgian company Cheops specialises in IT & Business Technology Services. Our 200 IT experts think strategically alongside our customers to help them become more efficient, more productive, more adaptive and, consequently, more competitive. Cheops’ work frees its customers to develop their business without being overtaken by new technology or held back by outdated technology. Cheops has three branches in Belgium: a main office in Edegem as well as offices in Zaventem and Ghent.

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