8 Jul 2021

Pluralsight, Inc., the globally renowned technology workforce development company, has announced that it has closed on its acquisition of A Cloud Guru (ACG), a major cloud skills development platform.

Pluralsight had previously announced in June 2021 that it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire A Cloud Guru, following Vista Equity Partners’ recent acquisition of Pluralsight.

A Cloud Guru (ACG) acquisition

Aaron Skonnard, the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Pluralsight, said “For businesses around the world and across all industries, cloud transformation is one of their most important technology initiatives and closing the growing cloud skills gap is their single biggest challenge in meeting it.

Aaron Skonnard adds, “As the leader in technology skill development for large enterprises around the world, we are determined to be their trusted partner to solve it. With our acquisition of A Cloud Guru, we are now positioned to deliver the most comprehensive solution for driving cloud maturity at scale through an all-in-one solution for cloud skill development.

Massive growth of cloud computing

Cloud computing continues to experience massive growth for large enterprises around the world

Cloud computing continues to experience massive growth for large enterprises around the world, increasing the need for cloud skill development to keep pace. In fact, research shows that the vast majority of IT decision makers believe that the shortage of cloud skills is their number one challenge.

By combining the power of A Cloud Guru’s renowned certification courses, hands-on labs and sandboxes, exams and quizzes with the existing library of Pluralsight Skills cloud courses and hands-on learning experiences, the joint organisation will now be better positioned to meet the market demand for cloud skill development.

Meeting the demand for cloud skill development

Sam Kroonenburg, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of A Cloud Guru, said “Technology alone won’t transform businesses, a continuous flow of new skills, creativity and innovation will. Since its inception, A Cloud Guru has empowered enterprises to unleash the Cloud’s full potential, by aligning talent, technology and vision.

Sam Kroonenburg adds, “Together, Pluralsight and ACG will chart an accelerated path to success, at every stage of cloud maturity, while driving cloud adoption and innovation within corporations.

Transaction details

William Blair & Company, LLC acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Pluralsight and Vista in the transaction, with Kirkland & Ellis LLP serving as legal counsel. J.P. Morgan Securities LLC served as the exclusive financial advisor to A Cloud Guru and Latham & Watkins LLP served as legal counsel.