:Sageworks

Sageworks was founded in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1998 by serial entrepreneur Brian Hamilton and computer programmer Sarah Tourville.{{cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fsb/fsb_archive/2006/05/01/8376226/index.htm |newspaper=FORTUNE Small Business|title=Bolt down those costs|first=Ron|last=Stodghill|date=June 14, 2006|accessdate=March 16, 2015}}{{Cite news|title=Out on your own|first=David|last=Bailey|url=http://businessnc.com/out-on-your-owncategory/ |newspaper=North Carolina Business|accessdate=April 7, 2015|date=November 2011}} The two met while Hamilton was teaching at Duke University Continuing Studies in the early 1990s. Tourville, one of Hamilton's students, said she could program a financial analysis system after Hamilton said that no one has come up with a way to automate certain analyses.{{cite web |url=http://www.dukegen.com/profiles/interview-with-brian-hamilton-90 |title=Interview with Brian Hamilton '90, Co-founder and CEO of Sageworks |author=Howie Rhee |date=13 September 2011 |publisher=DukeGEN |accessdate=24 August 2017}} In the late 1990s Hamilton and Tourville spent two years developing software for what was to be known as Sageworks' Financial Information into Narrative Data (FIND), the technology behind its ProfitCents product. Initially the firm struggled to properly market its tools in the early 2000s. CitiBank and Intuit were both early adopters.

Sageworks has collected financial data since financial statement year 2001. By 2014, it included 2001-2011 data from nearly 240,000 private firms, including three or more consecutive years of financial data for each of 99,040.{{cite journal|last1=Asker |first1= John |first2=Joan |last2=Farre-Menser |first3=Alexander |last3=Ljungqvist |title=Corporate Investment and Stock Market Listing: A Puzzle? |date=October 20, 2014 |accessdate=March 19, 2015 |journal=Review of Financial Studies (Forthcoming) |url=http://exceptionalgrowth.org/insights/Shorttermism141024.pdf }} (full paper available in pre-publication form){{rp|8}} It provides financial performance data on private companies based on their income statements and balance sheets.{{refn|group=notes|Statement of cash flow data, financial statements' footnote data, and CEO ownership and most other ownership data are not available in Sageworks.{{cite web |first1=John |last1=Asker |first2=Joan |last2=Farre-Mensa |first3=Alexander |last3=Ljungqvist |date=28 March 2011 |title=What Do Private Firms Look like? Data Appendix |ssrn=1659926 |url=https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1659926 |access-date=23 July 2023}} (a 34-page paper labelled as a "Data Appendix", which supports the authors' other papers using the Sageworks data: Abstract available [https://ssrn.com/abstract=1659926 here at SSRN.com] with full paper also freely downloadable){{rp|1,6,15–17}}}} The data is provided by large accounting firms that work with private companies, then anonymized by labeling each company with a unique identifier number.{{refn|group=notes|The accounting firms participating "input data for all their corporate clients directly into Sageworks’ database in an anonymous fashion."{{rp|1}}}} Commercial users are given access to aggregated data by industry and region and not the financials of individual companies. Its data tends to comprise figures from large private firms; as of 2014, it contained data on almost 240,000 private companies.{{rp|9}} This compares to Sageworks' multi-year data from 2001 to 2011 of 4,360 public U.S. firms.{{refn|group=notes |As derived by Asker et al. from Compustat and CRSP databases, after certain exclusions including removal of all financial firms and regulated utilities.{{rp|8}} }}Commercial users are given access to aggregated data by industry and region and not the financials of individual companies. Its data tends to comprise figures from large private firms; as of 2014, it contained data on almost 240,000 private companies.{{rp|9}}

In January 2004, the company announced a deal to license to LexisNexis its ProfitCents public product, which turns U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission data from public companies into plain-English text reports.{{cite news |title=Sageworks licenses its ProfitCents public technology to LexisNexis |last1=Lanza |first1=Sheri R. |url=http://newsbreaks.infotoday.com/NewsBreaks/Sageworks-Licenses-Its-ProfitCents-Public-Technology-to-LexisNexis-16529.asp |newspaper=Information Today |date=26 January 2004 |accessdate=24 August 2017}}

In 2013, Scott Ogle became chief executive officer.{{cite news|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/triangle/blog/2012/12/scott-ogle-named-sageworks-ceo.html |newspaper=Triangle Biz Journal |accessdate=March 15, 2015 |title=Scott Ogle named Sageworks CEO |date=December 27, 2012 |first=Lee|last=Weisbecker }}

In 2014, Sageworks launched its LoanSage product, a platform for small business owners to get loans of up to $2 million in one day.{{cite news|url=http://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20140925/TECHNOLOGY/140929923/manhattan-fin-tech-incubator-unveiled |newspaper=Crain's New York|accessdate=March 15, 2015|title=Manhattan fin-tech incubator unveiled|first=Gemma|last=Follari|date=September 25, 2014}} That same year, the company unveiled Sageworks Bank Information, a cloud-based platform providing data on banks and credit unions with data of 6,000 U.S. banks and 7,000 credit unions.{{cite news|url=https://www.americanbanker.com/news/sageworks-launches-bank-performance-database|title=Sageworks launches bank performance database|last1=Dymi|first1=Amilda|date=17 July 2014|newspaper=American Banker|accessdate=24 August 2017}} The same year it launched its CFO platform, a suite of financial analysis tools for financial executives with financial analysis, benchmarking, valuation, and industry data,{{cite news |title=Online CFO platform helps businesses manage finances |last1=O'Bannon |first1=Isaac |url=http://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/news/12020208/online-cfo-platform-helps-businesses-manage-finances |newspaper=CPA Practice Advisor |date=18 November 2014 |accessdate=24 August 2017}} and Sageworks Bank Information, a cloud-based platform with bank and credit union data.

In November 2016, the company launched a platform that helps lenders provide financing for small and medium-sized businesses.{{cite news |title=Sageworks offers lenders a door to SMEs |url=http://www.pymnts.com/news/b2b-payments/2016/sageworks-sme-small-business-loan-finance-platform-banks-financial-institution-origination-data-management/ |newspaper=PYMNTS |date=15 November 2016 |accessdate=24 August 2017}} In June 2017, it released its CashSage product, for analyzing cash flow.{{cite news |title=Sageworks releases cash flow analysis tool |last1=Arrowsmith |first1=Ranica |url=https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/sageworks-releases-cash-flow-analysis-tool |newspaper=Accounting Today |date=29 June 2017 |accessdate=24 August 2017}}

In 2018, Banker's Toolbox acquired Sageworks and relaunched a combined product under the name Abrigo.

Sageworks' data has been used by academics to analyze economics using data from private companies, where traditionally only a very small data-set of about 4,000 public companies that publicly reported their data was available.{{rp|8}} According to a paper from researchers with New York University and Harvard Business School, Sageworks' data is especially useful, because it is free of survivor bias and other selection biases.{{rp|1}}

Sageworks also uses data to create the "Sageworks Private Company Indicator", which shows private-company sales growth and profit margins.{{cite news|title=Sageworks Private Company Data|url=http://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/sageworks-private-company-data |publisher=Fox Business|accessdate=March 15, 2015}}{{cite web |url=https://www.accountingweb.com/technology/trends/private-companies-growing-sales-growth-slowing |title=Private companies growing; sales growth slowing |date=9 October 2012 |publisher=Accountingweb.com |accessdate=25 August 2017}} The firm also occasionally issues aggregate information about average profitability of private firms in various industries.{{cite news|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/2014/08/06/accounting-is-most-profitable-industry-study-shows/ |newspaper=Chicago Tribune|title=Accounting is most profitable industry, study shows|first=Becky|last=Yerak|date=August 6, 2014}}{{cite news|url=https://blogs.wsj.com/economics/2011/08/23/private-companies-see-record-profits/?KEYWORDS=sageworks |title=Private Companies See Record Profits |publisher=The Wall St Journal |date=August 23, 2011|first=Conor|last=Dougherty}}

In 2018,{{Cite news |last=Gronberg |first=Ray |date=19 May 2018 |title=Private equity firm acquires Sageworks |volume=130 |page=A6 |work=The Herald-Sun |publisher=McClatchy |issue=83 |department=Business |location=Raleigh, North Carolina |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-herald-sun-private-equity-firm-acqui/128743945/|access-date=23 July 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} Accel-KKR acquired Sageworks for an undisclosed amount and became part of the Banker's Toolbox suite of products.{{Cite web|url=https://www.americanbanker.com/news/private-equity-firm-acquires-financial-software-provider|title=Private equity firm acquires financial software provider|website=www.americanbanker.com|date=21 May 2018 }} In 2019, Banker's Toolbox sunset the Sageworks brand and re-branded themselves as Abrigo.{{Cite web|url=https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/sageworks-becomes-abrigo|title=Sageworks becomes Abrigo|website=Accounting Today|date=17 January 2019 |language=en|access-date=2019-05-22}}

Sageworks and its co-founder, Hamilton, started a program called [https://inmatestoentrepreneurs.org/ Inmates to Entrepreneurs] in 2008. The program encourages prison inmates to start their own business. The program is based on Hamilton's small business seminar, focusing on marketing, sales, customer service, accounting, finance and staffing. Participants make informal business plans and are paired with mentors.

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• [https://www.sageworks.com Sageworks Official Site]

Category:Companies based in Raleigh, North Carolina

Category:Financial services companies established in 1998

Category:Financial services companies of the United States