PCI Education was sold to PRO-ED, Inc. in mid-December 2012. Since then I’ve fielded a lot questions about the sale. This post is an attempt, from my perspective as PCI’s former CEO, to answer the big questions in one place.*
What Is The Rationale For The Deal?
There are several good reasons for combining the operations.
PCI has long been a large distributor of PRO-ED products, particularly the EdMark Reading Program. There were obvious efficiencies in putting the two organizations together.
PRO-ED has two business, one very much like PCI which the PCI operation will fit into naturally. It is a good home for the mission and purpose of PCI.
PRO-ED also has a clinical and specialized assessment business. PCI was not in assessments, but many of our products will benefit from a closer affiliation with relevant tests.
What Kind of Deal Was It?
PRO-ED made an asset purchase of PCI’s products, brands, and distribution business.
What Were The Terms?
Both companies are privately held and don’t release that information.
What About PCI’s People?
PCI had enough lead time to help its staff start preparing for a transition, running a regular workshop on strategies and techniques for a modern job hunt. As of today about half of the staff have landed in new positions. This made the actual sale less traumatic than most I’ve seen – people were aware the news was coming and had been given tools and resources to help them get a jump start on making the change.
For PCI employees the sale was the end of a life affirming mission. When we sold products something good happened in the world – a struggling learner got help. Many of the employees have a personal connection to individuals with special needs. For others the opportunity to serve was an essential part of why they worked at PCI.
PRO-ED has been able to absorb PCI’s operations without taking on any of PCI’s employees. Many good people with a strong background in developing, selling, and supporting products for special needs populations are available – if you are interested my contact information is on the blog.
I’ll write another post about my own plans for the future, but in a nutshell if you need a consultant/advisor or are looking for a CEO/GM give me a buzz.
Looking Ahead
I’m glad PCI’s products landed with an organization that really understands the segment of the market that PCI served. One of the distinguishing characteristics of PCI’s culture was its sense of mission and service, and knowing that it will continue is important to all of us – customers, staff, and investors.
The team at PCI did some amazing work and changed hundreds of thousands of lives for the better. Everyone involved, employees, investors, customers, suppliers, distributors, and fans can take pride in the work we did to support teachers and help students learn. This is true for any educational materials publisher, but in PCI’s case was made all the more acute by the realization that the students we were serving had some of the greatest needs.
That work lives on at PRO-ED and we look forward to seeing what they do with it.
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* This post represents my opinions, it is not an official announcement from either company.