ScanSource wants to deliver what its advisors sell

An advisor can help a customer choose a technology solution and still have to hand the installation and support to someone else. Without engineers or service staff of their own, there’s only so much of the project they can take on.

That’s the opening ScanSource sees in its proposed acquisition of MicroAge. Bringing an IT integrator into the partner network could help advisors keep more of that work. It would also put the distributor closer to their customers, which is why the terms of the arrangement matter as much as the additional expertise.

On August 20, ScanSource agreed to acquire the IT integrator and managed services provider for $220.5M in cash, with plans to fund the purchase through its existing credit facility. The company said it expected the deal to close in the quarter ending September 30, subject to regulatory approval and other customary conditions. MicroAge has more than 200 employees and approximately 2,400 U.S. clients.¹

The idea is to make that expertise available to advisors who couldn’t justify hiring the specialists themselves. ScanSource chief executive Mike Baur described the proposed arrangement to Channel Dive: “We’re going to rent these resources to the partners, and they only pay us if something closes.”²

That could make it easier to bring technical help into a deal before the customer commits. But advisors still need to know which resources are covered, who qualifies and what they’ll pay when a deal closes. It will also take time to put the offer together. Baur told Channel Dive that the business would need additional resources before it could make the services available.²

There’s more business to pursue if advisors can broaden what they offer. Omdia found that technology advisors accounted for 86% of partner types in the technology services distribution market in 2024, compared with 7% for value-added resellers and 4% for managed services providers. Those smaller groups generated more revenue per partner by selling broader offerings and larger contracts.³ With access to MicroAge’s specialists, advisors could pursue more of that work without building a services company themselves.

ScanSource has its own reason to make this work. Its Intelisys and Advisory segment reported fiscal 2026 net sales of $101.1M, up 3.1%, while Specialty Technology Solutions grew 6.2% to $3.12B.⁴ Services delivered through MicroAge would give the company another source of revenue alongside its advisory sales.

The deal builds on work already under way. In April, ScanSource formed a Converged Communications CX Team combining expertise from its specialty distribution and Intelisys businesses.⁵ MicroAge could help those partners deliver the projects they pursue together, including work an advisor would previously have had to hand to another firm.

Doing that work would also give ScanSource a closer view of the customer. Baur identified better visibility into end-user needs as a benefit of the acquisition.¹ A company that installs and supports a customer’s systems learns what the customer needs and what it may buy next. That knowledge helps it provide better service and puts it in a position to pursue the next sale.

If MicroAge spots another opportunity while working on a project, where does that leave the advisor who introduced it? Before bringing MicroAge into an account, advisors should know what customer information they’ll receive, how MicroAge can use it and who can approach the customer with another offer.

There’s also the possibility that MicroAge’s own sales team turns up in an advisor’s existing account. Baur has said ScanSource will try to favor the channel partner in that situation.² Putting that preference in writing would give advisors something to rely on when a disagreement arises. They also need to know how disputes over an opportunity will be resolved when the distributor’s own subsidiary has an interest in the outcome.

Other distributors can offer help through businesses they buy or build, or through independent delivery partners. Owning the team may make coordination easier, but advisors still have to judge the people doing the work. A reliable independent firm could be a better fit for a particular project. The acquisition gives advisors another option to consider.

For advisors who regularly hand implementation work to another firm, MicroAge could make a larger role possible. Much depends on what the help costs and whether they can remain involved as the customer’s needs grow. ScanSource will have made a useful investment for its partners if they can look back at the projects they’ve won and see a business they couldn’t have built on their own.

The Channel Standard’s analysis

The recommendations concerning commercial terms, customer information and account conflicts are editorial analysis. The article distinguishes announced plans from implemented services and retains the acquisition announcement’s August 2026 perspective.