Infor Global Solutions, a provider of software solutions to the wholesale distribution, discrete manufacturing and process industries, has made it clear that despite rapid growth through acquisitions in the past two-plus years, it plans on growing even faster in the years ahead.

Jim Schaper, chairman of the board and CEO of the software firm, told attendees at the company's executive retreat October 3–5 in Las Vegas that Infor now has $300 million in revenues and will be adding substantially to that number in the next few years as it focuses on acquisitions and organic growth.

"We are buyers, not sellers," he emphasized. "We intend to continue building this business, and we are not yet done."

He said that any companies targeted for acquisition must be "complementary to markets we already serve."

That commitment to acquisitions was evident two weeks after the meeting when Infor announced that it had acquired Lilly Software Associates, of Hampton, N.H., a company that provides vertical market solutions for discrete manufacturers.

Infor provides enterprise-wide business solutions to 13,000 customers in select manufacturing and distribution industries worldwide. Company executives expect that Infor, formerly known as Agilisys, will be a $1 billion company in the next 12 to 18 months.

The wholesale distribution business, which the company says is one of the engines that will drive future growth, has reached $100 million in revenue. The company expects that number to double in 18 months as Infor looks to make more acquisitions and provide "deeper and deeper product offerings to our customer base."

Infor has been extremely active in acquiring software firms in the distribution sector. In the past two years, Infor has purchased wholesale distribution software providers Daly.com, NxTrend, Aperum, and Dimasys.

Infor's three-day meeting at the Hyatt Lake Las Vegas resort drew more than 150 attendees. A series of workshops and a panel discussion on distribution trends highlighted the conference.

Tom Freese, president of QBS Research, a sales consulting firm, advised attendees to differentiate themselves from the competition.

"True differentiation doesn't come from your product. Differentiation comes from providing the best possible service, which means solving customer problems and being viewed as a valuable resource," he said.

Industry consultant Jack Shaw pointed out how technology can lead to increased productivity and efficiencies. He also pointed out ways for distributors to achieve success.

"Take care of your customers, your people and manage your costs," he said. "Give authority to the people closest to the customer and be proactive and not reactive in providing customer service."