Australian scale-ups Bang the Table and OpenCities acquired by US GovTech leader Granicus

Granicus, a provider of cloud-based civic engagement technologies and services for the public sector, announced the acquisitions of two high-growth, Australian GovTech innovators. 

Bang the Table, the company behind market-leading community engagement solution EngagementHQ; and OpenCities, the public sector’s digital customer journey platform helping local governments transform their websites, digital forms, and service delivery experiences.

Why is Granicus buying Bang the Table and OpenCities?

Acquisitions follow extended periods of strong growth for Bang the Table and OpenCities.

Bang the Table has doubled its revenue and expanded its global reach over the past 3 years, now operating in 4 continents and facilitating the engagement of over 10 million people.

OpenCities has rapidly grown from serving Victorian local governments, to millions of daily interactions for cities, counties and states across Australia, New Zealand and North America.

“Great digital customer experiences are driven by data and modern experience platforms, and great resident experiences with government require the same,” said Granicus CEO Mark Hynes.

“Granicus, OpenCities, and Bang the Table are bringing together the industry’s most comprehensive resident data and coupling it with intelligent, multichannel delivery platforms.”

“This gives governments the ability to seamlessly enable intuitive, predictive, and personalized digital experiences,” said Mark Hynes.

“Together, we’re igniting deeply informed, transparent, and responsive governments, better-engaged communities, and dynamic experiences that deliver meaningful outcomes for governments and the people they serve.”

Combining market leading technologies from the three GovTech market innovators into a single platform will help transform how governments and residents engage.

Bang the Table and OpenCities assent to new roles

Bang the Table CEO and Co-Founder Matt Crozier commented that the need for governments to utilise online community consultation and engagement is more apparent than ever.

“If you want to engage the majority of residents, and collectively meet the challenges of government in 2021, you have to do it at every stage of interaction with communities.”

“The opportunity presented by the next phase of GovTech is for governments to engage their full communities using integrated platforms,” said Matt Crozier.

“By the same token, accessibility, inclusivity, and equity are critical factors that must be embedded in the fabric of modern governments. That’s why we pride ourselves on offering tools that give all residents an equal voice,” Crozier continued.

“With Granicus and OpenCities, we will help government agencies make smarter decisions informed by the full community at scale.”

Alex Gelbak, CEO of OpenCities says, “With OpenCities, Bang the Table and Granicus under one roof, customers can automate the entire civic engagement lifecycle, reaching every resident efficiently and helping them to know that their views and participation are valued.”

“By joining Granicus, with its reach of over 5,500 government customers, we accelerate our mission to bring better digital government to citizens around the world,” said Gelbak.

“Combining our innovative technology and bold vision, we empower more governments to deliver transformative, next-generation resident self-service experiences.”

“And with data insights from the 250 million strong Granicus Subscriber Network, we can proactively test and evolve that experience, ensuring agencies not only keep up, but always stay ahead of increasingly sophisticated resident expectations.”

Matt Crozier takes on the role of Managing Director, Australia and New Zealand for Granicus, while Alex Gelbak serves as General Manager, Global Platform Strategy.

The acquisition of two Australia-based GovTech 100 companies extends Granicus’ commitment to Australia and New Zealand governments.

The combined organisation serves more than 350 governments, while also introducing best-in-class solutions to more agencies in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.

Recent acquisitions have strengthened Granicus’ SaaS cloud platform for the public sector with a portfolio including digital communications and feedback, website and CMS, dynamic digital services, agenda management and public meetings, and records management.

Granicus connects governments with the people they serve by providing the first and only civic engagement platform for the public sector.

Over 5,500 federal, state and local government agencies and more than 250 million citizen subscribers power an unmatched Subscriber Network that turns government missions into quantifiable results.