GenNx360 Capital Partners (“GenNx360”), a New York City-based private equity firm focused on investing in middle market services companies, announced that its portfolio company, Heartland Business Systems (“HBS”), has acquired Applied Tech Solutions, LLC (“Applied Tech” or the “Company”), a provider of managed IT and cybersecurity services to clients in the Midwest and Rocky Mountain regions. The acquisition of Applied Tech represents the first acquisition by HBS since GenNx360 acquired the platform in October 2025.
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HBS is a Little Chute, Wisconsin-based provider of information technology services for commercial and public sector clients across the Midwestern United States. HBS delivers end-to-end technology solutions through its comprehensive offering set of network, infrastructure, cloud, cybersecurity, applications, collaboration and managed service capabilities.
Applied Tech is a Madison, Wisconsin-based IT solutions provider for clients primarily in the Midwest United States and Rocky Mountain regions. The Company’s core capabilities include outsourced IT managed services and cybersecurity solutions, as well as Cloud and IT professional services.
Applied Tech’s CEO, Daniel Petersen, will continue with the combined business as SVP Service Platforms and will be focused on defining the roadmap for the combined managed services platform.
“We are excited about the partnership with Applied Tech, whose advanced delivery platform and deep technical bench will meaningfully bolster our managed services business at HBS. Applied Tech’s AI-enabled delivery platform will enhance the quality and speed of delivery for our client base and provide runway for accelerated managed services growth,” said Jimmy Buddenberg, CEO of HBS. “The acquisition more than doubles the scale of our managed services business and significantly strengthens our managed services platform capabilities.”
“I am excited for Applied Tech to become part of a larger organization and to continue in a leadership role with HBS going forward. Applied Tech’s AI-enabled service delivery platform is focused on creating positive outcomes for our customers and we are excited to extend those capabilities across HBS’ customer base. Our platform combined with HBS’ deep expertise across a broader set of technology solutions will allow us to continue to generate positive client outcomes and deliver greater value at scale,” said Daniel Petersen, CEO of Applied Tech.
“The acquisition of Applied Tech represents a critical step in our evolution, providing our managed service offering greater scale and a delivery platform to prime HBS for accelerated service growth,” said Sean Epps, Managing Partner at GenNx360, and Chairman of the HBS Board of Directors.
“We have been impressed with the business Daniel and team have built and look forward to continuing to build the HBS platform in partnership with the Applied Tech team,” said Peter White, Principal at GenNx360.
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