Planned $1.35B Salesforce ClickSoftware buy beefs up field service

Salesforce plans to acquire field service management platform ClickSoftware for $1.35 billion. The deal, scheduled for third-quarter completion, will add scheduling and resource management features to the Salesforce Field Service Lightning application.

ClickSoftware provides Salesforce Lightning with a simple, straightforward front-end interface for mobile devices used by field workers, who need scheduling information, and data on items like utility equipment, pipelines or machines in manufacturing and healthcare facilities, analysts said.

"It's extremely complex logistical stuff to manage," said Nicole France, an analyst at Constellation Research.

The Salesforce-ClickSoftware deal, announced this week, was also defensive because it blocks any chance of SAP acquiring ClickSoftware, France said. SAP's Digital Supply Chain is tightly integrated with ClickSoftware, and the two companies have an extensive partnership.

SAP now risks losing customers heavily reliant on ClickSoftware to Salesforce, France said.

SurveyMonkey acquires GetFeedback

In other customer-service acquisition news, SurveyMonkey announced this week its intention to acquire GetFeedback, an online instant-survey tool.

Both companies measure voice of the customer, providing businesses with crucial data points for improving customer experience. GetFeedback -- popular with Salesforce customers on the Salesforce AppExchange -- counts Cisco, Walgreens and Salesforce among its more than 10,000 customers.

SurveyMonkey expects to acquire GetFeedback for approximately $68 million in cash and equity this fall. Salesforce Ventures, which invested in both companies, will receive a stake in the deal. It's the second acquisition in five months for SurveyMonkey, which acquired Usabilla last March.

While Gartner analyst Jim Davies characterized it as a "tiny" deal, it will help SurveyMonkey customers execute their customer feedback programs better than before in the Salesforce environment.