Sales training and leadership development are two major sectors in the corporate training market. Each of these market segments sees consistent activity and continues to roll out innovative solutions amid technological advancements, particularly generative artificial intelligence (AI).

Thus, Training Industry research indicates that investments in both sales training and leadership development will remain strong in the coming years. That said, we expect customers to invest in solutions that integrate seamlessly with their existing technologies while also staying at the forefront of technological innovation.

Let’s consider how Alchemist’s recent acquisition of RAIN Group will support a more holistic customer experience and drive global business growth.

Joining Forces: A Strategic Decision

Alchemist, a sales and leadership training provider, was acquired by Horizon Capital in June 2024. As part of that acquisition, Alchemist “set out a very clear strategic roadmap for how we were going to grow the business globally,” says Stuart Packham, Alchemist’s CEO.

Two key strategic business drivers that supported the acquisition of RAIN Group included:

• Expanding in the North American market: Although Alchemist had some U.S.-based customers, Packham says they wanted a business partner with “heritage, a footprint and a strong reputation in the North American market.”
• Boosting sales training capabilities: Packham says that leadership and management training makes up about 70% of Alchemist’s business, with the other 30% of the business being sales training. Thus, they were looking to acquire a business that could accelerate their sales training capabilities.

Strategically, acquiring RAIN Group was a “utopian fit” due to its strong presence and reputation in the U.S. market and its capabilities and intellectual property (IP) in sales training, Packham says. “So, [the acquisition] got us into the U.S.; it got us capability, and as a bonus, we also have a presence in the Asia-Pacific as well.”

Steve Elefson, chief operating officer at RAIN Group, agrees the partnership is a strong fit for both companies. In addition to their complementary offerings and capabilities, “The fit between the people, the culture [and] the values between the two businesses is really strong.”

Supporting Sales and Leadership Training Needs

While sales training and leadership development may seem distinct at the outset, they are more interconnected than one might think. After all, sales managers need strong leadership skills to foster motivation and help salespeople achieve key performance targets. So, the acquisition of RAIN Group enables Alchemist to offer a more holistic journey to customers, supporting both their leadership development and sales training needs. In addition, Elefson says Alchemist’s immersive and experiential learning capabilities will help RAIN Group enhance their offerings and drive learning reinforcement.

Lastly, Elefson says both businesses are focused on mid-tier and enterprise clients, “so there’s synergies in the sort of clients we’re working with.” This creates “lots of possibilities” for cross-selling and being able to better address prospective clients’ learning needs, he says.

Strategic Priorities and Future Goals

Looking ahead, Alchemist and RAIN Group are focused on a few core strategic priorities in 2025 and beyond, including:

• Uniting Alchemist and RAIN Group offerings, while leveraging Horizon Capital’s investment to fuel business growth and expand client bases.
• Scaling RAIN Group’s Total Access subscription and delivering engaging sales and leadership training using innovative technology.
• Strengthening presence across Europe, the U.S., and Asia to serve a global client base.
• Leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance learning experiences.
• Translating content into additional languages to meet global clients’ needs.

Elefson says he “couldn’t be more excited about what the future holds for us as a combined entity.”

Packham echoes this enthusiasm, sharing, “I’m super optimistic about what we can do together.” When you bring two established learning businesses together, “Our objective is always to make sure we protect the best parts of those businesses, and if you can, if we can get this right? I genuinely think we’re going to create something different in the leadership and sales training world.”