Asure Software

Asure Software is a United States-based software company whose principal business is cloud-based human capital management. Its offerings have included payroll administration, human resources management, time and attendance, workforce management, talent management, benefits administration, and insurance-related services. The company primarily targets small and medium-sized businesses that need to manage employee data, payroll processing, compliance workflows, scheduling, benefits, and other administrative tasks without building extensive internal HR technology infrastructure. The business operated for many years under the name Forgent Networks. That earlier company was associated with intellectual-property licensing and litigation involving patents claimed to cover JPEG image compression and computer-controlled digital video recording. Following its acquisition of iEmployee in September 2007, the company adopted the Asure Software name and increasingly repositioned itself around human capital management rather than its earlier patent and imaging-related activities. The rebranding marked a strategic transition from a diversified technology company with legacy intellectual-property interests toward a more focused provider of business software and services. Asure expanded its HCM capabilities through a series of acquisitions. ADI Time, acquired in 2011, added cloud time-and-attendance software and labor-management services. Mangrove Employer Services, acquired in 2016, broadened the company’s human-resources software capabilities, although the integration was followed by substantial layoffs among former Mangrove employees. The company subsequently acquired Compass HRM in 2017 and Austin HR in 2018, adding further HR consulting, payroll, benefits-administration, and related capabilities. The company also maintained a software division called NetSimplicity, which supplied room-scheduling and fixed-asset-management software. That workspace-management business was separated from Asure in 2019 through a sale to FM:Systems, reflecting a decision to concentrate the portfolio more tightly on HCM. Asure’s current identity is therefore centered on payroll, HR administration, workforce time tracking, employee management, and adjacent services for smaller employers. Its stock trades on Nasdaq under the symbol ASUR.

Asure Software traces its corporate history to a company founded in 1985 that later became known as Forgent Networks. Before its HCM-focused identity, Forgent operated in technology businesses connected with imaging, video, and intellectual-property assets. Its most prominent legal controversy concerned claims that a subsidiary, Compression Labs, controlled patent rights relevant to JPEG image compression. Forgent began asserting those claims in the early 2000s, seeking royalties from companies whose products used JPEG technology. The claims attracted opposition from technology companies and the JPEG community, which argued that earlier published research could constitute prior art and undermine the patent position. In 2004, Forgent reported that numerous companies had paid royalties. It later filed infringement suits against a group of technology companies, including Adobe, Apple, and IBM. Some defendants entered settlements or licenses, while the broader validity of the asserted claims remained contested. In 2006, the United States Patent and Trademark Office rejected the broadest portion of the relevant claims after prior-art material was submitted by the Public Patent Foundation. Forgent subsequently announced a settlement of remaining claims against approximately 60 companies for a stated total of $8 million. The JPEG dispute became an important part of the company’s pre-Asure history, but it did not define the company’s later operating model. Forgent also pursued litigation relating to a patent for a computer-controlled digital video recording system. In 2007, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas ruled for EchoStar Communications, finding the asserted Forgent patent invalid. These patent matters, together with the company’s changing portfolio, formed the background to a strategic shift toward human capital management. On September 13, 2007, Forgent acquired iEmployee. After the transaction, the company changed its name to Asure Software and promoted a business centered on HCM solutions. The new direction included payroll, time and attendance, talent management, human-resources management, benefits administration, and insurance-related services. Rather than relying primarily on licensing legacy technology, Asure sought to provide recurring software and service relationships to employers. The company expanded through acquisitions. In October 2011, Asure announced the acquisition of ADI Time, a provider of cloud time-and-attendance software and labor-management services. In March 2016, it announced the acquisition of Mangrove Employer Services, adding HR management software. The Mangrove integration was accompanied by substantial layoffs among former Mangrove employees in June 2016, an event that illustrates the operational consequences of Asure’s acquisition-led expansion. In May 2017, Asure acquired Tampa-based Compass HRM. In April 2018, it acquired Austin HR, a provider of HR consulting, payroll, and benefits-administration services. Asure also owned or operated NetSimplicity, a software division focused on room scheduling and fixed-asset management. This business sat outside the core HCM strategy. On December 2, 2019, Asure announced completion of the sale of its workspace-management business to FM:Systems, thereby narrowing its portfolio around HR, payroll, workforce management, and related employer services. The company’s governance history included a proxy contest. In 2008, Pinnacle Fund and Red Oak Partners, managed by David Sandberg, launched a challenge to the company’s board. Following negotiations, five new directors were elected on August 28, 2009, replacing the prior board slate. Earlier, in August 2006, Forgent had received a Nasdaq notice concerning non-compliance with the minimum bid-price requirement; the company returned to compliance in January 2007. Asure Software remains a public company traded on Nasdaq under the ticker ASUR, with its business positioned toward the HR technology needs of small and medium-sized employers.

1. 2019Workspace-management business sold

   Asure completed the sale of its workspace-management business to FM:Systems, including software associated with room scheduling and fixed-asset management.

   Source
2. 2018Austin HR acquisition

   Asure acquired Austin HR, adding HR consulting, payroll, and benefits-administration capabilities.

   Source
3. 2017Compass HRM acquisition

   Asure acquired Compass HRM, a Tampa-based HR services company.

   Source
4. 2016Mangrove Employer Services acquisition

   The company acquired Mangrove Employer Services to expand its human-resources management software business.

   Source
5. 2011ADI Time acquisition

   Asure acquired ADI Time, strengthening its time-and-attendance and labor-management offering.

   Source
6. 2009New board elected after proxy contest

   Following a proxy fight involving Pinnacle Fund and Red Oak Partners, five new directors were elected to replace the previous board.

   Source
7. 2007iEmployee acquisition and Asure rebranding

   Forgent acquired iEmployee and changed its name to Asure Software, establishing the company’s HCM-centered identity.

   Source
8. 2006Broad JPEG patent claims rejected

   The United States Patent and Trademark Office rejected the broadest part of Forgent’s JPEG-related claims after prior-art evidence was submitted.

   Source
9. 2002JPEG patent claims become public

   While operating as Forgent Networks, the company began publicly asserting that its subsidiary Compression Labs held rights connected with the JPEG image-compression standard.

   Source
10. 1985Corporate predecessor is founded

    The company that later became Forgent Networks and then Asure Software traces its origins to 1985.

    Source

Cloud-based human capital management for small and medium-sized businesses

• Asure PayrollPayroll software and services

  A payroll-focused offering within Asure’s HCM portfolio, intended to help employers administer payroll processes alongside employee records, tax-related workflows, reporting, and related HR operations. The product is positioned as part of an integrated cloud environment for smaller organizations.

• Asure HRHuman resources management software

  An HR management offering designed to centralize employee information and support routine human-resources administration. It forms part of Asure’s broader effort to combine HR software with payroll, benefits, compliance, and employer-support services.

• Asure Time & AttendanceTime and attendance software

  A workforce-management product for recording employee time, supporting attendance administration, and connecting labor data with payroll and HR processes. Asure expanded this area through its acquisition of ADI Time in 2011.

• NetSimplicityWorkspace and fixed-asset management software

  A former Asure software division specializing in room scheduling and fixed-asset management. The workspace-management business was sold to FM:Systems in 2019 and is therefore no longer a core Asure offering.

• 2019Divestiture of workspace-management operationsStrategy

  NetSimplicity’s room-scheduling and fixed-asset-management activities were outside Asure’s central HCM focus.

  What changed. Asure sold its workspace-management business to FM:Systems.

  Aftermath. The transaction allowed Asure to concentrate more narrowly on payroll, HR, workforce management, and related employer services.

  Source
• 2007Shift from Forgent Networks to Asure SoftwareStrategy

  The company was moving away from its earlier imaging, video, and patent-related profile after acquiring iEmployee.

  What changed. It adopted the Asure Software name and focused its business on human capital management software and services.

  Aftermath. The rebranding established the company’s continuing identity as an HCM provider serving primarily small and medium-sized businesses.

  Source

• 2002JPEG patent enforcement controversyControversy

  Forgent Networks, through Compression Labs, asserted patent rights related to JPEG image compression and pursued royalties and infringement actions against technology companies. Critics argued that the claims were weakened by prior art and delayed enforcement. The United States Patent and Trademark Office later rejected the broadest claims, and the company settled remaining assertions against numerous companies.

  Source

• 2019Asure sells its workspace-management business to FM:Systems

  Asure completed the sale of its NetSimplicity-related workspace-management business, including room scheduling and fixed-asset-management software, to FM:Systems.

  M&A
  Source
• 2018Asure Software acquires Austin HR

  The acquisition brought an Austin-based provider of HR consulting, payroll, and benefits administration into Asure’s business.

  M&A
  Source
• 2017Asure Software acquires Compass HRM

  The company acquired Tampa-based Compass HRM as part of its continued expansion in human-resources management services.

  M&A
  Source
• 2016Asure Software acquires Mangrove Employer Services

  Asure announced the purchase of Mangrove Employer Services, expanding its human-resources management software capabilities. The integration was followed by significant layoffs among former Mangrove employees.

  M&ALeadership changeOther
  Source
• 2011Asure Software acquires ADI Time

  The acquisition added cloud-based time-and-attendance software and labor-management services to Asure’s HCM portfolio.

  M&AProduct generation
  Source
• 2007Forgent Networks acquires iEmployee and adopts the Asure Software identity

  The company acquired iEmployee and subsequently changed its corporate name from Forgent Networks to Asure Software, accelerating its transition toward human capital management software and services.

  M&A
  Source

1. Asure Software
2. Asure Software website