SMART ANNOUNCES RELATIONSHIP WITH LEADING PRIVATE EQUITY company GREAT HILL PARTNERS

Devon, PA, May 15, 2007 – SMART Business Advisory and Consulting LLC (SMART), today announced that Great Hill Partners LLC, a Boston-based private equity firm, has invested $60 million into the company.  Further details of the transaction were not disclosed.

“This new capital will help further strengthen SMART’s leadership position in this enormous new market that has emerged in the accounting and consulting industry over the past several years,” said James (Jim) Smart, CEO and founder of the company.  “During that time, our industry has been transformed from one dominated by a few very large accounting and consulting companies to a much more competitive environment.” 

“This new market situation has created a significant growth opportunity for us over the past few years.  During that time, we have added an array of new services and people, many of them from those legacy companies, growing to over 650 people in 15 offices in the U.S. and Europe,” he observed.  “Going forward, we will have an even stronger platform from which to continue our growth, particularly in the area of accounting intensive consulting services.” 

According to the company, accounting intensive consulting is focused on providing solutions to financial and operational business challenges that require significant accounting skills.  SMART’s unique ability to interconnect the delivery of its service offerings has proven to be of significant economic and strategic value to clients.  SMART’s offerings include business advisory services, accounting services, tax services and business and compensation consulting, among others.

“Our interest in SMART is driven by a variety of factors including the company’s growth over the past few years.  The company has shown remarkable agility in responding to changes in the marketplace and SMART’s ability to provide clients with enduring value and exceptional service is second to none,” said Christopher Gaffney, managing partner at Great Hill Partners.  “Our analysis of the marketplace, the strength of SMART’s management team, and the scope and quality of its offerings all pointed to an extremely attractive opportunity for Great Hill.  That is exactly what we look for in the companies we want as our partners.”

Gaffney added, “SMART’s large and growing roster of Fortune 1000 clients is the ultimate validation of the business model.  Large corporations are actively seeking alternatives to their legacy providers of professional services like the ‘Big 4.’  They want access to top-quality talent offering a truly integrated suite of solutions at competitive rates.  SMART delivers that to the Fortune 1000 today.”

Both SMART and Great Hill Partners cited an analysis by Kennedy Information, a leading analyst of the consulting industry, which estimates annual growth projections of over 10% long term for the services offered by SMART. 

ABOUT SMART
SMART Business Advisory and Consulting, LLC (www.smartgrp.com) is a premier, full-service business consulting and advisory company serving clients throughout the US and globally. SMART offers innovative solutions to public and private companies in the areas of business consulting and advisory, technology, business process, accounting, compensation and benefits, and tax. Through an alternative practice structure, SMART and Associates, LLP offers a full range of attest services.

ABOUT GREAT HILL PARTNERS
Great Hill Partners LLC is a private equity company that manages over $1.5 billion in capital and focuses on investing in growth companies operating in the business and consumer services, media, transaction processing and software industries.  Great Hill Equity Partners III, L.P. targets investments of $20 million to $100 million.

###