Earnings Call Transcript - III Q4 2025

Operator, Operator

Good morning, and welcome to the Information Services Group Fourth Quarter 2025 Conference Call. This call is being recorded, and a replay will be available on ISG's website within 24 hours. Now I'd like to turn the call over to Mr. Will Thoretz for opening remarks and introduction. Mr. Thoretz, please go ahead.

Will Thoretz, Head of Corporate Communications

Thank you, operator. Hello, and good morning. My name is Will Thoretz. I'm Head of Corporate Communications for ISG. I'd like to welcome everyone to ISG's Fourth Quarter conference call. I'm joined today by Michael Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; and Michael Sherrick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Before we begin, I would like to read a forward-looking statement. It is important to note that this communication may contain forward-looking statements, which represent the current expectations and beliefs of the management of ISG concerning future events and their potential effects. These statements are not guarantees of future results and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated. For a more detailed listing of the risks and other factors that could affect future results please refer to the forward-looking statement contained in our Form 8-K that was furnished last night to the SEC and the Risk Factors section of our most recent Form 10-K and 10-Q filings. You should also read ISG's annual report on Form 10-K and in the other relevant documents, including any amendments or supplements to these documents filed with the SEC. You will be able to obtain free copies of any of ISG's SEC filings on either ISG's website at www.isg-one.com or the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. ISG undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances. During this call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures, which ISG believes improves the comparability of the company's financial results between periods and provides for greater transparency of key measures used to evaluate the company's performance. The non-GAAP measures, which we will touch on today include adjusted EBITDA, adjusted net earnings and the presentation of selected financial data on a constant currency basis. Non-GAAP measures are provided as additional information and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute for financial results prepared in accordance with GAAP. The reconciliation of all non-GAAP measures presented to the most closely applicable GAAP measure, please refer to our current report on Form 8-K, which was filed last night with the SEC. And now I would like to turn the call over to Michael Connors, who will be followed by Michael Sherrick. Mike?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Thank you, Will, and good morning, everyone. I should note that Will is now handling the opening of our call after the passing of a long-time colleague, Barry Holt, in December. Barry was with me when I started the firm in 2006 and was heard on all of our investor calls up until now. Our condolences again to the whole family. Today, we will review our solid Q4 results driven by double-digit growth in Europe and in our recurring revenues. Progress on our AI initiatives, our view of the current demand environment and our outlook for Q1. ISG delivered a strong Q4 to cap off an outstanding year, powered by continuing client interest in our AI-centered transformation services. In the fourth quarter, nearly 35% of our revenues were from AI-related research and advisory services. For the full year, that number was nearly 30%, up 3x from 2024. This shows that AI is rapidly being mainstreamed as a core aspect of our traditional technology transformation work. Technology disruption has always fueled our growth in times of significant change; enterprises often struggle to adapt, so they turn to a trusted adviser for insights and expertise to chart the path forward and our results reflect that. We are still in the early stages of AI adoption and will continue to accelerate as the technology and its governance matures. For our clients, it's not a question of if they will leverage AI; it's a question of how. Success requires the right data engineering, proper governance and workers ready to embrace the operating model changes AI is creating. We're seeing our AI clients leverage our entire value chain, research, benchmarking, advisory and governance, so they can navigate this new paradigm quickly and effectively. For the fourth quarter, ISG delivered revenues of $61.2 million, at the top end of our guidance and up 6% versus the prior year. Our growth was led by Europe, which continued its second half momentum with Q4 revenues up 28% and by our recurring revenues, which were up 13% globally, led by our research and platform businesses, especially government services. For the full year, recurring revenues were $112 million, 46% of our total. Propelled by a more profitable mix of business and our strong operating discipline, we saw a continued acceleration of our profitability in Q4. Adjusted EBITDA was $8.1 million, that was up 24%, and our EBITDA margin rose nearly 200 basis points to 13.2%. For the full year, our revenues were $245 million, up 7%, led by an 11% growth in our Americas region, and this excludes our '24 results from the divested automation unit. Our adjusted EBITDA exceeded $32 million and that was up 28% versus the prior year. And our margin for the full year was 13.2%, up 300 basis points. ISG continues to be a cash-generating engine with full year operating cash flow of $29 million, up 46% versus the prior year. A little over 2 years ago, we launched a series of initiatives and investments to establish leadership in AI, and we're continuing to develop and deploy new capabilities as we move through 2026. In January, we acquired the AI Maturity Index, it's an AI readiness benchmarking and intelligence platform that allows organizations to identify gaps in their workforce readiness and use a data-driven approach to achieve rapid improvement. Combined with our change management services, our AI maturity offering helps clients accelerate the return on their AI investments. The platform is already generating strong interest and opening up new client discussions about our broad range of AI-related capabilities. Also in January, we formed a dedicated team to drive continued expansion of our AI leadership. This AI acceleration unit is addressing our most complex and far-reaching AI initiatives. It is led by our Chief AI Officer, Steve Hall, who returned from Europe this month and will now lead this unit on a full-time basis. The team includes experts from across our advisory, research and change management teams. We are living in an AI-centered world and are committed to seizing this opportunity. Nearly every technology transformation now requires some element of AI, and this is fundamentally changing the value proposition for both service and software providers. We are at the center of this revolution with innovations like our autonomy level pricing model, which provides clients a new way to value work depending on the degree of AI effort applied to a task. Our AI-powered sourcing solution, ISG Tango, is built to address this changing landscape. We continue to add new functionality and expand the amount of total contract value, or TCV, we run on the platform. It is now more than $25 billion. That's up from $7 billion from the prior year. Now let me turn to our regions. The Americas delivered $38 million of revenue in Q4, driven by double-digit growth in our research and governance businesses and in our consumer and enterprise industry verticals. For the year, excluding the '24 results from the divested automation unit, the Americas region finished up 11%, its best performance since 2021. Key plan engagements during the fourth quarter included Baxter, AGCO and Marriott. During the quarter, we won a multimillion dollar engagement with a leading consumer products company. ISG is supporting a next-generation global business services program leveraging AI and other technology to optimize processes across this company. Their goal is to reduce operating costs by 40%. We also generated more than $1 million in revenue, working with a leading U.S. hospital network. This one on an AI-driven technology sourcing engagement that will deliver savings to this company of more than $130 million or 20% of their operating costs. Our Europe region continued its second half momentum with an excellent fourth quarter. Revenues were up 28% to $19 million, driven by double-digit growth in our advisory software and research businesses and in our consumer health sciences, manufacturing and public sector verticals. Key client engagements in Europe in the fourth quarter included manpower, American Express and Roche. ISG is working with a large multinational player at the heart of the AI industry on a series of engagements worth more than $1 million. Our work includes helping this client incorporate AI in service management, workplace benchmarking, hybrid cloud sourcing and software engagements that have firmly established ISG as the client's adviser of choice and provide us with a strong foundation for additional work through the year. And another $1 million-plus engagement, we're working with a global marketing and media company to deliver technology strategy, sourcing and transformation. With software providers incorporating AI aggressively into new contracts, we're also conducting a complex multi-region software advisory engagement. This will generate $15 million in annual savings for this client alone and align their AI consumption with demand. Now turning to Asia Pacific. Our Q4 revenues of $3.9 million were down $1.1 million compared with the prior year. We did see double-digit growth in our insurance industry vertical. However, we will need the public sector, as I mentioned a while back, to reignite greater spending for this region to return to historical growth patterns, which we expect later this year. Key clients in the quarter include Singtel Optus with Singapore Exchange and Resolution Life. During the quarter, we won a $1 million engagement with a large Australian retailer to support the client's AI-driven technology transformation and its selection of a BPO provider to modernize its finance operations and HR functions with AI-enabled business processes. Now let me turn to the broader market. As we look at overall demand, we see clients remaining cautious in a still uncertain macro environment, even if they continue to invest in AI-related business transformation, cost optimization and insights to plan the journey ahead. Increasingly, we see clients demanding clear business outcomes, a reshaping of their partner ecosystems and specialized capabilities. This plays directly to our strengths. ISG is well positioned to deliver insights and actions that lead to real business value for clients. Our proprietary data platforms and on-the-ground expertise continue to deliver great ROI for our clients. So with that, let me turn to guidance. Despite continued macroeconomic uncertainty, ISG remains well positioned, and we are confident in our ability to capitalize on the accelerating demand for AI-led transformation. For the quarter, we expect revenues in the range of $60.5 million to $61.5 million and adjusted EBITDA between $7.5 million and $8.5 million representing continued year-over-year growth. Now let me turn the call over to Michael Sherrick, who will summarize our financial results. Michael?

Michael Sherrick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Thank you, Mike, and good morning, everyone. Revenue for the fourth quarter was $61.2 million, up a solid 6% from the prior year. For the quarter, currency had a positive $1.3 million impact to revenue. Americas revenue was $38.3 million, up 1% in the fourth quarter. For the full year, excluding the 2024 results from our divested automation unit, Americas revenue was up 11%, its best year-over-year growth in 4 years. For the quarter, Europe delivered revenue of $19.1 million, up 28%, while Asia Pacific revenue was $3.9 million, down $1.1 million from the prior year. Fourth quarter adjusted EBITDA was $8.1 million, up 24% from $6.5 million in the year-ago period and resulting in an EBITDA margin of 13.2%, which was 189 basis points higher year-on-year. For the quarter, ISG delivered operating income of $5.1 million, resulting in an operating margin of 8.4%. Reported net income for the quarter was $2.6 million or $0.05 per fully diluted share as compared with net income of $3 million or $0.06 per fully diluted share in the prior year. I would note, during the fourth quarter of 2024, ISG recorded a $2.3 million net gain on the sale of its automation unit. Excluding this gain, net income and GAAP EPS would have been $0.7 million and $0.01 per fully diluted share, respectively. Fourth quarter adjusted net income was $4 million or $0.08 per fully diluted share compared with adjusted net income of $3 million or $0.06 per fully diluted share in the prior year's fourth quarter. Headcount as of December 31, 2025, was 1,290. For the quarter, consulting utilization was 69%, in line with our average fourth quarter utilization. Full year utilization of 73% was in line with our mid-70s target. We ended the year with cash of $28.7 million, flat from the end of the third quarter and up $5.6 million year-on-year. For the quarter, net cash provided by operations was $5.1 million, supported by our solid operating results and continued focus on working capital. For the full year, we generated operating cash flow of $29 million, up 46% year-on-year. During the quarter, we paid dividends of $2.2 million and repurchased $2.3 million of stock. Our next quarterly dividend will be paid March 26 to shareholders of record as of March 20. At quarter's end, fully diluted shares outstanding were $50.5 million, down $100,000 from the prior year. Our quarter-end gross debt-to-EBITDA ratio was just under 1.9x, down from 2.4x at December 31, 2024, and just below our 2x to 2.5x target range. At quarter's end, our debt was unchanged. And for the quarter, our average borrowing rate was 5.8%, down 125 basis points year-on-year. Overall, our balance sheet remains solid and continues to improve, providing us with a strong foundation to both operate and invest in the business, especially in our AI initiatives. Mike will now share concluding remarks before we go to Q&A. Mike?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Thank you, Michael. To summarize, ISG delivered another strong quarter, continuing our AI-powered momentum. Our 6% revenue growth in Q4 was led by double-digit growth in Europe and our recurring revenue businesses. We grew our adjusted EBITDA by 24% and margins by nearly 200 basis points. Our strong Q4 capped an outstanding year with revenues up 7%, driven by an 11% growth in the Americas. Adjusted EBITDA was up 28% and margins for the year up 300 basis points. We continue to generate strong cash flow, delivering operating cash of $29 million for the year, up 46%. Looking ahead, the disruptive and powerful force of AI will continue to be a growth catalyst for ISG as the technology matures and adoption begins to scale. In this environment, our ability to deliver the full value chain of our research, benchmarking, advisory and governance is a key competitive advantage for ISG. One that we believe enhances ROI for our clients and creates long-term value for our shareholders. So thank you very much for calling in this morning. And now let me turn the session over to the operators for your question.

Operator, Operator

Our first question comes from Marc Riddick from Sidoti.

Marc Riddick, Analyst

Good morning. I wanted to start by discussing some observations you have. Could you elaborate on what you've mentioned about the differentiation of climate verticals? Additionally, could you share your thoughts on the offensive versus defensive spending trends you've previously discussed? It would be helpful to understand how that has evolved and what you are currently observing.

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes. I think there is a mix currently; there's a lot of defensive moves but also some offensive strategies. It really depends on the industry segment. In particular, we’re observing significant activity in consumer, retail, financial services, energy, and utilities. The consumer sector has been significantly affected by the current macro environment, while the challenges related to AI and data centers are putting pressure on energy and utility companies. With fluctuations in oil prices, energy companies are starting to see a bit more cash flow. However, there’s a combination of efforts to initiate transformation journeys, and this varies across sectors. The consumer side is generally more defensive, whereas clients in the energy sector and health sciences appear to be more aggressive in their approaches. Overall, everybody is trying to find ways to integrate AI to enhance operational efficiency and improve user experiences. This diverse landscape is beneficial for us, as there’s considerable disruption, which we appreciate from both technological and industry perspectives.

Marc Riddick, Analyst

Great. And then I know it's a little early in the process, I suppose, but maybe you can talk a little bit about the acquisition early days. It seems as though it's something that's fairly attractive for you and as well as the opportunities and maybe add clients from the base that you currently work with. But maybe you could talk a little bit about the early days of what you're seeing with the maturity index, as well as then maybe you could segue into sort of the current acquisition appetite and maybe what you're seeing out there?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes. This assessment evaluates how ready individuals in an organization are, and by aggregating the results, it provides a clear picture of workforce readiness. For example, a major auditing firm was working with a large technology company on a new audit platform, which they believed could save 20% to 30% on quarterly information processes. However, despite the technology being effective, the audit partners were hesitant to adopt the new platform. The reason is that implementing those savings would likely lead to reduced audit fees for large clients in the future. Although they had invested in technology, that group was not prepared for the change. Our assessment enables us to evaluate individuals within our clients’ organizations, understand their readiness to adopt and engage with AI, and identify how they can succeed in implementing it. This process is creating opportunities for us because of its importance for our clients' successful integration of AI. We believe it's a valuable entry point for our services and has been a beneficial addition to our overall AI advisory business. I also want to mention that we are happy to provide anyone on this call with a link to try the assessment themselves. It takes about 15 minutes, and you receive a personal report that is completed digitally. Just let us know if you're interested.

Marc Riddick, Analyst

Sounds good. I'm definitely looking forward to that. Do you have any thoughts on the current acquisition pipeline or appetite for acquisitions, especially now that the balance sheet is stronger and continues to improve? It would be great to hear about your current appetite.

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes. So we are still in the market. We are constantly looking at M&A, as you know, that is kind of our heritage. We're looking at anything that can help us around recurring revenues and help us around our AI journey with clients. And the market is pretty good. We're having some good discussions, and we'll see how things unfold. But we're in a pretty strong position, and we feel pretty good about what may be out there during the course of the next year or so.

Operator, Operator

Our next question comes from David Storms from Stonegate.

David Storms, Analyst

Just wanted to maybe circle back to the acceleration unit. What do early wins look like for them? I know there's a lot up in the air and things are changing rapidly. But what would you hope to accomplish over maybe the short to medium term?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes. I think from a quantitative standpoint, I'll start there and kind of build into it. We have about 30% of our revenues today that are AI related. Now that's up from about 10% about a year ago. We are looking to get to 50%. And one of the reasons for that is, is that we have a great talented upskilled workforce globally. And because of that, we are in high demand on all things AI. And with that, that means we want to be able to utilize the capabilities we have with our client base, and we have, I think, some pretty firm pricing as a result of that. So number one, just from a targeting standpoint, we want this unit to help us move from kind of 30% to 50%. So if you want to look at it on a quantitative basis. The key is this is kind of a small almost I'll look at it as a seal team where we have our Chief Software Analyst, we have a Chief Change Management Officer. We have our Chief AI Officer, which Steve Hall has been that for almost 3 years now. We have this small group of people that are really helping us accelerate on a global basis. And that's what we're looking to accomplish, continuing to add features like the AI Maturity Index and other things as we move through '26 and '27. So that's our thinking around it, Dave.

David Storms, Analyst

That's great information. I appreciate it. Given the changes we are observing in the landscape, how is your visibility in the pipeline changing? Is it becoming more challenging to manage as processes move more quickly, or are you noticing customers taking extra time to assess before making decisions, resulting in possibly longer sales cycles?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes, that's a good question. In the U.S., we've noticed some items shifting from the first quarter to the second. The pipeline remains strong, but the pace is somewhat varied, influenced by global events. We are facing new tariffs and some geopolitical uncertainties, which can make buyers hesitant. However, looking ahead to 2026, we anticipate seeing our work accelerate throughout the year. Europe is expected to stay steady, while Asia Pacific may see more activity in the latter half of the year. Although the U.S. will face a challenging comparison in the first quarter, we expect significant acceleration beginning in Q2, driven by our pipeline. The overall situation is mixed and largely depends on the macro environment and buyer behavior, but demand is present, the pipeline is healthy, and we anticipate a somewhat uneven pace for one or two quarters based on global reflections.

David Storms, Analyst

That's great. I do really appreciate that. And then maybe just one more for me, trying to tie together your recurring revenue and the AI revenue. Are you seeing AI spend be pretty recurring? Or are there sections of it that tend to be more or less recurrent than others? Just any thoughts there would be great.

Michael Sherrick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Yes, Dave, it's Michael. I mean, I think it's a mix. I mean, as you can imagine, AI is very quickly becoming a part of most projects and things that we do. And so as a result, some will be in things that are recurring, right? Things like governance, things like research, those will be recurring and others will be embedded into projects, right, where we're looking at back office towers that are moving to a genetic AI and other forms of technology to help automate and drive efficiency. So it's going to be a combination, very similar to prior technology movements.

Operator, Operator

Our next question comes from Vince Colicchio from Barrington Research.

Vince Colicchio, Analyst

I'd like to discuss labor supply for a moment. We understand that in AI-related work, labor can be highly productive and leveraged. That said, do your AI capabilities align with current demand? Additionally, to achieve your 50% target, will it be challenging to find the necessary workforce?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes, that's a good question, Vince. First of all, we have scaled up our workforce on AI skills through the end of last year, and we now have advanced training ongoing that we expect all of our client-facing colleagues around the world to complete by the end of April. This will elevate their skills further. Additionally, since we have 30% of our revenues and engagements embedded with AI, our team is gaining a lot of hands-on experience. Overall, I believe we will be in a strong position skill-wise, as well as in terms of real, live work with our clients. We feel confident that we have the talent base or can attract the necessary talent to complement our current team. We've been reskilling and upskilling our teams for almost 18 months and are pleased with the progress. From a labor perspective, we've historically maintained very low turnover in this industry, significantly below industry averages, and that remains the case today. This helps us retain the skills we have and allows for appropriate supplementation.

Vince Colicchio, Analyst

So it sounds like Europe will continue to be strong in Q1. And just curious about what service lines should lead in Q1 into early Q2?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes. So I think you're right, that's how we see it, if we see the U.S., they have a tough quarter-over-quarter compare, but Europe still continues their strong growth areas. But the area there will continue to be and all things on the recurring revenue streams in Europe. The backlog, as you know, we talked about this, Europe was a little behind the U.S. It began to catch up in terms of buyer behavior and movement on AI journey during the second half of last year, it picked up momentum. You saw that in the fourth quarter, and we think you'll see that in the first quarter. The pipeline in the U.S., in particular, is very heavy. Things have moved out a little bit, but we expect that also to move nicely upwards as the year progresses. So our recurring revenues around research, our governance, especially AI governance are all very hot, and we expect that to continue during the first quarter.

Vince Colicchio, Analyst

When I think about this index business, it seems like a really good tip of the spear to get you into a lot of new accounts. I assume you're thinking like that. And are you seeing that pay off so far? I mean, it's very early.

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes. It is a tip of the spear, and we've got about 30 clients that are currently in our pipeline. But more importantly, we are using it as a door opener with our AI services. It's a terrific tool. It's a terrific assessment. It gives instant feedback to an enterprise in terms of where their workforce is. So yes, we're very excited about it. It's kind of the tip of the spear. We like it, and as I said earlier, we're happy to send you the link for you to do it yourself. It's all gone electronically digitally. It's pretty swift. You'll see how it operates with the clients as well.

Operator, Operator

Our next question comes from Kasi SriHari from Singular Research.

Kasi SriHari, Analyst

Yes. So my first question is for what you're seeing in the field, are clients beginning to consolidate their advisory and benching spend around a smaller set of partners for AI and sourcing? Or is the wallet share still spread across multiple firms?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Good question. I think from our perspective, we think there's going to be some consolidation. And the reason we think it is because clients want more of them being informed with information. They want an outcome. So the insights are going to be very important, but execution with scale is probably even more important. And if you can combine the insight with the advisory of sale, and then you can actually help them AI govern, we think that's nirvana. And that's why we think we're really well positioned. So we'll see how this progresses over the next year or 2 years. But our sense is that clients are becoming much more interested in an outcome-based, not just being informed. So that's how we see this evolving over the next couple of years.

Kasi SriHari, Analyst

And as you deploy this maturity index with more clients. Are you seeing any patterns by industry or geography in terms of who's actually generally ready to scale versus who is still in the early stage? And how does that prioritize your own go-to-market strategy?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

No, it's a good question. I think it's too early to give you a, I'll call it, a fact-based assessment on that. I would say that based on what we have done from an assessment standpoint, what this index has done, it's pretty all over the board because it's still so new. We think we all are seeing this every day, and we think it's been around. But the reality is this is 2.5 years old, but really less than that in terms of any kind of scale going on. So I think it's a mixed bag. I don't have an industry specific, if it's that. I would say that when the workforce is as dispersed and divested as a major Global 200, Global 300 company, much more difficult to get the readiness. If the enterprise is smaller and a little more contained, maybe a bit better. But we'll need a little more time to get a fact-based approach. But right now, it's pretty broad-based, I would say.

Kasi SriHari, Analyst

Got it. And given that with your new team related to, given that most 30% of your revenue is now AI-related, what portion of your delivery teams are actually spending a majority of their time in AI-centric versus more traditional sourcing and transformation mix to evolve in 2026?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes. No, that's a very good question. I think I would say 75%, 80% of our workforce is now engaged in something AI-related. It may be very early stage and therefore, converting from revenue maybe smaller in some cases. But when you have 30% of your revenue, you're getting it heavier in some spots, lighter in others. But I would say 75% to 80% of our workforce now is touching AI in their work.

Kasi SriHari, Analyst

And does the AI work come with premium pricing in terms of billable hours?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

We think that the AI work that we're doing is, I'll call it, firmly priced.

Kasi SriHari, Analyst

Okay. Understood. On the consumer side, you noted that it's a very important area for you, partly due to the tariffs. With the recent success in consumer engagements, are these efforts focused more on long-term cost reductions rather than immediate needs? Could you share how you are developing these into a multi-year relationship?

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Yes, that's a good question. On the consumer side, we are actively working with several large global consumer companies. As I mentioned, they are focused on breaking down their operating costs into different segments and figuring out how to optimize that cost structure in the near term by leveraging existing technology at scale for substantial results. For instance, we are collaborating with a major consumer company that aims to reduce their operating costs by 40% over the next 3 to 4 years, representing a multibillion-dollar optimization effort through technology, AI, automation, and other methods. This approach isn't unusual among consumer companies, although the scale may vary. Another example I provided involved a 20% optimization. They want us to first share our research on AI, the available capabilities, and the ecosystem, as we are the experts in this field. They are eager to understand who is involved at what levels and how it can be applied to their specific business. Importantly, they are looking for us to assist in executing these strategies fully, rather than just providing information or analysis. That is the trend we are observing.

Operator, Operator

Our last question comes from Joe Gomes from NOBLE Capital.

Jacob Mutchler, Analyst

Jacob Mutchler is speaking for Joe Gomes this morning. I would like to ask about ISG Tango. Could you share what is driving its growth and how it is performing with mid-market clients? Additionally, could you elaborate on your earlier comment regarding the enhancement of Tango's technical capabilities or its capacity for handling flow? Any insights would be appreciated.

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Sure. First, let me provide some context on pain. We currently have about $25 billion in contract value, with approximately $11 billion, or just over 40%, coming from the mid-market. When we initially launched this platform, we believed it would allow us to enter companies that we hadn't targeted before due to our pricing model, which can be higher and more challenging to justify for mid-market companies. However, Tango digitizes many of the processes, creating a win-win situation for enterprises. We place all the data on our platform, enabling companies competing for enterprise projects—whether in infrastructure, applications, or supply chain—to access a digital platform. This visibility allows clients to understand what major technology firms like IBM or Accenture are doing, leading to faster realization of value. Tasks that previously took longer are expedited due to digitization. Technology providers can anticipate outcomes from their pursuits, knowing there will be a clear result, whether they succeed or not, and this also speeds up the entire process. From ISG's perspective, we gather all relevant data and integrate it into our systems, allowing us to utilize talent more flexibly on a global scale, as the process takes less time. This means we can allocate our talent across various engagements more efficiently. This is the collective advantage of Tango and explains its rapid adoption. By the way, concerning the mid-market, I previously mentioned around 30%, but it's more accurate to say it's about 25%. Just to clarify, Jason.

Jacob Mutchler, Analyst

Got you. Okay. And then briefly turning to Asia. What is the expectation for returning to growth in the back half? Is there a catalyst for this change or any insights on what will help drive Asia back to growth?

Michael Sherrick, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Yes. Jacob, I think it's Michael. As Mike commented, for Asia, we really need to see the public sector begin to improve. We've seen some improvement in the pipeline there. Obviously, we need to close that business, but that's obviously the early sign of beginning to see some life come back is that we're seeing some better opportunities in our pipeline.

Operator, Operator

And I'm showing no further questions. I'll turn the call back over to Mike Connors for his closing remarks.

Michael P. Connors, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Okay. In closing, let me thank all of our professionals worldwide for our continuing progress and further collaboration and unwavering dedication to our clients in driving our long-term success. I think our people have a passion for delivering the best information, insights, advice and support to our clients as they continue their AI-powered transformations, and I could not be prouder of them. And thanks to all of you on the call for your continued support and confidence in our firm. Have a great rest of the day.

Operator, Operator

This concludes today's teleconference. You may disconnect at any time.