Every church now has best of breed solutions with one ministry partner.
April 19, 2021, Florence, S.C. – ACS Technologies®, the world’s leading provider of church management software and service solutions, announces the merger of both Think Ministry Inc., the software company behind MinistryPlatform, the most popular customizable church management platform on the market today, and Higher Ground Technologies, the church market leader in IT-managed services into the ACS Technologies family. Combining all three creates an unrivaled benefit to churches and ministries of every type, especially larger and multi-site churches, and denominational offices and dioceses. This is a further step in ACS Technologies’ vision to serve every ministry in building the Kingdom.
“For over four decades, we’ve been building software for churches that can be personalized by that church in specific ways. This has enabled greater ministry opportunities for individual churches as they desire to minister within their unique calling. Today we can also say we build software with churches that can be customized by that church in unique ways,” said Joe Koehling, President and CEO of ACS Technologies. “This means we can even better serve every church of any size, type, and vision with just the right set of tools that helps them build the Kingdom in their community style and approach to ministry.”
In addition to expanding on its cornerstone church management software options with accelerated value, ACS, PDS, and the nationally ranked #1 most popular Realm®, ACS Technologies offers a host of additional ministry tools and services immediately beneficial to MinistryPlatform and Higher Ground clients.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to raise the bar again for the churches we serve,” says Chris Kehayias, CEO of Think Ministry. “We’re excited about adding additional resources to accelerate the plans we already have, and we couldn’t be more thrilled about a future where our churches can be served by a larger like-minded organization. ACS Technologies has a tremendously great reputation for truly caring for their churches, and I could not be more thrilled to be part of this family. With the simultaneous merger of Higher Ground, I am extremely confident all our churches will continue to be cared for – better than ever!”
Most MinistryPlatform churches use Higher Ground Technologies’ IT managed services. “By joining us together, this provides added strength and reliability to all our clients, for both companies. Churches now have one number to call and one partner to count on,” said Tom Guffin of Higher Ground Technologies. “Without any reservation, we know this is the right and best thing for us to do to help as many churches as we can protect their data, save money, and operate with excellence.”
Together and separately, the MinistryPlatform and Higher Ground solutions offer a new level of benefit to current ACS Technologies churches and, in turn, the ACS Technologies portfolio of tools enhances benefits for their current clients, as well. The clear winner of this joining of forces is the Church. For now, they have what they need under one roof, making their daily ministry life easier and more impactful in changing lives with the Gospel.
About the MinistryPlatform solution
MinistryPlatform is the most extensively customizable church management platform available today, serving some of the largest and most well-known churches in America. Since 2007, through custom development, integrations, APIs, and an expanding ecosystem of interconnected solutions, MinistryPlatform has taken its place as a top choice for large churches’ ChMS needs.
About Higher Ground Technologies services
Higher Ground has been serving churches, and other organizations since 2000 with its expertise in IT Managed Services. With services like network management, IT consulting, hosting, and VoIP, Higher Ground uses a relationship-based approach to empower the Church through technology. Whether operating as a resource for the IT team or as a fully outsourced IT department, Higher Ground is dedicated to increasing efficiency, security, and reach for ministries of all sizes.
Why did ACS Technologies partner with them?
Our heart for the church and putting our ministry partners first are what brought us together. We realized that putting our passion and teams together would create an amazing portfolio of solutions and services for all ministry partners.
Will our ACS Technologies solutions go away?
Think Ministry and Higher Ground have joined the ACS Technologies family to give you more options to further your ministry. Each of our solutions will continue to grow and thrive.
Will I be forced to move to MinistryPlatform?
No – all your ACS Technologies solutions you know and love will continue to be developed and supported. Our goal is to meet the needs of your individual church, denominational office, and diocese. MinistryPlatform is another option now included in our suite of solutions and services to meet that goal.
How will this affect the future of my ACS Technologies software?
No resources will be reallocated from our other solutions; the entire Think Ministry team is also joining ACS Technologies and will operate normally. Development, services, and support of our existing solutions will not be affected.
How does MinistryPlatform differ from Realm?
Both solutions are comprehensive and enable staff, pastors, church leaders, and congregants.
Realm was created to serve all churches, leveraging best practices and feedback from our ACS Technologies ministry partners. MinistryPlatform was designed to be flexible with customization options, APIs, and integrations to fit the needs of an individual church or Diocese.
If you’re not sure which solution is right for you, your account manager can help you determine the best option.
About ACS Technologies®
Founded in 1978, ACS Technologies is the leading provider of church management software and service solutions to nearly 50,000 churches, schools, and organizational offices. With the mission to enable everyone in the Church with a personalized ministry environment to make God-honoring decisions in actionable ways, ACS Technologies desires to build the Kingdom by being a trusted ministry partner in the daily life of every church. ACS Technologies stands apart by providing a whole church approach, meeting the needs of the pastor, staff and congregant, with ministry development tools unique in value to each role and each ministry goal serving each type of church/parish, denominational office, and diocese. ACS Technologies is a privately held independent Christian family-led company headquartered in Florence, SC, with offices in Greenville, SC, and Phoenix, AZ.