Technology Due Diligence Matters for TPAs

Technology modernization was front and center at SIIA 2026.

The investment banking panel raised a point every TPA owner considering a sale or acquisition should hear. Investors are bringing outside technology specialists into acquisition reviews, including smaller transactions.

Conversations with private equity professionals afterward reinforced that point, so buyers want to understand the systems they’re acquiring and what it will cost to support the business after closing.

What Are Buyers Evaluating in a Tech Stack?

Buyers may evaluate a company’s tech stack, or the technology used to run its operations, differently depending on the transaction, but four questions are especially relevant to healthcare administration:

• Can the platform scale? Buyers need to understand whether growing membership, claim volume, or plan complexity would require significant redevelopment.
• How well is sensitive information protected? Security architecture and independent testing are also under review by buyers, especially since systems handle healthcare data.
• How much can the business change? Configurable workflows and dependable integrations affect how quickly an administrator can add clients and support different plan designs
• Is the technology sustainable? Buyers want to know whether the existing systems can support the business long term without becoming too expensive or difficult to maintain as the company grows.

A company that struggles to answer these questions faces additional diligence or remediation requests. The financial consequences depend on the transaction, but unresolved technical risk affects deal terms and a buyer’s willingness to proceed, too.

Regulatory Changes Put Technology Adaptability to the Test

The 2026 Transparency in Coverage final rule is a timely example of why healthcare administrators need adaptable technology.

Beginning March 6, 2027, updated in-network and out-of-network reporting requirements will change how plans organize and disclose certain pricing data.

For companies operating on aging technology, even a reporting change can require tedious development work. Over time, these modifications can become increasingly difficult and expensive to manage, which buyers are considering when they evaluate whether the existing platform is worth the compliance risk.

Why a Salesforce Foundation Is Relevant

This is part of the reason IPS built Encompass+ on Salesforce.

An established cloud foundation gives us access to documented security controls and ongoing platform development while providing configurable claims workflows and integration capabilities for healthcare administrators.

Those design choices are relevant when a potential buyer asks how a system can grow or adapt, reducing the need to maintain the underlying server infrastructure independently.

A Salesforce foundation is not a substitute for due diligence, though. Implementation, integrations, data practices, and operational controls still need to withstand buyer and federal scrutiny. Starting with a well-established platform can make those conversations more straightforward.

Modern Technology Is a Business Priority

My biggest takeaway from SIIA is that buyers and TPAs need to pay closer attention to the cost of growth.

For buyers, that means understanding how much of the expected return vanishes into replacing outdated systems or hiring additional staff to support them. For TPAs with no intention of selling, those same costs hamper profitability every time a new client requires custom development or additional manual work.

Modernizing the tech stack directly impacts the growth equation, and the business case for investing in it exists regardless of whether an acquisition is in the future.