Goodwill and Intangible Assets

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

The table below sets forth the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill by reportable segment for the nine months ended September 30, 2020.


	Healthcare		Business Advisory		Education		Total
Balance as of December 31, 2019:
Goodwill	$	636,810	$	302,057	$	103,889	$	1,042,756
Accumulated impairment losses	(208,081)		(187,995)		—		(396,076)
Goodwill, net as of December 31, 2019	428,729		114,062		103,889		646,680
Goodwill recorded in connection with a business acquisition (1)	—		—		495		495
Goodwill impairment charge	—		(59,816)		—		(59,816)
Foreign currency translation	—		(629)		—		(629)
Goodwill, net as of September 30, 2020	$	428,729	$	53,617	$	104,384	$	586,730

(1)On August 1, 2020, we completed the acquisition of B3i Analytics, LLC, a software firm that provides a software as a solution ("SaaS") application to leverage internal and external data to help higher education institutions forecast research revenue. The results of operations of the acquired business is included in our consolidated financial statements and results of operations of our Education segment from the date of acquisition. This acquisition is not significant to our consolidated financial statements.

First Quarter 2020 Goodwill Impairment Charges

The worldwide spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the first quarter of 2020 created significant volatility, uncertainty and disruption to the global economy. We are closely monitoring the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on all aspects of our business, including how we expect it will continue to negatively impact our clients, employees and business partners. While the COVID-19 pandemic did not have a significant impact on our consolidated revenues in the first quarter of 2020, we expected it to have an unfavorable impact on sales, increase uncertainty in the backlog and negatively impact full year 2020 results. The services provided by our Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units within our Business Advisory segment focus on strategic solutions for healthy, well-capitalized companies to identify new growth opportunities, which may be considered by our clients to be more discretionary in nature, and the duration of the projects within these practices are typically short-term. Therefore, due to the uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we are cautious about near-term results for these two reporting units. Based on our internal projections and the preparation of our financial statements for the quarter ended March 31, 2020, and considering the expected decrease in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic, during the first quarter of 2020 we believed that the fair value of these two reporting units no longer exceeded their carrying values and performed an interim impairment test on both reporting units as of March 31, 2020.

Based on the estimated fair values of the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units, we recorded non-cash pretax goodwill impairment charges of $49.9 million and $9.9 million, respectively, in the first quarter of 2020. The $49.9 million non-cash pretax charge related to the Strategy and Innovation reporting unit reduced the goodwill balance of the reporting unit to $37.5 million. The $9.9 million non-cash pretax charge related to the Life Sciences reporting unit reduced the goodwill balance of the reporting unit to zero.

Our goodwill impairment test was performed by comparing the fair value of each of the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units with its respective carrying value and recognizing an impairment charge for the amount by which the carrying value exceeded the fair value. To estimate the fair value of each reporting unit, we relied on a combination of the income approach and the market approach, with a fifty-fifty weighting.

In the income approach, we utilized a discounted cash flow analysis, which involved estimating the expected after-tax cash flows that will be generated by each reporting unit and then discounting those cash flows to present value, reflecting the relevant risks associated with each

reporting unit and the time value of money. This approach requires the use of significant estimates and assumptions, including long-term projections of future cash flows, market conditions, and discount rates that reflects the risk inherent in the future cash flows. In estimating future cash flows, we relied on internally generated seven-year forecasts. For periods after the seven-year forecast, we assumed a long-term annual revenue growth rate of 3.0% for both the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units and a long-term EBITDA margin of 24.8% and 6.7%, respectively. Our forecasts are based on historical experience, current backlog, expected market demand, and other industry information. Our discounted cash flow analysis assumed weighted average cost of capital discount rates of 16.0% and 10.5% for the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units, respectively.

In the market approach, we utilized the guideline company method, which involved calculating valuation revenue multiples based on operating data from guideline publicly traded companies. Multiples derived from guideline companies provide an indication of how much a knowledgeable investor in the marketplace would be willing to pay for a company. These multiples were evaluated and adjusted based on specific characteristics of the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units relative to the selected guideline companies and applied to the reporting units' operating data to arrive at an indication of value. The range of revenue multiples used in the valuation of the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units was 1.20x to 1.70x and 0.30x to 0.40x, respectively.

Concurrently with the goodwill impairment tests performed over the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units, we evaluated whether any indicators exist that would lead us to believe that the fair values of our Healthcare, Education, and Business Advisory reporting units may not exceed their carrying values. Based on our internal projections, consideration of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on these reporting units, and review of the amounts by which the fair values of these reporting units exceeded their carrying values in the most recent quantitative goodwill impairment analysis performed, we did not identify any indicators that would lead us to believe that the fair values of these reporting units may not exceed their carrying values as of March 31, 2020.

In connection with the goodwill impairment tests performed on the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units as of March 31, 2020, we performed impairment tests on the long-lived assets allocated to the asset groups of the Strategy and Innovation and Life Sciences reporting units. Based on the impairment tests performed, we concluded that the long-lived assets allocated to the asset groups were not impaired as of March 31, 2020. We did not identify any indicators that would lead us to believe that the carrying values of the long-lived assets allocated to our other asset groups may not be recoverable as of March 31, 2020.

In the second and third quarters of 2020, we did not identify any indicators that would lead us to believe that the fair values of any of our reporting units may not exceed their carrying values, nor did we identify any indicators that would lead us to believe that the carrying values of the long-lived assets allocated to our asset groups may not be recoverable.

Intangible Assets

Intangible assets as of September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 consisted of the following:


		As of September 30, 2020				As of December 31, 2019
	Useful Life (in years)	Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization		Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization
Customer relationships	3 to 13	$	83,287	$	64,757	$	87,577	$	61,882
Trade names	5 to 6	28,930		26,788		28,930		25,894
Technology and software	5	5,800		5,053		5,694		4,321
Non-competition agreements	5	1,880		1,441		2,220		1,447
Customer contracts	2	800		408		800		52
Total		$	120,697	$	98,447	$	125,221	$	93,596

Identifiable intangible assets with finite lives are amortized over their estimated useful lives. Customer relationships and customer contracts, as well as certain trade names and technology and software, are amortized on an accelerated basis to correspond to the cash flows expected to be derived from the assets. All other intangible assets with finite lives are amortized on a straight-line basis.

Intangible asset amortization expense was $3.2 million and $4.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, respectively; and $9.6 million and $13.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019. The table below sets forth the estimated annual amortization expense for the intangible assets recorded as of September 30, 2020.


Year Ending December 31,	Estimated Amortization Expense
2020	$	12,635
2021	$	8,422
2022	$	6,186
2023	$	3,582
2024	$	797

Actual future amortization expense could differ from these estimated amounts as a result of future acquisitions, dispositions, and other factors.