Attensi: From local start-up to global scale-up – how IT scaled together with Fortytwo

Attensi er en ledende leverandør av spill- og simuleringsbasert trening og opplæring, som kombinerer innsikt fra psykologi, avansert teknologi og spilldesign. Siden 2013 har Attensis spillbaserte simuleringer og treningsløsninger styrket organisasjoner globalt ved å utvikle ansatte gjennom engasjerende, interaktive læringsspill. Med stort fokus på innovasjon og AI-teknologi bidrar Attensi til å forme fremtidens læring og utvikling.
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A Norwegian IT Success Story

Attensi is that rare thing: a Norwegian IT fairytale. In just 10 years, they have evolved from a local start-up to a world-leading «scale-up.» The partnership with Fortytwo has been a key factor in Attensi’s ability to maintain its desired agility and innovation while meeting the high demands of global customers for stability and security.

Fortytwo: Specialization is Required for Expertise

Fortytwo has changed the way technology is delivered, boasting Norway’s highest density of expert competence in Microsoft technology. Our flexible service model, effective collaboration framework, and use of cloud capabilities to deliver «services as code» are radically new and provide significant efficiency gains.

Together: Complementary Expertise, Optimal Impact

Attensi’s IT platform is extensive and grows in lockstep with the company. Driven by both Attensi’s own development and the inherent continuous change in technology, the required breadth of competence is massive. By partnering with specialist environments like Fortytwo, Attensi gains optimal access to niche expertise exactly when needed.

For our global growth ambitions, we needed a ‘trusted partner’ and a cloud platform that was stable, scalable, and actively supported our pace of innovation. The collaboration with Fortytwo provides exactly the strategic security and technological backbone we required for IT operations and security.
Trond, CEO, Attensi

The Challenge: Scaling IT Capacity for Global Growth

ttensi had experienced impressive growth, but IT operations were dependent on a few key individuals. While these experts are highly skilled and had developed many custom solutions, it created a significant concentration of risk. This was challenging given the company’s global ambitions as a leading provider of advanced learning technologies.

The internal IT function lacked the human capacity to handle every task simultaneously. The team was too small to cover daily operations, development, security, and strategic projects all at once, with workloads fluctuating heavily based on urgent needs.

Attensi realized they needed to supplement internal IT with external capacity that could scale up or down as needed—without hiring full-time staff for every niche area. Simultaneously, they wanted to strengthen the internal team through a partnership that offered both immediate resource support and long-term knowledge transfer.

The choice fell on Fortytwo, and the timing was perfect. Fortytwo entered with a promise of technical expertise delivered through a flexible and transparent collaboration model.

Key reasons why Attensi chose Fortytwo:

Proactivity over reactive, SLA-based approaches.
Accessibility to specialists via Slack and Teams rather than «ticket black holes.»
Cost Efficiency: Services delivered as code, utilizing state-of-the-art cloud capabilities.
Flexibility: A contract based on shared goals and results, with no lock-in period.
Scalable Pricing: A structure that allows Attensi to scale costs up or down rapidly.
Cultural Fit: A trust-based, informal culture at both companies.

The First Steps: From Analysis to Architecture

The journey began with a thorough six-week analysis phase. Fortytwo took on the risk of mapping out a complex and limitedly documented system landscape. For Attensi, wanting to avoid long-term vendor lock-in, Fortytwo’s flexibility and short notice period were decisive.

We faced a demanding situation with high person-dependency and systems that needed follow-up to meet scalability and security requirements without losing our agility. With Fortytwo, we gained a partner with deep technical insight that helped us build a robust IT architecture, ready for ISO certification and the demands of global clients.
Ole, CTO, Attensi

A Partnership Built on Culture and Results

Beyond the technical, the cultural chemistry was a key success factor. Fortytwo integrated into Attensi’s established workflows and tools, quickly becoming recognized for its agile, non-bureaucratic style. Attensi doesn’t view Fortytwo as a traditional vendor, but as an extension of their own team. 

Fortytwo are competent, solution-oriented, and deliver reliably. They serve as valuable sparring partners, making them a great resource in a busy workday.
Pia, Senior IT Operations Manager, Attensi
Fortytwo is a vital partner and a champion for security best practices. Their experience from their own research and work with other companies enhances security and streamlines incident response across their entire client base.
Øyvind, Head of Security & IT, Attensi

Deep Dive: Raising the Security Wall

Through Fortytwo’s «Activisory» service—featuring monthly evaluation and planning meetings—Attensi has gained deeper insight into the security posture of their Microsoft-based environment.

Additionally, Fortytwo’s «SecOps» (security monitoring and advisory) has been crucial on several occasions in thwarting potential cyberattacks. Attensi highlights the value of combining reactive monitoring with proactive advising from the same provider, ensuring more effective root-cause resolution through short decision-making paths.

During this process, typical «growing pains» were addressed. As Attensi prepared for ISO certification, achieving world-class control over cloud systems became essential. Fortytwo helped identify and implement improvements in cost-efficiency and quality while adapting to Attensi’s internal reorganizations.

Optimization Yields Lasting Value: Licenses and Infrastructure

Specific cost-saving measures included:

License Optimization: Smart consolidation, removing unused seats, and choosing tailored license models.

Infrastructure Tuning: Better management of contract periods and server scaling.

Result: Direct annual savings of over 1,000,000 NOK after just one year of collaboration.

Dynamic Synergy: Balancing Security and Productivity

In an innovative organization like Attensi, strict security can sometimes feel like a barrier to efficiency. Fortytwo’s role is to act as a transparent advisor—highlighting risks and consequences so Attensi can make informed choices to find the optimal balance.

Fortytwo has also been clear about their own core competencies, gladly referring Attensi to other specialized partners for hardware or penetration testing when necessary. This honesty has further strengthened the bond of trust.

Looking Ahead

As technology-driven companies, both Attensi and Fortytwo are experiencing annual growth of over 40%. This shared pace creates a unique «birds of a feather» dynamic.

While much has been achieved, both parties are looking forward. A shared pipeline of quality and cost-saving measures ensures that the potential for further optimization remains high. By focusing on scalability, security, and cultural alignment, Attensi has laid a solid foundation for its ambitious global goals.

This is just the beginning. Attensi and Fortytwo will continue to work together to support Attensi’s incredible journey.

The journey with Attensi has been an inspiration. It has shown us the power of a strategic IT partnership and how a shared culture of innovation and trust can accelerate global growth. We have gained invaluable experience and knowledge on how to handle the challenges of scaling while simultaneously optimizing costs and security—transforming IT from a dead weight into a competitive advantage. Now, we look forward to sharing this knowledge and helping other companies with the same ambitions succeed on their own journeys.
Robert, CEO, Fortytwo
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