This article covers i-Tech Support’s journey from inception to being named OBJ Fast 50 and Golden 100 “Ultimate Newcomer”.
Growing the fastest or becoming the biggest was never a priority for i-Tech Support’s executive leaders Michael Augello, Chairman & CEO, and Daniel Stockman, President & COO. However, this year i-Tech has made the list for these categories among privately held businesses headquartered in Central Florida. In the Orlando Business Journal (OBJ) Fast 50, i-Tech ranked #25. In the OBJ Golden 100, i-Tech ranked #81.
While i-Tech is still a relatively small company with just over 40 employees, making both lists and being a first-timer, a.k.a. “Ultimate Newcomer”, on the Golden 100 list is a meaningful milestone for the firm.
“Since i-Tech’s inception, we’ve adhered to the belief that our success will result directly from helping our clients to succeed. In a way, the Golden 100 and Fast 50 designations validate our mission and purpose,” says Stockman.
When Stockman co-founded i-Tech Support in 1999, the company was considered a Virtual Management Information Systems (MIS) Department which was a precursor to the modern Managed IT Services Provider (MSP). At that time, small- to medium-sized businesses were only just beginning to incorporate technology into their operations.
“Helping any organization, big or small, utilize technology in a way that makes them more successful has always been my passion,” says Stockman, who did just that in his previous roles with Fortune 500 companies Disney and Sprint. Through i-Tech, Stockman saw a way to respond to the needs of smaller, transitioning businesses—delivering enterprise-quality technology support tailored to their size.
Since then, i-Tech has not only expanded its IT offerings but added an Acumatica Cloud ERP Software Implementation and Consulting practice—headed by Augello—now ranked #1 for client satisfaction on G2 and listed among the Top 100 VARS in the industry. i-Tech has also moved first in the state of Florida to provide 360o technology support to schools. With the launch of its Educational Technology division, i-Tech helps schools manage everything from IT to EdTech. All three divisions have continued to experience growth through the 3rd quarter of 2022, and i-Tech is on pace for another strong year.
Read Stockman’s responses to questions posed by the Orlando Business Journal:
What’s the secret to your company achieving such fast growth? The world’s best team (WBT) – from our Directors to Sales to Admin to Operations and Consultants, our success has been a total team effort.
What’s the biggest challenge your rapid growth caused? Finding new employees and resources was the most challenging part. We found a combination of employee referrals, LinkedIn recruiting and Zip Recruiter to be a great source of new talent acquisition. We also found that hiring based on energy, motivation and a can-do attitude over experience and skills was a path to success. We can train the skills but can’t train the attitude.
What is your No. 1 priority for the year ahead? Maintaining customer satisfaction is the absolute priority. Client retention is a fraction of the cost of new client acquisition. Plus, reputation is everything.
What was your company’s greatest accomplishment in the last year? We acquired our single largest client last year with a fully managed outsource IT model, including Microsoft Azure cloud hosting for over 20-plus locations across the continental U.S.
How do you describe success? Success is enabling our clients to achieve their goals by optimally deploying and supporting their technology, ultimately leaving them happy.
What is your company’s greatest challenge in the coming year? Managing our growth through worldwide supply shortages along with our ability to continue to find and hire new talent in an ever-changing post-pandemic environment.
How have inflation or supply chain issues affected your business in the last year? Supply chain challenges have created major issues with new network upgrades and replacements. As a result, our sales and administrative teams had to be extraordinarily creative to locate and source products and alternatives.
Are you currently hiring? Yes, we have open positions in our technical operations department and our ERP software division.
Is your company’s workplace setup in person, remote or hybrid? We are hybrid. Some team members work from home full-time, and most of our help desk team reports to our Ocoee headquarters location.
What does the future look like for your company? The future is bright. We are forecasting a minimum of 20% year-over-year growth.
What kind of investments has your company made to maintain success and/or grow? People have been our biggest new investment this year. We added new positions on our team to ensure that we can maintain high-quality support to our clients as we continue to grow.
What new markets do you plan to expand into in the next year? We are trailblazing an emerging market which is 360-degree technology support for schools. In the next year, i-Tech aims to serve a growing number of K-12 schools in Florida with everything from IT to EdTech.
An interesting fact about your company: While i-Tech’s business is heavily concentrated in Central Florida, we also support organizations in five countries outside of the U.S.
Your advice to other local businesses on surviving this challenging economic environment: Stay focused on what you do best and don’t deviate from your mission at any cost. Focus on employee and client satisfaction at all times.
