MSP SPOTLIGHT
Company : Ease Technologies , Inc .
Founded : 1993
Headquarters : Columbia , Maryland
Geographic Market : Mid-Atlantic Region ( MD , D . C ., VA )
Top Growth Indicator : Organic Growth And New Service Offerings ( Risk Management , Compliance )
YoY Percent of Growth : 10 – 20 %
CEO and Founder : Chuck Bubeck
What are the top three metrics you use to measure your business and why ?
Referrals : We ’ ve moved our business to be very referral-oriented . Over half of our new business is coming from our customer base .
Relationship Gauge : How often are we affecting the client ? How are we affecting their business ? Are we treating them as a partner ? Do they see us as having value ?
Analytics : This market has become a business of seconds and pennies . You can ’ t make a lot of mistakes . We use analytical tools to hone in on where our business is going . How are our resources being applied ? How often do we have to support a certain customer ?
We couldn ’ t find anything , so we had to build our own analytical tool , and over the last year , it has helped us discover where our resources spend their energy . By using certain analytics , we ’ re making sure we have the right resources for the right clients .
We discovered that it often isn ’ t the loud ones who are causing problems ; it ’ s the quiet ones . That ’ s how complicated the business has gotten , and you cannot see these problems when you look at the big picture . You have to use analytics .
What is the top lesson you had to learn that allowed you to kick-start your business growth ?
Finding the right customers is key . We ’ ve been around for 25 years , so we ’ ve been through a lot of customers . This helped us discover what profile type makes our best customer .
If you look at this market , 30 % of people hate IT , but they have to use it , so they do . Another 45 % aren ’ t proactive , but they use it , again , because they have to . The rest look for partnerships with tech firms and see the value in using tech to better their business . That ' s our target market .
Sometimes , we have to walk away from a client . It ’ s better to have long-term relationships than to have a lot of clients who are constantly moving around or are only temporary partners .
We had a client who brought in $ 30,000 per month , but we parted ways because we knew the relationship was heading in the wrong direction . It hurts , but you have to be willing to walk away .
What would you say was the secret to your success this past year ?
I think back to the word “ focus .” We really focused on vertical markets because you can ’ t service everyone . In our case , we drilled down on the market that we were most effective in and dug deeper into it because we saw great sustained value .
What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome this past year that ' s related to reaching that growth or a result of that growth ?
Giving up those shallow markets was difficult . We needed to look at our partnerships and de-invest in clients who didn ’ t see us as an asset to their business . We want clients we sit down with when they ’ re doing their business planning , but those customers are hard to come by . You have to find them , and then you have to nurture them . You have to trade pure revenue growth from these shallow markets for customers you know you ’ ll have a partnership with long term .
Who would you say is the most impactful business leader or business thoughtleader whose techniques or leadership style you try to emulate , follow , or are influenced by , and why ?
Steve Jobs .
I worked for Apple for 10 years right before the Mac came out , which is when Apple was in its formative days . I was around people who were really in a cutting-edge industry . In the mid- ' 80s , Apple was the underdog to the IBM PC and was almost knocked out of the market . Working there , I loved being the underdog , and I had to work to fight the