By Ashley Levitt
“Customers invite us to their Christmas parties,” said Rich Eckstein, partner, business development at Networking Solutions, 2014’s Best Information Technology Support Company in the Corridor. “Our server tech got married and two clients came to the wedding.”
Mr. Eckstein admits that there are a lot of technology companies and a lot of smart people who understand technology, but he believes Networking Solutions’ culture sets it apart. “We’re smart and good at what we do, but we also have good communication skills,” he said.
Communication skills are important for a company with 700 clients throughout the Corridor and nearly double that amount throughout the United States.
Since Networking Solutions was founded in 2002, the full-service information technology firm has grown from four employees to 42. These individuals occupy offices in Cedar Rapids, Waterloo and a newly opened Des Moines location, and provide hundreds of IT solutions, all of which can be broken down into three categories: networking, unified communications and application development.
Disaster planning falls into all three categories, and given the weather, it is a very real concern this time of year.
“This year we’ve had more lightning disasters than we’ve had floods,” Mr. Eckstein said, estimating the ratio at 20-1.
To prepare clients for disasters, Networking Solutions works with them to create a continuity plan that enables businesses to experience the least amount of downtime should the worst happen. The details of that plan depend on the situation, but customers can rest assured that they don’t have to worry about upselling. Networking Solutions’ sales consultants do not work on commission.
“It keeps the consultant almost righteous so we know we’re giving them the best solution long-term,” Mr. Eckstein said.
To determine that solution, Networking Solutions frequently invites their technology partners to put on training events and workshops. According to Mr. Eckstein, the Midwest usually sees trends that happened earlier on the East and West Coasts, providing unforeseen benefits in security and dependability.
“Some of the newer ideas are out there [on the coasts] sooner, but they get to learn all the hard ways,” said Mr. Eckstein. “Usually by the time it hits us, it’s proven.”
TIMES ON LIST:
1 Time Best Information Technology Support Company
