A TECHNOLOGY start-up firm is reflecting on a successful first year in business which has seen strong demand for its strategy-first approach to IT from across the north-east.
Established in July 2019, io, a managed IT solutions specialist, has secured contracts in the energy, engineering, graphic design, and healthcare sectors, among others.
Subscribe to our daily newsletter
Why? Free to subscribe, no paywall, daily business news digest.
It also completed the successful roll-out of a Microsoft Teams cloud voice solution to more than 100 staff across three different continents on behalf of an energy services business.
With 40 years’ combined experience, io, based in Altens, is led by directors David McCready and Nick Pickering and provides IT support, consultancy, and strategy to small-and-medium-sized businesses throughout the UK and internationally.
While the business remains predominantly focused on the north-east of Scotland, it has existing clients operating globally as well as strategic relationships with other Microsoft partners around the world.
In addition, io plans to diversify into new sectors – such as food & drink, tourism, clean energy, and renewables – and expects to relocate to larger office space within its present location of Balmoral Hub, Wellington Circle to accommodate its growing team.
Commenting on the one-year milestone, David said: “There is never an easy time to start a business but, having faced a global pandemic and resulting downturn within our first 12 months, it has taught us a great deal both about ourselves and running a business. These experiences have helped improve how we do things so that we can remain sustainable for years to come.
“Despite these challenges, we have managed to achieve our ambitious targets for year-one which has given us the confidence to invest back into the company. We are now seeing certain projects that had been delayed due to Covid-19 moving forward again at pace, which will allow us to hit the ground running in our second year.”
In August, Nick accepted an invite to become a trustee on the board of local charity, SensationALL. The Westhill-based organisation provides therapy-based services to children and adults living with multiple support needs or disabilities.
Nick will look to use his experience to provide an IT strategy that equips the charity to respond to the prevailing conditions and support its end-users.
