MSP 501 Profile: ICX Managed Services Finds New Avenues for Growth

Company Name: ICX Managed Services 

Company MSP 501 Rank: 172

President: Bill Woody

Headquartered: Jacksonville, Florida

Primary Services: IT support and outsourcing, cybersecurity solutions, hosting and colocation, cloud computing/virtualization, disaster recovery and business continuity planning.

ICX Managed Services was one of the companies that was successfully able to carve new avenues for growth during the pandemic. To maintain their value to their clients, among other things, they added several new cybersecurity solutions based on the current threats.

ICX Managed Services’ Bill Woody

The company also launched a technology-as-a-service program. This essentially lets clients choose their desired equipment à la carte style for a flat fee. This allows a growing business to add technology setups as needed in order to scale effectively. 

President Bill Woody touches on emerging technologies and the importance – believe it or not – of disconnecting once in a while.

Channel Futures: What new opportunities and challenges came with the global COVID-19 pandemic?

Bill Woody: Despite the pandemic last year, we found many new avenues for growth through bundling services like remote desktop with security solutions and Office 365, which allowed customers to send employees to work from home while maintaining operational efficiency and security. We also added several new cybersecurity solutions based on the current threats. We created tiers or bundles for those services that clients can choose from. In our consulting process, we review the client’s needs and customize a security solution that fits their organization. Not every business needs every cyber product or cybersecurity solutions, so we try to customize to the client’s actual needs. 

Another route we found success last year was in our Technology as a Service (TaaS) program. We launched the program in 2019 but it really took off in 2020. With our TaaS program, we let clients pick whatever equipment they want from our catalog of inventory. This includes printers and peripherals. We then create a package for a flat fee per month, per device. This way a growing business can add on technology setups for people as they come in, so they can effectively scale as they grow without the immediate overhead of purchasing all new equipment.

The features our clients like the best are the fact that if their device ever goes down and we cannot fix it, we will ship out a replacement device immediately. The other thing we are getting great feedback on is the fact that we bundle our local, on-call helpdesk support from our network operations center based in Jacksonville, Florida. That way, the clients get the computers and equipment they want along with the support. It has really been a win-win all around. 

CF: If you could go back to one technological point in time, what would it be and why?

BW: Personally, I miss the days of the early ’90s when cellphones were just emerging and computers were evolving. We were much less hyperconnected than we are today. Now, I’m a technology guy. I love every aspect of emerging technologies. But when I get home at night I’d really like to disconnect from the phone/web and be truly unavailable. Unfortunately, it is very hard to set those personal boundaries when we are all on-demand as a society. 

I also think the always-on, overexposure of technology is making it harder to connect with family and friends and just be unplugged. My favorite times, personally, are when our ICX team are all together, enjoying an outing like Top Golf or a big dinner together, and there are no phones in sight. That’s when the real conversations and ideas come out, and our team can come together to collaborate and appreciate the camaraderie we’ve built. We have some incredibly talented people on our team and I am always amazed at their ingenuity and dedication to our clients. 

CF: Why are you a business owner instead of working for someone else? What is the allure of entrepreneurship to you?

BW: I think, to be perfectly blunt, I’m a glutton for punishment! No, really, I love the challenge of running my own business. It’s a 24/7 commitment, but I can’t imagine enjoying anything else as much as my ICX team and the great vendor and client relationships we have. As an entrepreneur, you put yourself out there every day and give everything you have because it’s always your vision on the line. 

I take the responsibility of making sure we can support our team members and their families very seriously. That is why my dedication isn’t just to support our clients, or growth by adding new business, but the devotion to ensuring our team and their families are taken care of and feel secure and fully supported. That’s what really matters to me as a business owner. Because, without them, none of this would be possible. They are the skeleton that holds this whole thing together. I am grateful to each of them for their dedication to their jobs and our shared mission.