A Year of Transformation Produces Strong Tailwinds for Blue Mantis in 2024
As we convene our annual company kick-off event, it seems an appropriate time to reflect on the remarkable progress, growth, and positive change that our company has undertaken in just 12 months.
It’s not hyperbole to call 2023 the most transformative year in our 32-year history. It was one in which Blue Mantis made bold strategic moves to fortify our foundation. Those moves set the stage for our continued growth as a security-first IT solutions provider that is accelerating, innovating, and helping clients harness emerging technologies to meet the future.
The many accomplishments we realized during the year included:
- An Influx of Terrific New Talent – we continued to earn our position as an employer of choice by adding top technical and engineering talent at all levels of the organization. We did so through the organic addition of new talent, but also via two strategic acquisitions—Arcas Risk Management and Zanaris. In the first half of the year, we successfully closed these two deals, contributing to the enhancement of our substantial expertise in cybersecurity, risk management, and compliance. Additionally, they bolstered our capabilities in infrastructure automation, cloud services, and DevOps. We also added senior talent in several key areas; most notably we welcomed our new Chief Revenue Officer Terry Richardson, one of the most respected and accomplished sales executives in the tech industry, to the fold in Q2.
- Accelerating Customer Acquisition – we further expanded our customer portfolio by attracting top-tier organizations in the mid-market, enterprise, and public sector categories. During the year, we saw an incredible triple-digit increase in new clients.
- New Management Structure; Continued Push into High Growth Segments – in November we announced that CEO Ron Dupler, who ably led our company for 18 years and spearheaded the many stages of our evolution over that period, would shift his role to Chairman, effective January 1, 2024. I am humbled and excited that Ron and our Board of Directors voted for me to succeed him in leading Blue Mantis. This transition was managed seamlessly with me moving from my role as President to lead our entire organization. As CEO, I will collaborate with other members of the management team in executing our services-led go-to-market transformation that has produced triple-digit growth in our critical growth pillar areas: cloud, cybersecurity, and managed services.
- New Offerings to Satisfy Customer Demand – we continue to serve as a strategic advisor for clients, surveying the hyper-dynamic technology landscape. To that end, we continuously broaden our portfolio of product bundles and services, which now include cybersecurity and risk management, cloud, networking, data center modernization, modern workspace, and the ability to offer any of those solutions as managed services. In Q4 we launched our dedicated GitOps technology practice to help clients transform their software development lifecycle and unlock the full potential of platform engineering.
- New Brand Reflects New Direction – at mid-year, after nearly a year of planning, we unveiled a powerful new brand identity and announced our name change to Blue Mantis. This strategic marketing initiative reflects our organization’s modern perspective on the managed services segment and the infinite future opportunity for Blue Mantis’ clients, partners, employees, and investors. The Blue Mantis name connotes a sense of calmness, purpose, and grace. It was warmly embraced by all internal and external stakeholders as the shape of things to come.
- An Expanded Corporate Footprint – Blue Mantis was literally and figuratively a company on the move in 2023. In March, we moved to a new, more modern corporate headquarters in Portsmouth, NH, returning to the city where the company was founded. Additionally, in September, we unveiled our new Technology Innovation Center (TIC). Based in Pawtucket, RI, the TIC allows Blue Mantis to deliver advanced IT infrastructure, software and hardware configuration, testing, and order fulfillment to its growing base of customers. Finally, we established an international footprint by opening a services delivery center in Bangalore, India and gained an office in Toronto, Canada thanks to our acquisition of Zanaris.
Looking ahead to 2024, our focus will remain squarely on making our clients successful. Each and every client can expect a relentless commitment to delivering innovative solutions and best-in-class services to help them increase efficiency, agility, competitiveness, and achieve business outcomes. Among our top priorities for this year—in addition to attracting top talent and further shaping our vision for the future—is to increase productization in the aforementioned seven practices. We will create bundled solutions that are more consumable by our clients and delivered with the speed that increases our velocity in the market. Stay tuned for more details on this initiative and others in a number of key areas.
