Since 2008, Symposit has enabled hundreds of businesses and over 12 Government agencies to achieve their mission by delivering IT that is accessible, secure, and cost-efficient. Looking to better understand the success of this growing 8(a), we caught up with CEO and President Bobby Bermudez to hear about the team’s recipe for success, its view on partners, and what to expect in 2024 and beyond.
How to Grow a Business
Listening to the history of Symposit and its growth is like walking through a guide on how to succeed in business. The organization started with supporting government defense contractors on the backend and setting them up as they scaled. As they grew, they expanded to subcontracting offers and acquired a growing portfolio of work and expertise in that role. “Over more than a decade of working as a subcontractor [and] learning about government in general, taking guidance from a mentor, I decided it was time and we began focusing on obtaining certification.”
From there the company obtained its 8(a) certification, added its GSA Schedule, hired more staff, and began building its back-office systems. “With all of this in place we focused more on seeking out new work [and] identifying new customers, and we turned our attention to Prime contracts.”
From its first Prime contract in 2017 with the State Department, Symposit identified its ‘sweet spot’, supporting agencies that needed help in terms of modernization, digital transformation, cyber security, IT operations, help desk systems and network engineering. “We found our expertise was in helping agencies get their baseline systems up to speed, modernizing them, and transforming how they were doing business with a combination of new technologies and new processes.”
Framework for Success
Refining and defining its approach, Symposit approaches each effort with a formula focused on their ADOMS model (Assessment, Deployment, Optimization, Modernization and Security). “That assessment phase with a new client begins with a look at the entirety of their environment. [We] then apply best practices in agile, change management and ensuring the technology and processes align. Sometimes the assessment can include compiling a proper inventory of assets, understanding where they are so we can bring them into the overall picture.”
Beyond an understanding of the tangible comes the behavioral and human approach that Symposit factors into workflows to ensure there is visibility and transparency. “Even when a customer may elect not to choose us, we have provided them with recommendations for how move forward in a better way, based on their goals and what they want to achieve, rather than IT for the sake of IT or in pursuit of ‘shiny object syndrome.’”
Guiding agencies in building the right foundation and providing the building blocks that will help them mature and reach their goals has allowed a level of trust to develop between them. This has enabled Symposit to diversify their work across different areas of expertise. “At USDA as an example, we are helping them look at their entire portfolio of IT investments, making sure that they are sound, modern, efficient, and that they achieve a good ROI on that portfolio of IT investment. It is a much larger view than simply solving one IT need.”
Culture and the Partner Lens
As it works to support the important missions of its government clients, Symposit seeks partners interested in doing the same, with a focus on the mission and getting things done in the right way. “Whether it is small or mid-tier we really just want good people, people that are good to work with, companies that recognize that working together we can achieve what the large companies do but in our own ways, ways that may be better.”
Within Symposit that culture of working together for the customer, sitting side by side with them, drives who makes a good fit for the team. “We bring in skilled folks who develop good relationships with the customer and are easy to work with. These are people who can translate a lot of those complex technical requirements into clear and concise, easy to understand language that resonates with the end users, which helps them understand how to move forward.”
Planning for the Future
With a few years left of its 8(a) program, Symposit aims to maximize the opportunity to open doors into new agencies, with the understanding that once it has, the relationships they have cultivated and their ability to develop that trust will carry them forward. “We’re looking at DHS and its subagencies, at DOD, and several agency specific contract vehicles that will help open doors.”
The team will also continue to invest in achieving certifications and developing its team and their capabilities. Symposit intends to continue to seek out and engage with like-minded partners they can inspire and grow alongside with on their journey.
Not Yet a Premium Partner/Sponsor? Learn more about the OS AI Premium Corporate and Individual Plans here. Plans start at $250 annually.