Careers at Forsythe Technology

Mission

Forsythe’s mission is to help companies become increasingly agile, secure digital businesses by working with them to optimize, modernize, and innovate their IT.

Founding story

In 1971 Rick Forsythe and Jim McArthur co-founded Forsythe McArthur in Illinois. The company’s main service was to broker used IBM mainframes. It started with four customers, with its initial transactions including the sale of an IBM 360 Model 30 to a subsidiary of Champion International and the leasing of an IBM 360 Model 50 to National Can.

The next decade saw many milestones. In 1980 McArthur sold his half of the firm to Forsythe. In 1982 Forsythe launched its first two offices outside of Illinois, in Wisconsin and Georgia. In 1984 the company opened four more offices, establishing its presence in the Northeastern United States. In 1988 it made its first acquisition, Great Lakes Communications Company.

The 1990s also saw many successes. In 1990 Forsythe began its first partnership with a reseller, EMC. In 1994 it gained a foothold in the West with an office in Northern California. In 1995 it added technology consutling services to its portfolio, and established a sales, distribution, and consulting organization called "The Solutions Group“, launching Forsythe Technology as its parent.

The company’s good fortune continued throughout the 2000s. It acquired several companies, six in eight years alone – enabling it to increase the breadth of it services. In 2010 it passed the billion-dollar mark in revenues. In 2013, it established its first software-as-a-service (SaaS) division, KillerIT. It now offers a wide variety of financial, professional, and IT infrastructure services.

Business model of Forsythe Technology

Customer Segments

Forsythe has a mass market business model, with no significant differentiation between customer groups. The company targets its offerings at organizations of all industries and sizes.

Value Proposition

Forsythe offers three primary value propositions: accessibility, performance, and brand/status.

The company creates accessibility by providing a wide variety of options. It has acquired several firms since its founding. This strategy has enabled it to greatly expand its capabilities and diversify its portfolio, as follows:

  • Synnefo increased Forsythe’s ability to implement and manage hybrid data center infrastructures
  • Mentora enabled Forsythe to expand its professional and managed services business
  • SOS Security expanded Forsythe’s capabilities in the area of risk management

Forsythe’s expertise now includes all aspects of information technology, including IT risk management, IT portfolio valuation, systems solutions, data center solutions, financial solutions, network and workspace, and managed and hosting services.

The company demonstrates strong performance through tangible results. Specific positive outcomes for clients include the following:

  • Windstream Hosted Solutions used Forsythe’s solutions to design the base architecture for its multi-tenant enterprise cloud environment, resulting in a 15% reduction in capital investment
  • PointClickCare used Forsythe’s solutions to simplify its assets, resulting in 25% cost savings and reduced support costs and power requirements
  • TPC Group used Forsythe’s solutions to build and implement a converged architecture platform, resulting in 99.9% data reliability (up from 94%) and 30% more time to think strategically
  • Alegent Health used Forsythe’s solutions to design virtual storage systems, resulting in a rise in server utilization from 3% to 60% and a reduction in storage costs by 20% per megabyte
  • A non-profit client used Forsythe’s solutions to develop an IT infrastructure roadmap, resulting in a 20% reduction in total cost of ownership and improved manageability

The company has established a strong brand due to its success. It has almost 1,000 employees operating out of 40 locations, and generates over $1 billion in annual revenues. Its clients include 35 members of the Fortune 100 and hundreds of Fortune 1000 organizations. Its average client relationship lasts seven years, and it has served some customers for more than 20 years. Lastly, it has won a number of honors, including the following:

  • Recognition as a “Visionary” in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Integrated IT Portfolio Analysis Applications
  • Recogntion as one of “America's Best Management Consulting Firms“ in IT Strategy by Forbes Magazine
  • Three “Top Performance Leadership“ Awards from IBM
  • Recognition as an Elite 50 Managed Services Provider by CRN
  • Recognition as one of the “Top 100 Leasing Companies“ by Monitor 20 times

Channels

Forsythe’s main channel is its direct sales team. The company promotes its offerings through its website, social media pages, and participation in conferences.

Customer Relationships

Forsythe’s customer relationship is primarily of a personal assistance nature. The company provides general phone and e-mail customer support. It provides more in-depth services through the following programs:

Forsythe Integration & Configuration Center (FICC) – Provides custom configuration, testing, and hosting services. Specific services include the following:

  • Project Rollout – Project planning and management
  • Intelligence – Pre-deployment asset management prep services
  • Pre-Deployment Hosting – Hosting through a secure, private lab with on-site resources
  • Logistical – Secure on-site storage, just-in-time delivery, expedited delivery, green-certified packaging removal
  • Technical – Integration/configuration, transition/migration, testing/tuning, design consultation, and installation/break-fix/BC-DR

Forsythe Technology Evaluation Center (TEC) – Enables customers to try solutions before buying them. Specific services include the following:

  • Demonstrations – Clients can assess product functions and features in a real, working setting
  • Bake-Offs – Clients can compare customized configurations
  • Proofs-of-Concept – Clients can identify a solution based on metrics that address their business requirements
  • Hands-On Training – Clients can get up to speed on functionality pre-deployment

Despite this orientation, there is a self-service component. The company’s website provides useful resources such as news articles, case studies, and an online magazine called “FOCUS“.

Key Activities

Forsythe’s business model entails designing and developing its solutions and providing related services to its customers.

Key Partners

Forsythe maintains strategic partnerships through which it works with organizations to develop solutions that integrate and leverage best-of-breed technologies. Its network includes over 250 leading technology manufacturers.

Its specific partners include: Arista, Cisco, Dell, EMC, Gigamon, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, Intel, Microsoft, Oracle, Red Hat, Symantec, Veritas, and VMware.

Key Resources

Forsythe’s main resources are its human resources, who include the engineering employees that design and develop its products, the sales employees that sell them, the consultants that provide advisory services, and the customer service personnel that provide support.

Cost Structure

Forsythe has a value-driven structure, aiming to provide a premium proposition through significant personal service and frequent service enhancements. Its biggest cost driver is cost of technology products and services, a variable expense.

Other major drivers are in the areas of sales/marketing and administration, both fixed costs.

Revenue Streams

Forsythe has two revenues streams: revenues it generates from the sale of technology products and services, and revenues it generates from leases and miscellaneous sources.

Our team

William Brennan,
President and CEO

info: William earned a B.S. in Economics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He previously served as Senior Vice President of Sales and as Vice President of Sales and Product Operations at Forsythe, and also held various executive positions at IBM.

Albert Weiss,
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

info: Albert earned a Bachelor’s degree and an MBA at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He previously served as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Alltech Data Systems, and as Chief Financial Officer of Computer Access.

Michael Conley,
Executive Vice President, Forsythe Hosting Solutions

info: Michael earned a Bachelor’s degree in Economics at The University of Iowa. He previously served as Senior Vice President, Emerging Technologies and Key Accounts at Forsythe Technology.

Michael Qualley,
Executive Vice President, Technology Solutions

info: Michael earned a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science at DePauw University. He previously served as Senior Vice President of Technology Products and System Solutions and as Vice President of Support Services at Forsythe.