Tech Rage IT Climbs to the Next Level

Managed Service Provider that Makes Technology ‘Rage Free’

Achieving Growth Goals with Assistance from Florida SBDC at UCF

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Hal Thayer, Communications Director, FSBDC at UCF, 407.420.4850 or HThayer@ucf.edu

Jill McLaughlin, Program Manager, FSBDC at UCF, 407.420.4856 or Jill.McLaughlin@ucf.edu 

Orlando, FL – Taking a business to the ‘next level’ of revenues and success is the goal of all growth-minded small business owners. Finding the assistance and resources to help accomplish these aspirations is another matter entirely -that is, unless they are Erica Martinez-Rose and Matt Rose, founders and owners of Tech Rage IT, an information technology managed services provider (MSP). They had the good sense to turn to the UCF Business Incubator and the Florida Small Business Development Center at UCF (FSBDC at UCF) and their joint program: the UCF Incubator Board of Advisors.

Tech Rage IT isn’t your ordinary MSP. With relentless enthusiasm, they proactively shield their clients from IT problems and – with 24/7 unbeatable responsiveness – they quickly resolve any issues that may arise. Tech Rage IT’s differentiator is its emphasis on customer service and blocking the aggravation that so often comes with technology. “We prevent Tech Rage” is their slogan and making IT “Rage Free” is their credo. “We understand your IT frustration and how important it is that we get it fixed fast,” says Matt Rose, Tech Rage’s Director of Technology Services. “Ours is a customer service first focus. We make that central for our entire team.”

Being customer-centric made Tech Rage IT successful in serving small-to-medium business clients, but the firm wanted to further leverage its competitive advantage and accelerate its growth. “We reached out to the FSBDC because we felt like we were lacking in internal accountability, like we needed to be challenged,” recalls Erica Martinez-Rose, CEO of Tech Rage IT. “And since we started, it has dramatically changed how our leadership team interacts. Now we have that accountability partner that we needed.”

Led by Jill McLaughlin, an FSBDC consultant, and comprised of a team of other FSBDC consultants with expertise in diverse functional areas, the Board of Advisors provided Tech Rage IT with no-cost consulting related to the company’s business development, financial management, and general leadership development. Together, they developed and applied multiple important business strategies and tools, including a digital marketing plan, a sales plan, a financial dashboard with key performance indicators, and Tech Rage’s executive team undertook hands-on leadership training and financial mentoring.

“A lot of the services that have been made available to us have been invaluable,” Erica explains, “starting with the financial coaching and leadership training for the team.” An outcome of particular note is the book that Matt wrote and published after brainstorming with the FSBDC team entitled ‘Kiss Tech Rage Goodbye’. A guide for business owners, COOs and CFOs, it addresses the 8 common pitfalls one can fall into when making IT decisions and how to overcome them. It’s been very well received in the marketplace.

As was hoped, all of this hard work has manifested in impressive results. “Over the last 12 months, our business has seen dramatic growth and improvement from working with the FSBDC,” concludes Erica. “Despite a global pandemic, our company ended last year with 58% revenue growth. We also had the opportunity to grow our team. And we’ve been recognized as a top technology company and business of the year. 2021 has been really successful for us too. I am thankful for the opportunity to be part of the FSBDC’s Incubator Board of Advisors program and would recommend the FSBDC to any business owner needing accountability or a sounding board to take their business to the next level.”

For more information about Tech Rage IT, please visit https://www.techrageit.com/.

— FSBDC —

About the FSBDC at UCF

Hosted by the University of Central Florida (UCF), and with its main office in the National Entrepreneur Center located at the Fashion Square Mall in Orlando, the Florida Small Business Development Center at the University of Central Florida (FSBDC at UCF) is part of the UCF Office of Partnership & Innovation and the Florida SBDC Network.

The Florida SBDC at UCF provides aspiring and existing small businesses with no-cost consulting, low-cost training, and access to business data and research resources. In addition to its core service offering, the Florida SBDC at UCF also offers specialized services to qualifying companies, including capital access, market growth, government contracting, international trade, business continuation, cybersecurity, disaster planning and recovery, and more. The FSBDC at UCF serves an eight-county area that includes Brevard, Flagler, Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Sumter, and Volusia counties and maintains 9 service centers across Central Florida.

In 2020, the FSBDC at UCF served more than 2,700 entrepreneurs in Central Florida with consulting services, resulting in more than 10,000 jobs created, retained or saved; $1.2 billion in sales growth; $59.1 million in capital formation; $53.4 million in government contract awards; and 86 new businesses started. For more information, please visit www.sbdcorlando.com .

About the Florida SBDC Network

For over forty years, the Florida SBDC Network, the state’s principal provider of business assistance [Fl. Stat. 288.001], has nourished a statewide partnership between higher education and economic development to provide existing and emerging small and medium-sized business owners with management and knowledge resources that enable overall growth, increased profitability, and economic prosperity for Florida’s economy.

In 2020, Florida SBDCs provided 162,519 hours of professional business consulting to more than 24,100 client businesses, resulting in almost 38,000 jobs impacted; $4.4 billion in sales generated; $488 million in government contracts acquired; and $553.5 million in capital accessed.

A statewide network of over 40 offices, the Florida SBDC is funded in part by the U.S. Small Business Administration, Defense Logistics Agency, State of Florida and other private and public partners. The Florida SBDC Network, headquartered at the University of West Florida, is nationally accredited by the Association of SBDCs and is a 2016 recipient of the President’s E Award for Export Service. Florida SBDC services are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Language assistance services are available for individuals with limited English proficiency. For more information, please visit www.FloridaSBDC.org.