We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Johnny Barns a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Johnny, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. The first dollar your firm earns is always special. We’d love to hear about how you got your first client that wasn’t a friend or family.
The first thing to know is that everything starts with a dream. You have to see it before anyone else does. Once you see it, be careful of who you tell it to and more importantly, never let someone that has never done what you are about to do, tell you that it cant be done. You have to believe, see it, and know it before anyone else does.
For me that dream came a few years after college. I was working for a large corporation and it was about my 10th year going from corporation to corporation and ended up working for a government agency. The most inspiring aspect was the fact that this is where my dream and reality hit the pavement. I was subcontracted by a company which had won a 400 million dollar contract. They were so unprepared that they had their first meeting on a “free conferencing” phone bridge. It was so unprofessional and their website had only 4 pages. Needless to say after the initial meeting and the funds started to roll, their whole web presence and how they did business changed. They employed about 600 employees and really started to build out. In my head I was thinking these guys have nothing over me and they did it without even realizing they would win the contract. If they can do it, then why can’t I? The question I then answered for myself, I can do it. I can do it and do it even better than they can. So guess what, I did.
My first contracts I literally had to do myself. I was the sales team, architect, technical support, and accounting all in one. But I set my mind to do what I believe was my dream that was gifted to me. I resorted to gorilla marketing to build clientele and first started trying to beat Geek Squad. I was hitting up neighborhoods with flyers, going to stores and leaving business cards, I was just avid that I was going to make my business work. My philosophy is that even if I dont get the exact client that I want with teh flyers, everyone knows someone and there is a wife or brother or sister of a CEO of some company that can utilize my services. So I was relentless. Needless to say that Geek Squad take over never happened.
But I remember while I was working a contract for a major educational institution under my company, I got a call out of nowhere. It was a call from a major military supplier for the US Government. I didnt have my company registered to take government contracts and I was only in my state. However, the person called said he was a decision maker for a contract to encompass all 50 states. He asked if I wanted it and if I could handle it. Knowing I didnt have the man power, nor the national reach, I said what anyone would say.. I said “YES”!!! I began making calls and ramping up potential engineering candidates to help me service this contract nationwide. The person that called me guided me through the company registration process to get registered with their company and walked me all the way to the award. My company had been awarded a 4 million dollar contract out of nowhere. From there, completing that contract, there was no looking back.
I then incorporated some key skilled individuals which I met throughout my career to have them come and work for my company. Officially started the brand with the right partners and off course we partnered with Microsoft. Now Microsoft supplies about 94.5% of our business. We are the number one Microsoft Solutions Partner supplying all Microsoft business subscriptions and licenses at 30-50% below Microsoft MSRP and layering our offerings with the best in services. We have the man power and the offices to cover the entire North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean. We have the whole Western Hemisphere covered under Technology Solutions Worldwide. As we expand and grow, I look back to the days of early beginnings and never forget how it all started and how a dream turned into a call, and how a call turned into a life changing moment that has shaped the rest of my life.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
For me, it has been a zigzag of a line into getting to where I am today. I have studied at many different educational institutions and have worked for various corporations. It has been a journey filled with lessons, direction, perseverance, and even struggle. However, I would like to think that where I am is light years compared to where I was. It is the best feeling to be able to have your own business and be able to call your own direction. Needless to say it is not for the light of heart. There are pitfalls everyday and there is always another company or another person that is gearing for your spot.
For me, the Microsoft path has always been in line for what I want to offer to my clients. Microsoft is one of the most innovative world leaders when it comes to technology and it has put such a foothold on our society that it will be around for generations to come. For this reason, Technology Solutions Worldwide has partnered with Microsoft to expand the service offerings of this organization while building the brand of our own through reliable Microsoft products and features at the lowest pricing possible. Our motto is a client that can get the best discount will always turn to your organization first for its needs especially if you can get good pricing without sacrificing the quality.
Technology Solutions Worldwide offers all Microsoft licenses for the following products:
Office 365
Microsoft 365
Dynamics 365
InTune
Azure Active Directory
Azure Subscription
Power BI
Windows 10
Windows 11
Windows Server Standard
Windows Server Data Center
Windows SQL Server
Endpoint Manager
Azure Information Protection
Exchange Online
Office 365 GCC
Microsoft 365 A3
Microsoft 365 A5
Microsoft Project
Visio
There is so much more available that we offer. You can view our full offer listings here: https://techsolworld.com/subscriptions/
Not only do we offer all Microsoft products and services, but we also layer on our expert professional services which is top-tier for any small, medium, or enterprise client.
I am most proud of the growth and development that we have not only seen, but experienced by having this organization on an international scale. It is the most rewarding and fulfilling to see the efforts of years of preparation going into the right direction.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Covid-19 hit everyone, everywhere globally. It is one the most widely known catastrophes in humanity. It stopped the world from spinning from a business sense and caused all the inhabitants of this planet to take a step back into their homes and allow their place of residence to be their new way of life. Many endured significant personal loss of life, livelihood, and businesses shut down all together. Many people and businesses alike did not survive the struggle of the pandemic and many are still suffering from those losses today.
As the world opened up and even during the crisis, Technology Solutions Worldwide emerged not only as a global leader, but as a business that all organizations can trust. As we led the battle by showing businesses that it is possible to function without a traditional office and doing business from anywhere with Microsoft cloud products, it was clear that Microsoft had the answers and Technology Solutions Worldwide was the key. We have helped so many businesses globally to get back into the normality of business that we now have lifelong clients that we can not only call clients, but they are now part of our business family.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Reputation is always key when building any repertoire in today’s world. That proven record of satisfaction or dissatisfaction will follow your business from the start until its end. I have learned that providing outstanding service while allowing your clients the ability to choose the best route for them, gives you that edge. Service is always from the bottom up not from the top down. We as a company are nothing without our employees. It doesnt matter if it is the janitor cleaning the floors or if it is the architect on the front lines with the clients. Everyone is important and everyone deserves praise. That inert appreciation for people on a whole and providing a service that is needed is the key to building any business for longevity. Technology Solutions Worldwide is a company geared towards change, expansion, and client satisfaction with every movement we do. For the best in services, Technology Solutions Worldwide is at the top of the list and the proof is in our clientele. They tell the story and we provide their platform.
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Image Credits
Microsoft has granted all rights and access to use their images because we are Microsoft partners.