6/24/2010
Computer Business Consultants, Inc
"“I wanted to grow the business in new ways and directions.”"
Impacting the world from Clermont, Florida. When Clinton Pownall joined the U.S. Navy in 1983, its then common motto was “join to see the world”. Little did he know that someday his drive and spirit would lead him to also impact the world in many of those faraway places. The 6 years of skills with Navy electronics, and a subsequent B.S. in Computer Engineering with UCF in 1995, supported his desire to someday have a “technology” business. Clinton recalls what it was like in the “early days” of the PC industry: “We had to do everything back then: design, program, de-bug, you name it, we had to figure it out.” Being very driven to succeed – he made the Navy rank of E-6 in just 6 years, no small feat even today - he worked part time jobs, including his first computer job, during the days and worked for American Express at nights. By 1999, he was a vice president of technology for a company based in Atlanta while carefully building his own consulting and programming business on an after-hours part time basis. In 2000, when “I had enough of a customer base to be comfortably poor” he likes to say with a grin, Clinton made the jump into a full time business. Computer Business Consultants, Inc., was created to deliver integrated hardware, software, Internet and networking solutions over various manufacturers hardware. The next year, 2001, saw the hire of his first employees: a full time computer tech and full time bookkeeper. “I knew early on I had to spend time building my company correctly: documenting my successful procedures and processes so I could grow with the best use of my efforts”. By 2005, Clinton realized that new thinking would be important to beat his growing competition. “I decided that using limited resources and continuing to deliver the highest customer service, I had to ‘fire’ my bottom 20% of my customers” he recalls. “I also had to trust my employees, to delegate, allow them to make decisions that should be part of their jobs so that I could do what I could do best: grow the business”. That’s when, by 2008, that Clinton sought outside counseling to help him, as he likes to say, “grow to the next level”. “I had tried talking to many of the SBA provided resources in the past but frankly did not find them of any real, practical value...that’s until I met Gene Romagna.” In early 2008, Gene was just beginning his efforts to reach out to the business community of Lake and Sumter counties in central Florida when he met Clinton at one of his presentation at the South Lake Chamber of Commerce. “I wanted to grow the business in new ways and directions: redirect our expenses, seek government contracts, think in new ways, and that’s what Gene brought to me when I needed it.” “Clinton has one of those dynamic personalities”, Gene tells, “he has the perfect combination of skills, smarts and willingness to stay the course when necessary, and to change as needed.” Soon after in July, 2008, Clinton was ready to attempt his first large scale U.S. Government bid: a large hardware and software network servers contract for the U.S. Air Force. “Gene had the guidance, the tools and the contacts whenever we needed them. He was always there during the almost 2 years it took to win this solicitation”. And win they did: a nearly $1.4 million contract to supply military and security servers for Air Force personnel around the world. “Thanks to Gene and the SBDC reaching out into the Clermont business community, my business is now 4 times the size it ever was” say Clinton. And as Gene will add, “Clinton always says there is the speed of Clinton, the speed of time, and the speed of business: the last one being the slowest. Through his efforts I think he has created a way to speed up his business time for success.”