Chris Stock, Managing Director, Percipient, reflects on the last 20 years and provides some insight into what the future holds.
It hardly seems possible that we are approaching our 20-year anniversary as a company. It’s a real landmark and I’m incredibly proud to be where are, celebrating this key milestone.
The business started in recognition of the fact that we felt we could offer a better level of customer service than existing market players, through quality people and the right culture. With our focus firmly rooted in the delivery of best-in-class business software, combined with the best consultants to match, that ethos over the last 20 years has remained consistent.
When people ask me what I attribute 20 years of success to, I always reply that it is, without question, our people, and the friendly, open, dedicated culture we have become known for.
A People Business
Our products, however, have inevitably evolved during this period. Several early successes, mainly around our core Oracle E-Business Suite product at that time, propelled our growth initially before we embraced our partnership with Sage 10 years ago, both of which resulted not only in an abundance of customer success stories but a series of award wins too, including Sage Intacct Partner of the Year and Sage Intacct Industry Specialist of the Year, for our work in the hospitality sector.
When people ask me what I attribute 20 years of success to, I always reply that it is, without question, our people and the friendly, open, dedicated culture we have become known for. I wholeheartedly believe that if you look after your people, they will look after your customers, and by ensuring every one of our team members feels truly valued, we can consistently delight and bring value to our customers. The team has seen somewhat of a restructure over the last seven years as we harness this sentiment and build a platform to scale and we’re in the best shape to embrace what is yet to come.
Lessons Learned
I think it’s important to recognise that we are always learning. The changes we have adapted to during the last three years or so have proved that we always need to be ready to learn new ways of doing things, and I think the fact that we feel very much like a 20-year-old start-up, is a testament to this. Being ready to embrace change and deliver services and products which are aligned to where the market is currently, is everything right now.
We signed our 50th Sage Intacct customer, The Lowry Hotel in Manchester, only last month, a deal representing our 30th hospitality customer, an industry where we are increasingly recognised for our specialism, experience and expertise.
Cloud is the Future
20 years ago, when I started the business, the cloud was, while present in the likes of Hotmail, pretty much unchartered as a model for business software delivery.
Fast forward to today, and the cloud is at the core of what we do, as customers recognise the benefits of greater scalability and security; lower TCO and risk; and ease of use. This shift is reflected in our recent sale of our Sage X3 business, which will allow us to channel even greater focus into our Sage cloud business, as the success of Sage Intacct continues to gain momentum. Last month we welcomed our 50th Sage Intacct customer, The Lowry Hotel in Manchester, which was also our 30th in the hospitality sector – an industry where we are increasingly recognised for our specialism, experience and expertise.
Good Vibes
Through leveraging Sage Intacct as our first true cloud product, and the best in its category within the market, there is a genuine vibe and sense of excitement at where we are currently as a business. Sage Intacct is a world-class platform designed to scale for growth and our customers continue to advocate the benefits, which obviously makes our job a bit easier.
Now to the celebrations which we are all very much looking forward to. Sitting around a table, and sharing this success with the very people who have been at the heart of it, truly is the biggest achievement for me.
Here’s to the future bringing even greater things for all of our team, and customers, and most importantly, building relationships which will reap rewards for everyone in the long term.
