LDC Top 50 2018

What inspired you to create Agilitas?

I’d spent my career working for huge corporations like Oracle, IBM and Sun Microsystems. I was frustrated – there are a lot of hiding places within big businesses, where people play it safe and 80pc effort is good enough. I wanted to challenge myself and create something better.

What do you love about being your own boss?

It was a rude awakening at first. I came from a world where there were always people to help, and lots of resource. At a start-up, the buck stops with you. You literally have to roll your sleeves up to do everything and anything. That will either make you stronger or break you. It made me even more passionate about Agilitas.

How’s business?

We just had a record year, growing revenues and EBITDA by 23pc and 54pc respectively. We’re only four months into this financial year and we’re already ahead of projections, so we’re maintaining this steep growth trajectory. We work with the likes of IBM and we’re signing larger and larger deals that take us into multiple territories almost overnight.

How are you future-proofing the business?

We aren’t just thinking about clients’ needs now. We have a rolling three-year strategy, which looks at where the market is going. We then educate our customers about how their IT needs will change and this has attracted a lot of new business and ensured a sustainable future for the business. We also invest a lot of time in our people. All our managers started in junior roles, and more than 25pc of the team have been here at least 15 years. When you find great people, one of the most important parts of your job as a leader, is keeping them.

Fast facts:

• Shaun is 41
• Agilitas was carved out of Acal plc in 2014
• The business employs 85 people, up from 70 last year
• 25pc of staff have been with the business 15 years or more
• Last year, revenues rose 23pc, while EBITDA jumped 54pc