When Belisario Rosas and his wife started Worldcom Exchange 26 years ago, they probably did not imagine it would grow into a multi-million dollar business. Growth is the result of innovation and exceptional customer service.
By Shaniqua Thomas
Belisario Rosas came to America from Peru to study medicine, but instead took a liking to technology. In 1989, he started a small IT company with his wife, probably not imagining he would eventually be recognized as an internet and IT pioneer. That is exactly what happened over the last 26 years after starting Worldcom Exchange (WEI), a technology company that is proud of its exceptional ability to provide customer solutions and service. Named CVS Innovator of the Year in 2015, WEI earned that honor by developing innovative solutions that benefit CVS, the communities WEI serves, and the IT industry. WEI has achieved success by using a local model, developing innovative products and services and delivering the highest quality customer services that keep the company ahead of the competition.
The Chameleon Company
In 1989, Belisario and his wife started WEI on $300, and 26 years later annual sales have grown to approximately $220-230 million. The IT consulting company, located in Salem, N.H. develops cutting-edge customer solutions and support across a diverse set of industries. The company partners with industry leaders and smaller emerging technology companies to deliver state-of-the-art services and support that includes site assessments; design; and provisioning backup and recovery, equipment repair, infrastructure optimization, technical consultation, server consolidation, security, storage, and virtualization.
To evaluate and compare different IT options, WEI established the WEI Demo Lab which houses cutting-edge technology for testing and evaluating various customer solutions. There is also an Integration and Testing Lab to reduce revision/version management and equipment issues, a Proof of Concept Lab for testing proposed solutions, research labs for independent testing of manufacturer claims, Imaging and asset tagging services, and a robust calendar of seminar and training classes offered to customers for no charge.
Belisario describes the company as a chameleon, able to change in sync with new technologies and apply them to real-world business solutions. Staying competitive in the technology industry is no small feat since change is the norm. A culture of innovation forms the foundation for everything the company does. WEI also uses a local model. “We’re one of the leading companies in IT in New England,” says Belisario, “because we bring everything into our warehouse and facilities and ship it from there. All equipment and software is supplied by U.S. suppliers.” WEI was named the fifth fastest growing company by Business NH Magazine in September 2014.
Listen and Learn
One of the organizations that has benefitted from WEI’s ability to innovate is CVS. A keyboard project was the first CVS business opportunity. CVS was considering WEI as a possible supplier of keyboards that were laminated on top. After discussing CVS’ needs, Belisario developed a disposable keyboard that was laser-edged with a special coating for use in pharmacies at significant savings for CVS.
“We listened to our customer and found a solution,” says Belisario. That simple statement defines what differentiates WEI from its competitors. The philosophy of success is: Listen. Find the best solution. Commit to the highest quality customer service. In June 2014, Worldcom Exchange moved to a new state-of-the-art facility to accommodate the company’s growth and increase capacity to meet customer demand. The new building holds all the labs, the training center, and other facilities mentioned earlier. It was specifically built to respond to what WEI’s clients said they needed to remain competitive in today’s environment. The building represents an investment in the next 25 years.
The magnitude of the CVS projects has given WEI the opportunity to grow; but WEI has many customers, and each gets high-quality customer service. In one case in point, a company was in the middle of a cutover to a new network. It was a Friday afternoon, and they had a problem with the supplier doing the cutover. Many cables were already cut, so there was no turning back. “They gave us a call at 5 in the afternoon, and we deployed 16 people that Friday night. They worked until Sunday night. By Monday morning the company’s new network was back up and running,” Belisario explains.
WEI also has a strong belief in aiding communities and recently started a new program to expand its involvement in local efforts. The new program involves major communities and foundations, including the Boys and Girls Clubs of Salem, Lazarus House, and Habitat for Humanity. Employees are encouraged to contribute as much time as possible with them.
Continuing to Grow
WEI already has a number of strategic technology partners, including some of the biggest brands like Cisco, VMWare, Microsoft, Lenovo, Dell, IBM, HP and Oracle. The company invests heavily in training and education for employees so they can earn advanced technical certifications from leading vendors. It takes a great team to innovate and maintain customer service while growing, meaning one of the challenges Belisario overcomes is maintaining team performance during growth. Another challenge is forming new partnerships to continue growing the business. “To date our growth has been organic,” says Belisario, “so we are evaluating the possibilities of expanding partnering opportunities.”
The CVS award is just one of many WEI has earned. The company was named the 2015 Supplier of the Year by The Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council (GNEMSDC) and is on the 2015 CRN Tech Elite 250 list which includes a group of IT solution providers who invests in the employee training and development needed to earn the most customer-beneficial technical certifications in the IT channel. Everything WEI does is top quality – from the innovative IT products and services it develops to the ongoing customer support it delivers – and that quality equates to success.