CBIA BizCast: Growth and Culture at Charles IT

“We are a service company first and foremost, rather than IT. We just happen to do IT,” Charles IT director of finance and operations Sal Marino tells the CBIA BizCast. 

The Middletown-based outsourced managed service provider has seen about 30% growth year over year since 2012.

But the company has much smaller beginnings. 

Starting Small

Foster Charles started the company in 2006, when he was still in high school helping small companies with things like web development or sales systems support. 

In 2012, he helped a large hospital become the first hospital to migrate to Google Apps. 

“They basically offered him to come on and be their CIO. And he said, ‘no,’” said Marino.

“And when he turned all those things down, that’s when he was like, ‘We gotta get serious.”

Charles IT’s Sal Marino

“And when he turned all those things down, that’s when he was like, ‘We gotta get serious.”

When Marino joined Charles IT in 2017, he was employee number 17.

At the time, the company was generating about $4 million in revenue. 

“My job was to come on and take the hats off of Foster, who was trying to run all of those as well as manage the front end of the business,” he said. 

“Fast forwarding to today, we’re about 150 people and closing in on 30 million in revenue.”

Rapid Growth

Marino said one of the things that helped their growth is their expertise helping small to midsize companies navigate things like cybersecurity and compliance.

“We have all the tools and tons of great tech, but we really focus on making sure that the policies are in place, that they’re doing the right things,” he said.

One of the challenges that comes with growing as quickly as Charles IT has, is finding the right people. 

“The hard part is making sure that you’re finding the people that align to your business.”

Marino

“The hard part is making sure that you’re finding the people that align to your business, the values, and the things that you’re looking for,” Marino said.

He added that during COVID, that became an even bigger challenge. 

“Because of our culture and our requirement of being 100% in office, it made that immensely more difficult than it would be for everybody else,” he said.

Culture and Collaboration

While they have policies offering some remote days, Marino said the company has always been 100% in office.

“Our culture is all about collaboration, having people there to be able to bounce things off of in constant rapid change and growth,” he said.

“And it’s really hard to accomplish that if you’re not all together.”

“If you have to leave home, it has to at least be as good, if not better, than being at home.”

Marino

He said the company works hard to create an environment where people want to come into the office. 

That includes benefits like free dry cleaning, the ability to bring dogs into the office, or free drinks and snacks. 

“If you have to leave home, it has to at least be as good, if not better, than being at home,” Marino said. 

“And that’s, that’s really what we’re trying to emulate in our office experience.”

Workforce Development

Charles IT has also started its own training program to recruit talent and grow its workforce. 

For the past three years, the company has put 12 people through a 90-day, paid IT training program each quarter.

The company offers full-time jobs to trainees who make it through the program.

Participants in the program come from a variety of backgrounds, including high school and college graduates. 

“When it’s not a facade, people come in, they see it, and they want to be a part of it.”

Marino

“You can go out and get a really senior level individual, but they have all of their own bad habits and all these other things that you have to change and tweak, and allow them to learn your style,” Marino said.

“So why not train somebody who knows the basics, and then teach them in your ways so you don’t have to break bad habits.”

As for the secret to Charles IT’s growth and success, Marino said “the magic behind the curtain is that we’re just what you see is what you get.”

“It’s showing that we really care about the employees. When it’s not a facade, people come in, they see it, and they want to be a part of it,” he said.

---

The CBIA BizCast is made possible through the generous support of Google. Please rate, review, and subscribe to the BizCast wherever you get your podcasts—we appreciate your support! If you have a story to tell, contact Amanda Marlow.