Wayzata- and Minneapolis-based
RBA Consulting has been advising clients about technology since 2006, and has shown an impressive success rate over the past few years. When it landed on the Inc. 5000 list last year, the magazine noted that its growth over the previous three years came in at 247 percent, with an increase of 89 employees in that timeframe.
Now, the company is ready to get even more robust.
Last September, the consulting firm acquired Ratchet, a Minneapolis-based digital marketing company, and subsequently changed the name of the combined company to just RBA.
The combined company offers a wide range of services, from custom application development and infrastructure expertise to portals and collaboration solutions.
"Historically, marketing organizations and IT departments haven't gotten along well," says RBA President and COO Mike Reinhart. "We see an opportunity for RBA to come in and create cohesion there. We understand marketing and what they're trying to accomplish, and we know how IT needs to work. We're bringing the CIO and the CMO together."
The company is expecting to grow by about 30 percent this year, and is in the midst of active hiring, Reinhart adds. He predicts that with RBA's strong sales force, more hiring will be ahead as well.
Most of all, he and others at the company are excited about the possibilities that lie ahead, now that the usual challenges that come with mergers are behind them.
"I'm a technologist at heart, and I love that I'm surrounded by bright and talented people who are thinking about how best to leverage our capabilities," says Reinhart.
Source: Mike Reinhart, RBA
Writer: Elizabeth Millard