iSupportU peddles pedal-powered personality

Shaun Oshman, founder of iSupportU, an IT support and consulting firm, has his staff members ride bicycles on service calls whenever possible. The marketing strategy works and helps employees feel good, too. The company has 10 employees with plans to continue hiring. Jonathan Castner

Heather McWilliams
BOULDER — iSupportU founder Shaun Oshman began selling information technology services along the Front Range with a couple of grand in cash and a desire to serve the local community.

“I figured I’d continue running the business until the money ran out,” Oshman said. Instead, the company just keeps growing.

Founded in 2009, iSupportU LLC’s revenue increased 467 percent from $127,500 in 2010 to $722,309 in 2012, placing it No. 2 on the Boulder County Business Report’s Mercury 100 list of fastest-growing companies in Boulder and Broomfield counties for companies reporting less than $2 million in annual revenue.

A dedication to the customer, hiring quality people and keeping them happy, and building a connection to the local community propelled iSupportU’s growth, Oshman said. He first visited Boulder in 2008 while taking a break from teaching at a school in New Zealand. He liked what he saw and returned a year later, jumping into business ownership and immediately building a community connection.

“I joined the chamber of commerce within a day and became a chamber fan boy,” Oshman said. He continues to participate in many chamber events, using the opportunity to help others, meet people and grow his business.

Oshman targets clients interested in hiring local, and he adds a Boulder-style twist. Rather than drive to appointments in a car wrapped with a company logo like some national chains, iSupportU techs use pedal power.

“If we have a client within biking distance, we will do whatever we can to get there on bike,” Oshman said. The marketing strategy works and helps employees feel good, too. The company has 10 employees with plans to continue hiring.

More than half of iSupportU’s work comes from business support and consulting, with a growing managed services offering. It’s a cost-effective way to get quality, local IT support, Oshman said. Some business customers start as individual clients, like what they see, and bring their businesses on board. However clients connect with iSupportU, a drive to learn and grow make the relationship a good match. If clients succeed then iSupport U will, too.

“Our goal here, no matter what anyone is doing, is to make technology work for you,” Oshman said. “To be that thing that makes your life better and makes your life simpler.”

The company also offers training, primarily in Google Apps and Wordpress. Oshman’s time as a teacher helped in developing his ability to teach technology and it’s a favorite part of the job in a business that’s all-around satisfying. That makes any extra hours or weekends worth it, he said.

“My office is amazing. I love being here and the people I work with.”