Omega Systems CEO on PE Funding, Compliance Offerings & Channel Innovation

Omega Systems is a premier technology solutions provider and MSSP based across the northeastern U.S. After years of partnership with one private equity group, Omega announced in January it had received a new infusion from the firm Revelstoke. Channel Insider spoke with Omega Systems CEO Mike Fuhrman to learn more about how the continued equity support enables innovation and tailored compliance solutions for its clients.

Compliance offering is key to serving regulated clients

Omega Systems services clients through a variety of traditional IT offerings and security solutions. The company also created its Smart Comply offering to sell managed compliance as a service to its clients in highly regulated industries like financial services and healthcare.

“When you come to a partner like Omega Systems, you get a better understanding and a more automated journey through compliance for whichever framework your business needs to follow,” Fuhrman said.

The compliance services include everything from data discovery and assessment to strategic advising and insights for organizations that need to keep up with the constantly evolving regulatory landscape. 

“The nature of the standards and the auditing process has changed quite a bit, and that change have almost forced a change in the conversation around how businesses approach their compliance needs,” Fuhrman said. “Five or ten years ago, most businesses could muscle their way through the process, even if it took a lot of time and resource away from other things. In the past three to five years, though, that process has gotten a lot more complex, and so has the tech businesses use.”

And if businesses have to work harder to stay on top of compliance concerns, then MSPs and others who offer advising do, too. The Smart Comply service offering means Omega’s team members act as experts on earning and maintaining compliance with various regulatory frameworks.

“MSPs have to go through audits, too,” Fuhrman pointed out. “We are SOC 2 Type 2 authorized, and we know what the process is like and how intense it can be.” 

Innovation and partnership charting Omega Systems’ path forward

Looking forward to the year ahead, Fuhrman says the provider has its eyes on innovation in its offerings portfolio. While Omega Systems already supports clients across cloud, security, managed IT, compliance, and more, Fuhrman is always looking for what might be next.

Alongside that growth is a deeper focus on building channel partnerships to enter new markets and better support clients in industries like healthcare nationally. Fuhrman said the provider believes building relationships with agents and other partner businesses in new markets will allow the Omega team to tap into the trusted relationships clients have with those partners. Similarly, Fuhrman said he wants to help those agents through complementary services to ultimately provide the best possible technology support for shared customers.

“We want to be able to show up alongside other partners, and we want them to feel comfortable saying to their clients. ‘I want to introduce you to Omega Systems, they will really take care of you,’ and so that is a major focus for us this year.”

Private equity funding continues to support growth trajectory

Omega Systems is the first MSP investment made by Revelstoke, a move both companies describe as an opportunity for growth. 

“We have been targeting the IT MSP/MSSP sector for investment and were attracted to Omega’s differentiated capabilities, customer retention and strong recurring revenue growth,” said Andrew Welch, Partner at Revelstoke, in a press statement. “We are excited to partner with Omega during a time when organizations in healthcare, financial services, and other industries continue to face significant IT and cybersecurity challenges.”

For Omega, the new funding partnership with Revelstoke follows four years of support from previous equity partner Pfingsten Partners. Pursuing funding remains an important piece of the provider’s overall growth strategy.

“Our market is incredibly fractured and rapidly growing,” Fuhrman said. “You have to have the right partnership that not just injects the capital but understands where the market is going and where you want to be as a company.”

According to Fuhrman and additional details released in a press statement, Omega will utilize the new funding to build more services and support offerings for clients in highly-regulated industries.

Compliance is a growing focus area for many MSPs, especially those with clients in heavily regulated industries. Learn more about how centrexIT approaches compliance with their customers.