Twenty-five years ago, we created Codify with a vision to help people write reliable software and systems. We’ve gone through plenty of changes throughout those years. Initially, we began as a bespoke software development company writing applications around Microsoft platforms. But around 2010 or 2011, we saw the writing on the wall that the world was moving to cloud, with customers eventually pursuing an ultimate end goal simply purchasing software as a service.
Seeing this, we began to transition away from software development into helping customers with their overall enterprise infrastructure. Then, when Azure began offering IaaS, we pivoted to helping customers get to the cloud. When Microsoft released their CSP program, we got on board fully, and rebuilt the business from scratch around our Managed Azure offering. We’re now proud to be recognised as one of Microsoft’s key Tier 1/Direct CSPs in Australia.
In these 25 years, we haven’t grown into a team of hundreds, or one that generates hundreds of millions in revenue each year (in fairness, we prefer to stay small so that our customers receive more focused attention). But we have learned a few lessons along the way that we’re happy to share as we mark this important milestone.
Dependability is everything
One of the reasons we’re still in business after 25 years is that we’ve always prioritised dependability. In fact, a personal level of ownership over customer outcomes has always been a cornerstone of Codify’s approach. That’s because we recognise that the direct relationships we have with customers are a core driver of our growth.
But being in it for the long haul is about more than focusing on customer success. Our commitment to dependability affects our business at every level, from the way we design our service offerings to the people we hire to execute them. Every piece of the system has to work together for our customers to trust the promises we make to them.
Pick the right pool to play in
In business, it can be tempting to chase big deals or to expand your service offerings to go after different types of projects. But growth can’t come at the cost of compromising the results you deliver. Picking the right pool to play in means understanding what you can and can’t do, as well as the customers you can and can’t serve.
One of the concerns we’ve heard from customers is that, as we grow, they’re worried we’ll become too big for them. But because of the pool we’ve chosen to play in – managed Microsoft Azure services – the customers who have already been a fit for Codify will continue to be.
You can’t build the kind of track record for success we have without getting crystal-clear on what you do and who you work with. Pursuing this narrowness of focus has been one of the most valuable lessons we’ve learnt (even though it took us a while to get there).
Solid partnerships strengthen businesses
We’ve said for a while that Codify is so committed to Microsoft Azure that we don’t even know how to spell AWS. It’s a fun joke, but it doesn’t fully capture the depth of the two-way partnership we’ve built with Microsoft as a Gold-Certified Partner and Tier 1 Direct CSP.
We genuinely believe the Azure platform is the best cloud computing solution on the market. But since we recognise that the number of Microsoft cloud solution providers (CSPs) grows everyday, we’re also immensely appreciative of the confidence shown by Microsoft every time they recommend Codify to new customers.
In fact, knowing that we’d be writing this article for our anniversary, we asked Christian Longstaff, Partner Development Lead at Microsoft, in a recent meeting for his thoughts on our partnership. Here’s what he had to say:
Over the last quarter century Codify has carved out an enviable reputation in Australia’s tech sector by delivering real impact for customers. We are genuinely proud to partner with Codify and know that when we refer companies to Codify to support them with managed Azure services they always bring their very best game to the table. Racking up 25 years as a successful business is a major achievement and is testament to Codify’s capability and unwavering commitment to customers.
If you’re in need of a dedicated Microsoft Azure partner who’s committed to delivering long-term success, we hope you’ll consider Codify. It’s only through the outcomes we drive for your company and others like you that we’ll be around for another 25 years or more.
Want to keep up with our growth over the next 25 years? Follow us on LinkedIn to hear more stories from the team at Codify.