ARN Partner Spotlight – Perth Managed Services Provider: Epic IT

When starting up an Managed Services Provider (MSP), owners can sometimes feel like they have faith no more. However, as long as they can grab the “it” factor, they can find success. For Epic IT, this “it” factor comes down to its connections with vendors, clients and its employees.

Epic IT got its start in late 2003 and began its life as a one stop shop helmed by Greg Markowski, where he started doing as much work as possible. 

“Initially I did anything from setting up small Wi-Fi networks to web development to even at one stage, developing and running an online computer store which actually did quite well, all out of my living room,” he said to ARN. 

“Eventually I had to choose what to focus on, so I focused on being a managed services provider and began renting a very small office in Balcatta.” 

After starting up, Markowski was doing a quote for a job in North Perth and noticed an empty office next door. While he wasn’t successful on the job, he did manage to snag the office space, moving in just two weeks later. 

Not only does it have access to main arteries and freeways for travel and free additional overflow parking and staff, but it is also located close to a great café and a decent pub, Markowski added. 

As for the short and sweet name behind the MSP, Markowski cites two sources of inspiration. The first, he claimed, was from his sense of wanderlust. 

“I came up with the name while I was on a two-year working holiday in Europe, staying in a small town outside of London called Epping,” he said. 

“As is the case with most young and inexperienced startup owners, it all started with name and logo design, before I even worked out what I was going to sell, and I wanted to name a business that reminded me of my travels.”

The second source comes from the American rock band Faith No More’s 1989 hit Epic, as Markowski claimed he was a huge fan of the song. 

“I did second guess the name after a few years, when the word ‘epic’ became too mainstream,” he added. “Anyway, I stuck with it.” 

In the MSP’s more recent years, the business has been security-focused, but is still happy to work with most businesses between 10 to 300 users with its 18-strong workforce. 

Making the jump from 15 employees to 18 however was a difficult time for Epic IT, as it occurred in a short period time while the business was handling some significant client acquisitions. 

Markowski said the MSP introduced services processes and had to refresh its approach to service desk management to improve scalability and management. 

By doing so, the MSP “significantly” increased its capacity to service more and larger clients than from before. 
Within that capacity, Epic IT has worked with servicing companies with sensitive data handling, such as in the health and finance sectors, as well as the not-for-profit sector

The Managed Services Provider also has a strong connection to Microsoft, with the vendor being one of Epic IT’s largest for over 15 years. As part of that connection, it was chosen by the tech giant in November 2020 to launch a co-operative marketing campaign to promote its managed security solution.  

Epic IT’s success isn’t just relegated to its Microsoft connections either, as Markowski claimed the MSP has made year-on-year growth in turnover since day one.