We had the good fortune of connecting with Chris Noles and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chris, what is the most important factor behind your success?
It has been all about maintaining great relationships with our clients. We strive to learn more about our client’s business challenges so that we can provide the right technology solutions to help them be more successful. We get involved in their industry events, and we are always looking for new ways to add value to help keep their business running while they focus on running their business. This has resulted in us gaining more referrals from clients in the same industry.

What should our readers know about your business?
When I was a teenager, my father had his own business providing outsourced accounting services for small companies. Setting up and repairing computers was one of my favorite hobbies, so when my father’s clients needed computer help he would send me to their office to assist. I worked for 3 different companies before I decided that I wanted to have my own business just like my father did, so in the year 2000 I decided to go into business with a friend from high school and we provided computer services to small companies in our area. A few years later I found my niche working with Law Firms & Title Companies. I learned more about their software applications, and I began providing custom solutions to help them use technology to stay competitive in their industry. There has always been a demand for computer services, but I learned early on that there is a lot more to running a business than knowing how to provide technical services. Since my father was in the accounting business, he helped me take care of the bookkeeping. I learned that there are sales & marketing challenges and that your earnings can go up and down dramatically each quarter. I was both nervous and excited to start hiring technicians who knew more than me about how to solve technical issues. Today we have a well run business providing proactive IT and Cybersecurity services. We have survived at least one recession, and we are about to go through another one, but I am thankful for the A-team we have in place to help our clients navigate these uncertain times. We are making a big difference in helping businesses be able to send their employees home to work remotely. We are also helping to protect their reputation by providing the best in class Cybersecurity. One thing that sets us apart from the competition is our passion and unique skillset to work with the people behind the computers. Our staff has a winning combination of business acumen, technical skills and personality skills which makes us uniquely qualified to partner with companies to solve business problems with technology.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I am a Georgia native (rare!), so I have seen the city change a lot over the decades. I know all about the tourist hotspots, but I also know about the hidden gems in the area as well. If I were hosting a friend who is visiting Atlanta for the first time, I would suggest at least a 3 day itinerary during warm sunny days. Day 1: Downtown Atlanta – Visit the World of Coca-Cola, Georgia Aquarium, Centennial Olympic Park and CNN Center. Eat Breakfast at West Egg Cafe, eat lunch at Twin Smokers BBQ for some authentic BBQ and finish the day at Goodness Grocery for the best Salmon BLT you will ever eat! Make it a late night in the Virginia Highlands to checkout the small music venues and pubs in the area. Day 2: The Great Outdoors – Visit Lake Lanier Islands and Stone Mountain Park. Grab some lunch at Fish Tales restaurant at Lake Lanier for some of the best fried grouper around. Next, spend some time at the Lake Lanier beach & waterpark. Finally, head over to Stone Mountain Park at around mid-afternoon to hike the mountain and catch the laser show at sunset! Day 3: Tour Film Locations – Visit interesting film locations for The Walking Dead, Stranger Things and other popular shows.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
We read two fantastic books written by Mike Michalowicz – Profit First & Pumpkin Planning. Profit First taught us that profitability, not revenue, is the most important thing to focus on. With Pumpkin Planning, we learned to get more focused on attracting and cultivating the right types of clients who love us and give us referrals and to stop wasting time on prospects and clients who were not a good fit. However, we could not have put all of this into practice without the help of Debra Angilletta. Debra walked us thru putting all of this into action using the principles in these great books, and we are operating a lot differently than we were just 3 years ago.

Website: www.beyondcs.com
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chris1976ga/
Twitter: beyondcsatlanta
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beyondcsatlanta