2012 is now officially underway. Let the countdown to the Mayan disaster begin!

Thankfully, the last two years have provided us a fair amount of growth. So far 2012 seems to be more of the same, for which we're very grateful.

I actually spoke at three events in January. First I had the opportunity to speak at the Northern Ohio SQL User Group about making the transition from a "geek" to a "business guy." There were about 40 or so people there, and it was a fun evening. I am absolutely convinced that one of the best technical skills IT professionals can develop is an understanding of the business processes that they support.

I also had the opportunity to speak briefly at the Cuyahoga Falls Chamber of Commerce meeting. The topic there was "IT Trends in 2012." I actually had to present without the ability of displays (PowerPoint withdrawal!), but the presentation seemed to be well received by the 60 or so people in attendance.

And then of course there was our monthly luncheon or, which also dealt with IT trends for the coming year. And there we had about 20 or so people.

All three topics were about embracing change. In one case the change embraced was personal change. The other two dealt with changes in our environment. Specifically our professional environment.

This is a welcome change to many of the topics that seem to be of interest to people in prior years, namely "how do I get a job?" While I make no claims to be an economics expert, I can't help but notice that for many companies (and most of our customers, it seems), there is some level of recovery underway.

In January, for example, we achieved our monthly growth goals by the end of the first week in terms of new customers with ongoing support agreements. We're certainly happy to see that.

And we're expanding in order to properly support that growth. Elsewhere in this newsletter you'll notice that we are adding a new position, namely that of "Office Manager." In the 4 1/2 years or so since I started Simplex-IT, I have been the chief cook and bottle washer, bookkeeper and all pieces-parts in between. This position will allow me to focus more specifically on the growth of the organization and the services to our existing customers.

We've also added for two days each week a new intern position, handled quite well by Brandon King. Brandon, a student at Akron University, started in early January and is already proved himself quite valuable for the organization. He is one sharp kid.

On a personal note (at the risk of being self-indulgent), I'm pleased to be celebrating the 10th anniversary of the improvisational comedy group that I'm director of, the "Point of No Return" players. Over the past 10 years I've had the pleasure of directing well over 30 people with extremely varied experience in improvisational comedy (I'm actually a graduate of Second City, for those who didn't know). February 18 marks our 10th anniversary show. Click here to see our Facebook page for more information.

Good stuff.

Bob