Owners, Advanced Technical Solutions
By Jennifer Nugent
The thing Gary Sims remembers about his first job as a paper boy is what he learned about work ethic and responsibility. The thing his brother, Brian, remembers about helping his older brother with the 150-house paper route is throwing newspapers from his seat on the back of Gary’s moped.
The moped has long since been retired, but the business savvy and teamwork that came from that paper route has stuck with the brothers over the years and eventually acted as the foundation for Advanced Technical Solutions (ATS), their Scott Depot-based technology company.
Growing up in Teays Valley, Gary wanted to be a basketball player and Brian wanted to join the army. While the army was instrumental in helping Brian find his path in life, for Gary, things just seemed to work out for the best as he moved along. Both brothers looked up to their father, Gary, Sr., for guidance and inspiration. “He’s always been there guiding us but still giving us the room we need to make our own decisions,” Gary says, adding, “our parents have always been there anytime we’ve needed something. It’s great now to be able to work together and stay close as a family.”
In 1999, Gary and Brian founded ATS. Gary says, “It would be great to say Brian and I had this great business plan and roadmap all laid out for success. Reality is that we were tired of our jobs, we were tired of working for someone else and we wanted to make a change for the better. It hasn’t always been easy, but we have been lucky surrounding ourselves with good people and choosing good paths to take.” Brian points out that while the two are business partners, they are still brothers. “Gary and I still get in arguements, but the great thing is that the next day, we act like nothing happened.” The brothers have hired their father, Gary, Sr., to act as their chief financial officer. Brian jokes, “We get to tell him what to do,” adding, “he’s someone we can trust in our business and that’s ultimately why we hired him. He’s always going to be looking out for our best interest, not his.”
Gary learned from his boss at his first sales job about the importance of making a client happy and understanding his value. “I’ll never forget him telling me that ‘profit is not a dirty word; it’s a necessity to survive in business.’” ATS has done $6 million in sales in the last couple of years and has been recognized in CRN Magazine as one of the fastest growing IT providers and as an Inc. 5000 Fastest Growth Private Company. Gary’s greatest success, he says, are his children. “Although my children are still growing up, they are my inspiration. My greatest success is seeing the character they already possess and the feeling that I helped instill that in them.”
Brian finds motivation in his family and the sense of accomplishment he gets from his work. Of the brothers’ success with ATS, he says, “A lot of it still comes down to hard work and being in the right place at the right time,” adding that “the greatest part is being able to provide work opportunities for people in our state.” In his spare time, Brian enjoys scuba diving and dons his flippers any chance he gets. “When I’m diving, I’m actually getting away from work because my phone’s not going to ring and I’m not going to get e-mail—I’m actually by myself.”
For the Sims brothers, the compass they use for finding success is integrity. They value their clients and the trust their clients have placed in them to do quality work in an efficient manner. While both brothers will tell you that hard work and dumb luck have helped them get to where they are today, you can be sure that family values and the teamwork of brothers played a vital role as well.
You can bet riding double on a moped, delivering newspapers didn’t hurt, either.
