Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in technology and innovation but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Lee Kirby, Co-Founder of Salute Mission Critical, located in Friday Harbor, WA, USA.
What's your business, and who are your customers?
Salute Mission Critical is a global service provider supporting digital infrastructure. We execute data center operations with military precision for Hyperscalers, Colo Providers, Edge Operators, and Data Miners.
Tell us about yourself & what's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?
With more than 40 years of experience in information technology and systems, both in the private and public sectors, I have dedicated myself to being a servant leader in the tech industry and changing the lives of military families worldwide. I have successfully led several technology startups and turnarounds, as well as built and ran world-class global operations.
My current passion is Salute Mission Critical, which Jason Okroy and I launched in 2013. We created it to provide military veterans and their families with careers. With our mission, we have helped solve the industry's talent shortage and the societal problem of veteran and military spouse unemployment.
What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?
Being a business owner involves balancing many responsibilities developing leadership capacity while balancing the movement through each growth stage. Academically, it is an easy assignment to define the needed infrastructure and map out a growth plan.
However, you cannot over-extend your finances and have to determine what functions to add when with exact precision because they go directly against the bottom line as overhead.
What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?
- Know the total addressable market and your product or service's key differentiators to fill that market need.
- Spend time developing a detailed business plan and continuously adjust it as new information becomes available.
- Focus on sales and cash flow as most businesses fail due to those two key factors.
Where can people find you and your business?
Website: https://salutemissioncritical.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/salutemissioncritical
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SaluteMissionC
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3CBg1pD
If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.
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