Washington Technology Online Entrepreneur Spotlight
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Augustine, 36, hopes to boost his company's annual commercial revenues by $15 million through two acquisitions, while it prepares to lose one-quarter of its government business as it graduates from the nurturing 8(a) program. Global Management Systems Inc., an information network and computer systems integration company, provides consulting and support services to corporate and government clients. Augustine forecasts revenues of $23 million for 1997. His modest goal? To grow overall revenues to $100 million by the end of 2000. He plans to accomplish this through internal growth and the planned acquisitions. "I entered the [8(a)] program to develop a competitive company in this industry," said Augustine. GMSI entered the Small Business Administration's 8(a) program in July 1991 and is scheduled to complete the program in July 2000. The company has 150 employees, but Augustine expects that number to reach 600 by 2000 through two acquisitions - one expected later this year and the other in 1998 - and GMSI's growth in the commercial market, according to Augustine. GMSI has won contracts from the Federal Communications Commission, the Internal Revenue Service and the National Science Foundation. In the commercial arena, the company has attracted clients such as Electronic Data Systems Corp. of Plano, Texas, and GTE Corp. of Stamford, Conn. It is establishing a technology transfer infrastructure for the National Institute of Standards and Technology's Manufacturing Extension Partnership. The division of NIST wanted to develop an innovative way to deliver regional and national information, expertise and assistance to small and mid-size businesses. GMSI designed and implemented a network and launched a Web site for the partnership. In addition, the company is establishing a national call center for the FCC that tracks and records information on all incoming calls and provides accurate information for its customer service representatives to complete the calls. Augustine started GMSI in April 1988 while working for IBM Corp. of Armonk, N.Y., where he worked as an engineering manager for four years and a federal sales executive for three years. He left Big Blue in October 1989 to devote full-time attention to the company. Augustine charged $80,000 onto 11 credit cards and ran the business from his Washington apartment. Augustine credits his parents for teaching him useful management skills. "I'm compassionate and I let people make mistakes," he said. - Tania Anderson
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