In systems integrator circles, Convergint Technologies is a company that people admire. Homegrown by Greg Lernihan, president and co-founder, and Dan Moceri, CEO and co-founder, Convergint was born of a strategic plan that centered on a core platform of values and beliefs. Those value and beliefs, which still guide the company today, promise results and satisfaction for customers; emphasize integrity, accountability and communication from Convergint’s colleagues; foster a positive and fun work environment; and express the importance of leading balanced lives.

Back in early 2001, forming those values and beliefs was an exercise in business self-awareness — in essence, it meant deciding who Convergint would be to its colleagues (at first there were just 10 people employed, today there are nearly 1,100) and what it would offer to the market. It meant envisioning the future needs of business, industry, and institutions like schools and hospitals — and conceiving the products and services that would long remain viable to help them solve security problems, manage costs and comply with regulations.

The founding plan — with its values and beliefs — has served Convergint Technologies well throughout the past 11 years. As evidence of that, the company has experienced outstanding growth in total annual revenue, customers and new project starts, colleagues, training and certifications, field offices, and more. If an economic recession did occur recently, nobody at Convergint noticed it.

Already a leader in the security industry, Convergint’s latest vision — called Quadrant Four — brings the company to a new height. Convergint describes Quadrant Four as “the highest level of enterprise integration; where IT, applications and product knowledge are combined to develop solutions that solve customers’ business problems and help them drive business excellence.” The development of the Quadrant Four vision, the strategy for how it is being implemented in the market, and the positive results it has garnered are what compelled SDM to name Convergint Technologies as its 2012 Systems Integrator of the Year.

Convergint, which has the distinction of being the only two-time winner of SDM’s Systems Integrator of the Year Award (first in 2007), counts two significant accomplishments in 2012. One was reaching its 1,000th full-time colleague. The other was driving its Quadrant Four vision into the marketplace. “This vision has required us to raise the bar of our own performance, and develop an entirely new offering of value-added professional services,” describes Tony Varco, vice president, Security, at Convergint Technologies. Varco tells how it all got underway.

The concept of Quadrant Four was a result of ongoing strategic planning among Convergint’s leadership team. Just over two years ago, the team met to discuss the overall IP transition of the industry and the specific transitioning needs of their clients. Convergint’s leaders agreed that they needed to be more than simply a systems integrator to clients. “To be considered a true ‘trusted advisor’ we needed an organizational transformation from traditional systems installation and service, to enterprise solutions and professional services that help our clients solve business issues and achieve business excellence,” Varco conveys.