If you are a shareholder in 365iT plc ( 365it services.co.uk )  , LMS Capital, South East Growth Fund or Sussex Place Ventures then it’s been an interesting few weeks for you. As you may or may not know LMS Capital just acquired 365iT companies 5i Limited, ImperaData, Dynax and Secure Networks at a time when The Honourable Robert Rayne ( until recently Chairman of LMS Capital )  has led the ” Rayne Concert Party ” ( who own around 35% of LMS Capital ) in a bid to break up LMS Capital.

Following an earlier blog of mine shareholders in 365iT ( 365it services.co.uk ) have been contacting me to try to find out what exactly is going on at 365iT plc. All that shareholders have received is a letter from Peter MacLean that raises more questions than it answers. ( Particularly in the light of what is going on at LMS Capital ! ) Interestingly long standing ( long suffering ?? ) 365iT shareholders have said to me that the letter sent out late last month is typical of the sort of ” say quite a bit  but say nothing ” communications that they are used to.

We are all waiting with bated breath to see what the new company that comprises 5i Limited, ImperaData, Dynax and Secure Networks is oing to be called. Maybe it will just be ” part of LMS Capital ” until , if the ” Raynes Concert Party ” have their way, the LMS Capital companies are sold off again. ( I know – you are having trouble keeping up with this already !! ).

Don’t worry ! – this blog will help keep you informed on events at 365iT plc ( 365it services.co.uk ) and LMS Capital as and when they happen. I will also report on the upcoming meeting of 365iT shareholders – it will be very interesting to hear more about the history of Impera plc. Some of the shareholders have known Peter MacLean since he was at Guardian iT.

From what we can tell 365iT is now a debt free company which owns Fox I.T.

http://www.foxit.net/pages/about/investors.shtml

Here’s the blurb for investors from the ( new ) 365iT website:

Investors

365 iT plc

“365 iT plc was founded in 2005 and now employs over 120 people. Through its wholly owned subsidiaries (365 iTechnology Ltd, 5i Ltd, 7 Global Group Ltd and Fox IT Ltd), the group provides an extensive range of IT services and solutions that address ten strategic areas of IT operations and management: IT Managed Services, Unified Communications, Business Continuity, Data Backup, IT Security, Virtualisation, Networks, Storage Solutions, Infrastructure Solutions and IT Service Management.

365 iT plc designs and delivers information and communications technology (ICT) services that help organisations enhance their IT effectiveness and ROI, enabling them to better meet their business objectives. Headquartered in Basingstoke, the company works closely with its clients from SME businesses through to corporate and public sector organisations.

Commenting on the acquisition of Fox IT, Peter MacLean, 365 iT plc’s chairman and chief executive, said: “This is a very positive development for the 365 iT group and I welcome Paul Speers and his team. I look forward to working closely with them in and in particular to helping them grow their business model substantially in the coming years.

MacLean continued: “This latest acquisition represents yet another significant step forward consolidating the group’s position in the very competitive and rapidly developing IT services market.”

Paul Speers, Fox IT’s managing director, said: “The future is undoubtedly very exciting and I believe that Fox IT’s capabilities in ITSM and ITIL strongly complement those of 365 iT plc. The combined forces of both companies will establish a new benchmark in the IT Services Sector.”

This 5th acquisition in just 4 years demonstrates the strength of 365 iT and the group’s ability to exhibit continued substantial growth at a time when many businesses are doing quite the opposite. In September, 365 iT plc was ranked the 15th fastest growing technology company in the UK, according to the prestigious Tech Track league table.”

As you can see until very recently everything was Go, Go, Go at 365iT plc !!

Meanwhile whilst there is a lot about the ” Rayne Concert Party ” on the LMS Capital website

http://www.lmscapital.com/Ournews/tabid/64/Default.aspx

there is nothing about the acquisition of 5i Limited, ImperaData, Dynax and Secure Networks which is a bit odd when you consider that at the time the ” Rayne Concert Party ” were shouting for a break up LMS Capital were just spending a load of money acquiring new companies !!

At least all the creditors and Loan Note Holders of 365iT plc got paid out by the money from LMS Capital. Who were the Loan Note Holders – well you can probably guess ( !! ) but more on after the shareholders meeting 😉

Please bookmark and share this blog because THIS is going to be an interesting story!

P.S. More on the New Company that LMS Capital just funded here:

http://www.365itservices.co.uk/about-us.php

About Us

365 ITMS Limited is a new company formed by a management buyout, backed by LMS Capital plc, of a number of business divisions from 365 iT plc.

These business divisions deliver a range of technology solutions extending from unified communications to network and system infrastructure, security, business continuity and managed services.

The new company, 365 ITMS Limited is managed by Peter Howells who was the Managing Director and co-founder of 5i Limited, the unified communications specialist. Peter MacLean, Chairman and Chief Executive of 365 iT plc who also joins the board as Non-Executive Chairman will focus on corporate strategy and acquisitions.

Peter Howells, Managing Director of 365 ITMS said “Our aim is to become the trusted IT services supplier of choice for corporate businesses in the UK. Bringing together the separate divisions under one banner will provide us with one of the strongest portfolio of technologies and services possible and allow us to work closer with existing and new customers and business partners to achieve this goal.”

Howells added “Working with LMS Capital will not only ensure that we have the capital to fund organic growth but also provide access to a greater source of investment capital to acquire other businesses that will further strengthen our overall proposition in key areas of technology and services delivery.”

Commenting on the investment, Pieter Hooft, Managing Director UK Investments at LMS Capital, said “We are delighted to have the opportunity to be part of 365 ITMS Limited. Our due diligence has confirmed that the individual businesses are held in high regard by customers and key suppliers and we are confident that their integration into a single new company, under a management team that has a proven track record of profitable growth, will create an outstanding company that will take advantage of the rapidly changing IT landscape.”

I recently came across this post on another blog site:

” I do the SEO for a healthcare company, and I have these exact problems. ( a lack of respect due to … 1. Poor communication, 2. Department mentality, 3. Being seen to be opiniated )  The good news is that they are trying to improve their marketing. I have lots of knowledge, good ideas and excitement and I really want to help them reach their goals. The bad news- lack of understanding of my role, lack of coordination between the various types of marketing, because I am not being told about all the company goals, even if I ask.
In addition, nepotism and the boys’ bonding club is another thing I have to deal with. To make things worse, I am expected to train the web designer about what I do instead of doing my work, and I have to convince him that what I do is worthwhile (since he is design-oriented), so that we can design from a marketing and SEO perspective, all alone and without back-up from my boss (they are really chummy). This means projects are taking longer than they should, deadlines are unrealistic (the graphic/web designer calls the shots of when he is done and he is taking his time), and I can’t really show what I can do, nor can I do anything about it- since I have to keep my mouth shut (I have already been assigned the labels you mentioned in the article).
So, instead of marketing like crazy and getting the results- which is extremely fun for me and good for the company- I have to deal with things such as the ones mentioned, plus I have to do other things that I should not be doing and I get no support. So, yes, I get no respect. I did try to do the team work thing, but it seems to me that educating people about everything is a really a time-consuming task, and it needs to be a two-way street.
I think that companies need to educate themselves better on the roles of marketers and give them more support, instead of just expecting them to be “friendly” with everyone and being submissive and quiet, so that they would fit in. All these cookie-cutter ideas of how people should be all be the same are old and outdated. Part of being a marketer means being bold, free, more independent,creative, outspoken, taking chances, thinking outside of the box, being daring, competitive, a little rebellious and result-oriented. This is what I want my boss to support, because that is what gets him the results. “

and it really touched a raw nerve with me – perhaps because another marketer that I know was experiencing some similarish issues.

I told her:

1. To plot her exit

2. To screw ( use ) them whilst she did it

3. To be happy ( doing it )

Well – like I say it touched a raw nerve !!!!

SEO and more recently Inbound Marketing people are THE FUTURE but they will inevitably be held back by ” the old guard ” – traditional marketers, web designers and other ” established ” marketing and non-marketing functions.

Now this young lady may think she is frustrated but I can tell her that it is even more frustrating being an investor in a company that still has these attitudes and policies.

Remember, as an investor, you may sit on the Board ( or not ) but you will probably not have control ( which resides with the management team ) so you can actually only influence.

As an investor in this company I can imagine myself sitting in a Board meeting while they whinge about the fact that they are not going to hit their numbers.

Trying to ignore this fact slightly you ask why and they make some excuse about market conditions; failing salespeople etc etc

” How is your Internet Marketing going ? ” you ask, innocently. What are you getting from that ??

Oh we don’t get any actual business, they say.

Do you get visitors you ask ??

Well we do but don’t know how many.

Is the website being found ???

We think so.

What is it being found for ????

We don’t know.

Well, you’ve got an SEO specialist right ??

Yes.

So what have you told her to SEO the website for then ???

( Blank looks all around )

o.k. So listen – if the SEO specialist does not know what you need to be found for she will be guessing. So you need to think about it and discuss it with her and then allow her to make changes to the website to ensure that it gets found. Your design guy isn’t going to be able to help you in this.

You also need to think about giving the SEO specialist the tools to measure if her work is having an effect on visitor numbers and leads generated.

Of course by now you have ruffled LOADS of feathers – but hey – they are playing with your money !!!!!

I could make this a much longer blog !!

Are you a 365iT or Impera plc shareholder ?? If so then this post is for you.

I would be interested to connect with any current or proposed 365iT Plc shareholder. I have been a 365iT plc shareholder since the sale of 5i Limited to 365iT a couple of years ago.

I was the main investor in 5i Limited when it was founded having previously been a founding Director of Voyager Networks and Internet Limited.

Shareholders might be original shareholders in 365iT plc ( formerly Impera plc ) or shareholders in companies acquired by 365iT or investing in 365iT or shareholders in companies being acquired by 365iT.

Please email me on : chris@mandarainmaker.co.uk or telephone +447881 500002.