How the WA border closures brought Microsoft Dynamics specialist iCatalyst toe to toe with larger players

As Western Australia continued to close its borders to the rest of Australia and the world to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the state, a trio of Microsoft Dynamics specialists banded together to start their own venture.

Coming from a larger systems integrator, Dennis Chan, Justin Martin and Andrew Devitt joined forces to launch iCatalyst in September 2021 aiming to provide an alternative Dynamics provider for businesses across WA, as well as an alternative workplace for Dynamics specialists.

Speaking to CRN, Devitt said his former employer became one of the largest IT service providers globally through acquisitive inorganic growth, and he thought the experience hasn’t been great for both customers and employees.

“They reflected the broader market, which has seen lots consolidation in that space, while also parallel with the time when the Microsoft Dynamics set was going from being a bit of an outlier to really front and centre in a lot of conversations,” Devitt said.

Devitt had been working with Chan at their former employer specialising in Microsoft Dynamics in the early to mid 2000s, and even worked together outside of the IT channel briefly at a clothing manufacturing firm.

Chan eventually returned to the technology space by reaching out to old customers from his stint at the integrator, before teaming up with Devitt, and later Martin, to start iCatalyst.

“Our skill sets are very much complimentary, with Andrew’s background in operations, Justin in sales and myself in delivery,” Chan told CRN.

The company then brought in 12 other staff, including former colleagues from the trio’s former employer, some of whom were Dynamics ERP industry veterans who have worked together on a number of higher profile and global projects. One was even flown in from Canada despite the WA border closures still in place to kickstart a project.

“We started talking to some of the people that have joined us,” Devitt said. “We used to have a great culture, and I think off the back of personal relationships and a passion for that culture, [they] took the leap and jumped in with us and changed the game for us.”

“They had huge reputations in the market, so that just helped grow our footprint with the customers.”

Martin told CRN that iCatalyst has seen its turnover grow 500 percent in its first full financial year of trading thanks to customers it had secured, including those taken from larger firms based in Perth.

Starting with one customer when iCatalyst was founded, the firm now boasts 45 across WA, including a number in the Australian east coast. Being based in WA, a chunk of the customers are from mining and resources, along with some in manufacturing, firms with complex supply chain businesses, agribusiness, financial services, government, education and more.

“We’re very much a Microsoft shop, working with everything that’s attached to Microsoft business applications - Dynamics, Power Platform, Power BI, Azure and anything else that touches the Microsoft business stack that’s not in Modern Work,” Martin said.

“We're kind of Microsoft from head to toe; we use all the systems we sell internally in the business. So we're kind of going down the full evangelist path, and then very much focused on the business applications.”