Crafting a specific narrative around the success of Braden Business Systems over the past 35 years isn’t a simple exercise—frankly, there are several talking points that could provide the basis for the dealer’s ascension. The Fishers, Indiana-based company’s fortunes aren’t tied into any one talking point, which indicates its foundation is as wide as it is strong.
Let’s take a look at the chronological factors that brought Braden Business Systems from a startup operation to a dealer with annual revenues in excess of $50 million. Whether directly or indirectly, they certainly guided the firm’s path:
- Indiana State pitcher Dave Braden, working toward a career in Major League Baseball, suffers an elbow injury during his senior year in 1980. Tommy John surgery for repairing elbows was yet to be widely available, thus ending his dream of pitching in the pros.
- Braden starts his business on a shoestring budget in 1989. He sells fax machines in order to put food on the table for his young family.
- Braden hires Dave Childers, a fellow baseball player, fresh out of Ball State. He was hired as a sales rep until he was promoted to sales manager. Today, he is an executive VP who has served as Dave Braden’s right-hand man for the past 33 years. Childers’ loyalty, leadership and hard work have been integral to where the company is today.
- The company tries to become a Sharp authorized dealer, but the OEM was committed to another dealership in the region—IKON Office Solutions. Braden opts for Konica Minolta instead.
- Erik Braden (Dave’s son), a Wall Street M&A and private equity maven, joins the company, then devices and implements an acquisition strategy. This significantly augments organic growth. Erik now leads the company as a managing partner.
- The company delves into both managed print and managed IT with much success.
- During the pandemic, Braden Business Systems pays its sales reps after each sale, despite not having the equipment to install. The dealer also provides loaner gear to clients until new equipment is available. Both moves foster intense loyalty among team members and clients.
- Braden cultivates lifelong employees who’ve been with the firm 20 to 30-plus years, adding a number of them right out of college.
Today, Braden Business Systems is a Midwest region company with clients that span the globe, and it’s made 12 acquisitions in roughly the past 10 years. The dealer focuses on the aforementioned managed services platform for print and IT, with an eye toward AI tools that can make its clients more productive. And while Dave Braden’s breaking ball doesn’t have the life it once boasted (see sidebar), he’s certainly elevated his company among the league leaders and is a perennial contender for meaningful growth.
Don’t just take his word for it. Braden Business Systems captured a spot on the Channel Futures MSP 501 list, ranking 260th among the more than 150,000 MSPs globally. The company is a Top 25 dealer for Konica Minolta and is among the leading resellers for Kyocera. Lexmark and Toshiba also help fill in some model gaps.
The dealership continues to fire on all cylinders. Erik Braden notes that every division within the company hit its goals in 2023, and they’re currently on track to exceed them this year. The managed IT arm has been on a tear, recording growth spurts of 65% and 38%, respectively, the last two years. Sales for A3 and A4 recorded 31% year-over-year growth, and production print saw an impressive 18% boost.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the team,” Erik Braden said. “You can always do more, get better and faster. As we get bigger and bigger, that level of growth gets tougher to attain. We’re proud to be on the top worldwide MSP list, which measures best-in-class KPIs, tech stack delivery and Net Promoter Score. We don’t take that for granted; we’re using that in our marketing and to also serve more people. Service is at the heart of what we do.
“Building the IT division has been challenging. We made an acquisition of a service provider in 2015, and it took us two and a half years to rebuild it. But it’s paying dividends now.”
Surging Through
The success in the office equipment division comes on the heels of a pandemic period that really illustrated leadership’s mettle and loyalty to both the clients and employees. While sales weren’t noticeably off the pace, the service side dipped 35%, and there were a few months when it was “scarier,” according to Erik Braden. Yet, despite the lingering aftereffects of the shutdown and the ensuing supply chain crisis, the company was unwavering in supporting its internal and external partners, including the manufacturers that struggled to deliver equipment.
While the clients were happy to have cost-free loaner MFPs to hold them over until delivery, the sales reps were elated to be paid on the sale instead of the installation. It’s the type of gesture that resonates with account executives long after the transaction is fully completed.
“The reps were, in some cases, selling equipment they wouldn’t be able to get installed for nine months,” David Braden explained. “We paid them on the sale because we felt as if they were doing their jobs right. We wanted to keep a positive atmosphere.”
Erik Braden felt his father showed himself to be an effective “wartime president” by immediately deciding to continue paying reps on their sales out of his own pocket and to forego company layoffs. The unwavering resolve was impressive, and the way he responded to the adversity left the younger Braden in awe.
“I’m a playbook guy who likes to go to my YPO network or refer to Harvard business case studies,” Erik Braden noted. “Well, there wasn’t precedence for the pandemic. That was my proudest moment, seeing my dad operating in that environment. You have to take care of your people without hesitation and play the long game. He saw the big picture.”
Sales Battles
How much of a salutary benefit and role this management style played in the more recent A3/A4 growth is difficult to quantify, though Erik Braden believes the growth is a “peacetime dividend” to further the war analogy. The managed IT division tripled during the height of the pandemic, and despite the equipment restrictions, account execs were still pounding the streets and prospecting. The dealer was earning referral business, growing its reputation and operating as if the pandemic wasn’t happening.
The elder Braden was mindful of the fact that his clients had alternative sources they could tap, even though most of them also wouldn’t be able to place machines in a timely fashion. But he didn’t want to take their loyalty for granted, so providing the cost-free temp machines was another tool to keep the customers in play.
“We really bent over backwards for our clients,” Dave Braden said. “Our motto is meeting and exceeding customer expectations. And it’s not enough to just say it; you have to live out those core values, especially when it matters most.”
The slow start and hard rebound of the dealer’s managed IT division evolved from the reactive break-fix blueprint the company and many MSPs followed 10 years ago to a more sophisticated offering centered on business optimization and driving outcomes the client seeks. On an initial assessment, Erik Braden notes, the Xs and Os of systems, tools and solutions takes a back seat to ascertaining those desired outcomes. Only then can Braden Business Systems align technology with the strategy to help the client eliminate roadblocks.
Cybersecurity postures still dominate many conversations, as they should, but as clients lock down/mitigate threats, the subject invariably turns to how they can leverage AI to enjoy more business optimization. Microsoft Copilot, like ChatGPT, is a good starting point, and the MS enthusiasts among the client ranks are keen to learn more about how AI can help them make better use of processes and personnel assets. Helping clients map out a strategy is an ongoing conversation that’s right in the wheelhouse of Braden Business Systems.
“We’ve done a great job with our vCIO team in having a process that helps coordinate the client and make them comfortable with the roadmap, budgeting and forecasting involved with it,” Erik Braden said.
Just like the dealer itself, many of its clients are M&A active in their respective businesses. As they integrate more companies and users into their operations, it falls upon Braden Business Systems to assimilate the users into the tech stack. Client referrals truly pay dividends in growing Braden’s managed IT client roster.
Acquired Taste
As a longtime player in the M&A theater, Erik Braden sees fundamental flaws among companies that dabble in acquisitions, yet lack the rock-solid foundation necessary to assimilate the addition and the ability to set the acquired company up for success. His company seeks out best-in-class providers, because the journey to righting the ship of a problematic addition can be chaotic. The juice, he says, has to be worth the squeeze. One of the most recent squeezes brought aboard Lafayette Copier from the Indiana town with the same name.
The dealership has a strong elevator pitch for companies in search of a succession strategy—family owned, zero debt and a sustainable future. Erik Braden can paint a compelling contrasting picture regarding private equity buyers, with the added benefit of employee investments and job security for those who opt for Braden Business Systems. While the main search scope is the Midwest, he hasn’t ruled out other geographies, with the chief catalyst being the ability to have service overlap. In terms of IT targets, the search field isn’t as narrowly defined. While VoIP providers are also on the radar, Erik Braden hasn’t found a potential partner that would offer synergies with the dealer.
Even though finding and maintaining impact employees hasn’t been particularly difficult, Braden’s marketing department has devised an “8 Seconds With…” video series aimed at enticing newcomers interested in joining the team. Select employees are interviewed about their jobs and asked random, fun questions intended to elicit laughs. The employees have eight seconds to answer a question, and if they exceed the time limit, a buzzer goes off.
“I love crowd-sourced ideas, and they just really ran with it,” Erik Braden noted. “It’s funny when the team members trip over questions or bomb on them, or even just the funny answers they give. It provides viewers a glimpse into our culture. We get to make fun of ourselves, and hopefully our clients laugh at us, too.”
Shiny Things
Diversification isn’t really on the Bradens’ radar, though the emerging/still developing nature of AI and the evolving world of IT keep the product and service arsenal fresh and relevant. Too often, Erik Braden says, dealers get caught up in the “shiny, new objects,” but he’s learned from the lessons of others (3-D printing, anyone?) and the fact that there’s not always a correlation between “new” and “necessary.”
“I’m skeptical about diversification for the sake of it,” he said. “I see a lot of providers getting into everything. Honestly, if you do everything, I’m not sure you can do everything well. Customer service excellence and exceeding expectations is our mission critical guiding star and we won’t deviate from it.”
Moving forward, David Braden feels the keys to growth encompass a wash, rinse and repeat quality, focusing on organic business while being mindful of appropriate acquisition opportunities. The company continues to reimagine its marketing strategy, allowing it to effectively relate its best-in-class story and share the success tales being forged every day with satisfied customers.
Company transparency has been another focus. Each of the company’s four campuses now have flat-screen displays that keep team members abreast of performance as it relates to goals. Whether it’s managed IT monthly recurring revenue statistics or office equipment sales by area, employees can have a firm grasp on how their performance is measuring up to stated goals. It’s not all numbers: the displays show employee birthdays and anniversaries, customer referral blurbs and other information that keeps team members in sync with the organization.
“Our goals are working to secure our future by exceeding customer expectations,” Dave Braden noted. “This is the motto we’ve had for 35 years. That kind of encompasses who we are.”
Dave Braden’s Brush with Legendary “Baseball” Star Larry Bird
Yes, you read that headline correctly. Dave Braden, president/founder of Braden Business Systems, once played college baseball with Larry Bird. Yes, that Larry Bird, the pro basketball Hall of Famer better known for his hardwood exploits for the Boston Celtics.
While Bird was pretty much ticketed for greatness in the NBA, few are aware that he suited up for one Indiana State doubleheader during Braden’s junior year and even stroked a two-run single to win a game for the Sycamores. As for Braden, he fashioned a 4-0 record with a sterling 2.60 earned-run average—numbers impressive enough to draw the attention of pro scouts, who came out to all his starts. Another teammate, Bill Hayes, was drafted in the first round by the Chicago Cubs.
“Playing baseball with Larry Bird was my 15 minutes of fame,” Braden chuckled.
Bird had finished playing in the national championship game for Indiana State when, legend has it, baseball coach Bob Warn teased Bird about his toughness and said he couldn’t survive in a baseball game. Ever the competitor, Bird accepted the challenge. On April 28, 1979, when the Sycamores played non-conference foe Kentucky Wesleyan, Bird suited up, although the team didn’t quite have a uniform large enough to support his 6’ 9” frame. In addition to the two-run single, Bird started the second game at first base and made nine putouts.
Two months later, Bird signed with the Boston Celtics, setting the stage for a legendary career.
Braden had a 90-mph fastball and a breaking ball that could move into or away from the hitter, a pitch now commonly referred to as a sweeper. He also had a strong curveball and a slider—all of which catapulted him into the nation’s top ratios for ERA and strikeout rates.
“At the time, I seriously thought I could play professional baseball,” he said. “Playing college ball is a humbling experience because you’re going up against opponents who all were all-state athletes. I thought I was going to dominate. So I had to work my butt off to be good.”
While Braden had an up-close view of Bird’s performance on the diamond, luck wasn’t on his side. An elbow injury put an end to his Major League Baseball (MLB) aspirations. Unfortunately, the Tommy John surgery that has since saved many a pitcher’s career had yet to become a commonplace operation. Thus, Braden’s future took a sharp turn into the world of office technology.
Braden’s buddy, Hayes, enjoyed a cup of coffee with the Cubs in 1980 and 1981, finishing with two career hits. But Indiana State didn’t come away completely empty-handed on the baseball side. Fellow teammate Wallace Johnson went on to have a nine-year career in MLB, mainly as a spare outfielder for the Montreal Expos.