MAKING IT IN THE MILLYARD
10/13/04
Smaller firms able to grow at Millyard
BYLINE: BENJAMIN KEPPLE
Union Leader Staff By BENJAMIN KEPPLE Union Leader Staff This is the third in a four-part series. MANCHESTER -- There are plenty of large companies with offices in Manchester's Millyard district: Autodesk, for instance, or Texas Instruments. But throughout the old mills, there are also plenty of smaller companies, each with a good idea solidly behind them. XRSolutions is one of those. The company has developed some slick software programs which let multiple users collaborate on a single document, such as a contract or proposal. It's a venture CEO Lisa Payne, chief software architect Allen Johnson, and programmer/analyst Cherene Morrissey started from scratch two years ago. Now, the company has its own corporate office space, has developed its products, and is gearing up its sales and marketing efforts. "Lisa had been working as an independent contractor for quite some time with some companies in the proposal marketplace. She came across a common need that customers had, so we got together and started working on a solution," said Johnson. The common issue is this: When working on big documents, lots of people in a company may take part in reviewing it, making suggestions or improvements, and adding needed information. XRSolutions' CAST suite of products centralizes the process and lets a manager parcel out parts of a master document to the people who need to look it over. It tracks who has done what and what still needs to be done. Finally, it puts everything back together again. The cost, according to Johnson, is $1,000 for the firm's iCAST software, aimed at small-to-medium sized teams and projects, and $3,000 for TeamCast, used for larger projects. Each package includes one administrator license and 20 seat licenses; additional seats are under $100 for iCAST, and $150 for TeamCAST. Over the past two years, the company has grown, thanks to the efforts of the three co-founders and their families. Payne, the company's chief executive, said the idea behind that was to bring on family volunteers as the company grew. They've helped with everything from bookkeeping to sales. Payne also recalled that XRSolutions started out working from home offices. But when that proved difficult, they decided to look for outside space. The Amoskeag Business Incubator, at 33 South Commercial St., proved a perfect fit. The ABI doesn't merely provide office space. It offers everything from shared conference facilities to advice from outside experts. The incubator leases space in six-month terms. "Basically, we're providing a supportive environment to businesses that increases their economic activity, and creates jobs in the community. We want to help them increase their activity," said Julie Gustafson, the ABI's executive director. XRSolutions has been there since April. "The fact we don't have to sign a long-term lease means there's less risk," Payne said. "Also, we're thrilled with being able to interact with other small businesses who may be going through the same things we are." Down the hall, Michael Goldsmith, who runs the Web design firm SSS 4 Computer Solutions LLC, moved his company into the incubator from his home in Pembroke. "I had an office in my home for a considerable amount of time, but I was looking for a place where I had high-speed DSL so I could do some hosting for some of my clients," said Goldsmith. Lisa Mader, president of Business & Computer Solutions, started her company out of the Goffstown condominium where she was then living. But in 2001, she joined the incubator. Now her company, which specializes in job-training and related endeavors, has four employees and has built successful relationships with banks, non-profit groups and other important partners. "In less than a year, my business was doing very well. We've grown every year since," said Mader, who also said, "The incubator has done so much for me -- I don't know where I would be today without the incubator." Copyright 2004 Union Leader Corp.
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