Five Questions With: Martin J. King

"Gurnet started from my kitchen in Rumford," said Martin J. King, CEO of Gurnet Consulting.

Martin J. King is the CEO of Gurnet Consulting, an East Providence firm offering IT strategy and project execution for major brands such as Liberty Mutual, Dunkin’ Donuts and BJs, among others. The company has been named the eighth fastest growing company in Rhode Island by Inc. Magazine. He talked to Providence Business News recently about some of the challenges being faced by IT companies today.

PBN: How long has the company been in business and how many employees do you have? How did it begin?

KING:Gurnet Consulting was founded in 2008 with the goal of creating a Rhode Island based company that was the class of our industry, an active participant in the State’s economy and a positive influence in our local community.

Gurnet started from my kitchen in Rumford. I was a single operator and my first client was Dunkin’ Brands (the corporation that owns Dunkin’ Brands and Baskin Robbins). So, you can say, “Gurnet ran on Dunkin,” for our first year of operation. Today, have 40 associates and been engaged in over 12 different industries to deliver solutions that span the technology spectrum – from leading a Fortune 500’s multimillion dollar data center initiative to managing the deployment of wireless networking to every school in the state of Rhode Island.

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PBN: To experience 143 percent growth over a 3-year period is pretty amazing; what do you attribute your success to?

KING:We have a pretty simple formula: Good People + Good Projects + Good Clients. We strive to hire the best and brightest, work on the most impactful projects, for the most respected companies in their region or industry. If we are missing a part of the equation, we take a hard look at the opportunity. Engagements are never based on revenue growth. We believe passionately in what we do, never knowingly compromising our values and consistently aim for excellence. By focusing on those key principles, success has always followed.

PBN: Tell me about your wireless classroom initiative.

KING:The Wireless Classroom Initiative is great on multiple levels. We’ve partnered with our home state, have local professionals working in their communities and are leading a project that will prepare the next generation of Rhode Islanders to compete in the global economy. This a perfect example of “Good People + Good Projects + Good Clients.”

The engagement is critical for the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) to execute its educational improvement initiatives and to participate in the Federal Race To The Top program, a $4.35 billion United States Department of Education contest created to spur innovation and reforms in state and local districts’ K-12 education. The project involves approximately 350 schools in 57 districts and is scheduled to be finished in June of 2015.

Gurnet was selected by RIDE to provide Project Oversight and Management for the Wireless Classroom Initiative (WCI) infrastructure program. The Gurnet team brings solid project and vendor management expertise, as well as technical infrastructure experience. We have been working with representatives from the Department of Education to design, manage and successfully implement the initiative.?

PBN: What are the IT challenges being faced by major corporations today, and what do you see as many challenges going forward?
KING:
A Project Management Office (PMO) is an organizational structure focused on the execution of corporate strategy through the proper application of expertise, industry best practices and technology.

Establishing an effective PMO is a daunting challenge for many companies, regardless of size or industry. Executives understand the need for a strong PMO and sound project management to execute strategic initiatives. However, obtaining the right expertise, hiring permanent staff, investing and maintaining technology and tailoring methods to consistently deliver business results is a long-term, expensive and often high-risk endeavor.

Industry studies show the ability to establish a viable Project Management Office is challenging and the execution of strategic initiatives often proves more difficult and costly than previously thought. [25 percent of PMOs are closed within the first year, 50 percent of PMOs are closed by second year, 75 percent of PMOs are closed by the fourth year and 33 percent of projects are successful]
PBN: How are you addressing those challenges? How many companies do you work with annually?

KING:We saw a need in the market place and moved to establish a solution that addresses the root cause of the challenges faced when trying establishing a project delivery function. Our goal to ensure our clients reside in the top echelons of the industry statistics.

Gurnet’s solution is called FlexPMO – an integrated platform of global standards, award-winning tools, and proven expertise that flexes with the demands of our clients’ initiatives. We take the burden of establishing and applying methodologies, investing and maintaining technologies, and the hiring and retention of qualified project delivery professionals off our client’s hands. As a result, they focus on mission critical activities – strategy execution and driving business value.

Since 2008, we have lead the successful delivery of over $600 million IT projects with a 95 percent success rate. Not too bad, considering the industry standard. Our clients represent 12 different industries and span the technology spectrum.

Furthermore, Gurnet Consulting is the only Project Management Institute (PMI) certified consultancy in New England and one of fifty certified in PMI’s Organizational Project Management Maturity Model in the Western Hemisphere.

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