Growth with Purpose

Fifteen acquisitions in four years is a number that tends to raise eyebrows.

But for Flotek, the growth story has never really been about the numbers.

In a recent podcast with The Exit Advisor, two of our co-founders, Jay Ball and Dave Middleton, explored how Flotek has grown from a standing start into one of the UK's fastest-growing managed technology providers.

What comes through clearly is that every decision, from the businesses acquired to the way they are integrated, has been made with one question in mind: does this make us better for our partners?

Built around one joined-up service

From day one, Flotek set out to do something the market was not doing well. IT and communications had long existed as separate worlds, with businesses often juggling multiple suppliers, each responsible for a different piece of the puzzle. Jay's background spanned both disciplines, and the vision for Flotek was to bring them together properly under one roof.

That same logic has shaped every acquisition since. Rather than buying businesses and leaving them to operate as separate silos, Flotek integrates each one fully. One system. One helpdesk. One billing platform. One team. The result is a business that can genuinely deliver joined-up support rather than just claiming to.

As Jay puts it, the days of buying companies and simply adding their numbers to yours are gone. To feel, look and act like one business, you have to do the work to become one.

Acquiring capability, not just customers

Not every acquisition is about adding revenue. The purchase of Microshade is a good example. Microshade brought deep expertise in virtual hosted desktop solutions, technology that would have taken Flotek three to five years to build organically. By bringing that capability in, Flotek was able to offer partners access to a proven hosted desktop solution, FloFVD, straight away, without the delay of building it from scratch.

That kind of thinking runs through the acquisition strategy. Where a business brings specialist knowledge, technology or experience that accelerates what Flotek can offer, it becomes part of the group. Partners benefit directly.

The 100-day plan that keeps things on track

Integration is where acquisitions succeed or fail, and Flotek takes it seriously. Every business brought into the group goes through a structured 100-day plan, with a dedicated weekly meeting to track progress. Financial systems, customer data, support infrastructure and management lines are all addressed early and methodically.

The discipline matters because it protects the service partners receive. A poorly integrated acquisition creates confusion, inconsistency and gaps. Flotek's approach is designed to prevent that, keeping the experience consistent regardless of which part of the business a partner is working with.

What it means for partners

Flotek's organic growth has been recognised as among the strongest in the UK managed services sector. That is not something that happened by accident. It reflects the confidence partners place in a business that has invested heavily in its own capability, team and infrastructure.

The acquisitions have played a significant role in building that capability. Each one has added people, knowledge, coverage or technology that strengthens the whole. The goal, as Dave explains, is 30% growth per year driven primarily by organic means. That ambition only makes sense if the business underneath it is genuinely strong.

For existing and prospective partners, that is the point. Flotek is not growing for its own sake. We're building something that's better placed to support the businesses that rely on us.

Find out what Flotek can do for your business

Book in with one of our team.

Further reading

FloFVD: why we built it and why it matters now — how the Microshade acquisition led to a hosted desktop solution built for modern businesses.

Flotek named number one in the Oxygen Fast-Growth 50 — the recognition behind our organic growth and what it reflects about the business we are building.