As Americans accumulate more and more stuff, it seems like there will always be a need for a place to put it. Ann Arbor's Online Technologies hopes to become the place for your digital stuff.
The data-storage company, formed in 2002, specializes in making sure the mass digitization of North America's information doesn't disappear in a dreaded computer crash. It allows people and businesses to back-up their computer files on secure servers just in case the worst happens.
"We're like a bank for data," says Yan Ness, CEO of Online Technologies. "Some people still keep their money stored under a mattress but most keep it in a bank."
And the company is banking on a lot of profits as it expands. The firm employs 15 people and six contractors at offices in Ann Arbor and Gennessee County. It currently has two positions open and plans to hire another two or three people by the end of the year. The company has already hired three people so far this year.
That accompanies 40 percent revenue growth. Not bad for a company that has grown sixfold since its formation.
"It's been a good run," Ness says. "More and more people are having to back up their data. Every website is trying to store it somewhere else than its closet."
Source: Yan Ness, CEO of Online Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke
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