Milwaukee-based Penrod Software has plans to open a new office in Atlanta in the winter of 2018, continuing the startup’s fast-paced national expansion.
Penrod, which is headquartered at 219 N. Milwaukee St. in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward, is a cloud consulting agency that specializes in business improvement initiatives.
The addition of an Atlanta office comes on the heels of the company’s announcement in June that it plans to open an office in Dallas.
In March, the company announced the opening of its Minneapolis office, which followed the addition of its Chicago office in August 2016.
In 2016, Penrod became the second-fastest growing national partner of Salesforce.com and was ranked No. 6 among Top Wisconsin Companies according to Inc. Magazine.
The company was founded in 2012 by Joseph Taylor and Chris Widmayer, who first met each other while they were students at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
In its first two years, Penrod had about a half-dozen employees. But in 2014, Taylor said, the business hit its stride and began to see growth.
“We figured out how to teach people our expertise and how to grow,” Taylor said. “From there it’s just been constant growth.”
In 2014, revenue was $800,000; in 2015, $2.5 million; in 2016, $5 million. This year, revenue is expected to be $10 million. Taylor wants to see that number continue to double each year.
“Every decision is about how do we grow more? How do we make sure our growth is stable,” Taylor said.
From the outset, Taylor said, he and Widmayer have focused on building a positive company culture and attracting top talent.
“We decided we wanted to differentiate ourselves in the Midwest by being … a very forward-thinking company in the employee space,” Taylor said. “We thought that could be our differentiator. Being a consulting company, we sell people’s time and expertise and so we wanted to make sure we have the best people and make sure they’re happy.”
In 2016, Penrod was also named the top Wisconsin workplace for young professionals in NEWaukee’s annual Bubbler Awards.
