Dr Alistair Forbes expands on the idea of global growth to Dominic Ryan by explaining how looking at a bigger picture opened up new horizons for IT company LogicNow

When the poet John Donne wrote that no man is an island he may have had in mind metaphysical ties. However, he could just as easily have been looking far forward to the dependancy of one business on another in this modern economy we share.

The inexorable growth and exponentially complex interconnectivity of the global marketplace means none of us can stand apart from the whole for long and expect to thrive.

Today a successful business, from the start-up through to the SME, all the way to the multinational corporation, is increasingly recognising and engaging with the need for a more global mindset.

LogicNow is one such organisation. A Scottish-based company that provides the world's leading integrated IT service management platform, it has fully embraced a planet-wide outlook and attuned itself to the culture of tangible growth in overseas markets.

As its General Manager, with responsibility for research and development, marketing, customer support and IT, it's fair to say Dr Alistair Forbes has his work cut out. As one of the co-founders of precursor company HoundDog Technology in 2004, sold in 2009 to GFI Software and in 2014 spun out as LogicNow, he has been an integral part of a strategic re-organisation that now gives a particularly unified focus and direction to the company as it now exists. Most recently, this has led to brand new developments, such as investing in the Dutch market and setting up new offices in the Netherlands.

Dr Forbes points out: "We have been making product improvements on an ongoing basis and in the past year have added a service management product and the ability to manage mobile devices and cloud-based services. Over the years, additional products and pieces of functionality have been a strong driver of our growth.

"We have been operating in international markets from an early stage, with sales in North America, continental Europe and Australia and New Zealand within our first couple of years.

"Our investment in setting up the new Netherlands office was driven by the fact that we have a significant volume of business there - one of the companies we acquired was based there and so we already had a team in situ. So we have invested to build that team and operate directly in that market rather than through distributors."

The company has also made substantial investments in digital marketing and big data analytics in the past 24 months, helping to capitalise on the value of the information already within its system. Such product innovation has been fundamental to being able to grow from being a new entrant to the market to surpassing the incumbents and being acknowledged as a world leader.

"The contribution to the business of global markets has been a major factor in our growth," adds Dr Forbes.

"When we started we were very UK-focused but now our UK revenues are only about 12 per cent of our global total. If we had not gone international, we would not have been nearly as successful as we have been."

In reaching out to embrace new and more widespread markets, LogicNow has benefited from support from Scottish Enterprise over the years.

"This has taken a number of forms, including funding assistance to help us build products, support for marketing programs as we expanded internationally, support for people development and access to market intelligence for potential new markets as we have looked to enter them," says Dr Forbes.

"The nature of the assistance has varied over time, reflecting our growth as a business and the account management process of Scottish Enterprise has enabled us to access the right type and level of support at the correct time.

This support undoubtedly helped us to achieve the success we have." With such additional back-up, LogicNow has risen to the primary challenge faced by many of its peers: whether due to a lack of ambition, risk aversion, a fear of failure or simply a lack of knowledge, many Scottish companies seem reluctant to embrace change - despite the obvious potential to grow and blossom.

A flagship company for the concept of Infinite Possibilities, LogicNow demonstrates its aims and ambitions by transforming them into actions and rewards.

"We try to strike a balance between doing good upfront analysis of opportunities and not spending so much time in analysis that we never get to the point of action," says Dr Forbes.

"We always want to have a solid basis on which to take decisions but the willingness to take calculated risks is important.

"Having metrics in place to be able to evaluate the outcome is particularly important so you can decide which opportunities are worth continuing to pursue. We see these as exciting without doubt - sometimes they can be challenges but the challenges that come from growth are the better sort to have to address."

Often the underlying 'cultural' challenge within some parts of the Scottish business community is the belief that opportunities in foreign market places cannot be found as easily as here in Scotland. Dr Forbes counters: "I think it depends on the nature of the business - in our case, with a software product delivered via the cloud and in which potential new customers can trial the product themselves without requiring any on-site presence from us, very much so.

"We operate infrastructure around the world to support our service delivery and we have staff in many countries but we have no physical distribution requirements and our sales process doesn't involve customisation or lengthy consulting-type engagements. With these characteristics, I would say international markets are something that can be addressed even by relatively young companies.

"Critical mass in a country certainly helps but you can start from small beginnings and build from there. Paying attention to metrics such as the ratio of customer lifetime value to cost of customer acquisition is important to make sure that investments are appropriate and well-directed."

Confidence is key to success

According to the latest Global Connections Survey, global appetite for Scottish products has reached an all-time high to hit a record £27.9 billion in export sales to overseas markets in 2013 (not including oil and gas or exports to the rest of UK).

Since the survey began 12 years ago, and in spite of mixed rates of economic growth and recovery, Scotland has consistently grown its exports in both mature and emerging economies.

Exports have now grown by a fifth since the launch of Scotland's international trade and investment strategy only four years ago and that is significant.

"These results highlight that Scottish goods, products and services have a firm place in the world," says Anne MacColl, CEO of SDI. "We know that they are very well received and growing in popularity, and this paints a hugely positive picture for companies, particularly those who are thinking about exporting for the first time.

We need to help the leadership of all of our companies, particularly the smaller firms, grow their confidence in what they do and fully understand the benefits that can be reaped from exporting, for both the company and the global economy."

The import of export

What can exporting do for me?

Many firms find their dreams of enjoying higher margins and increased profits can be best achieved through a broader, diversified customer base. In the wider marketplace you will be able to benefit from sharing new skills, technologies and partners. By gaining access to new and niche marketplaces, you can accelerate and sustain business growth.

What should I do?

Take positive action and look at the bigger picture. For example, signing up to attend overseas trade fairs and joining trade missions not only broadens the platform for selling, it can also improve your knowledge of markets through networking and sharing information.

Where can I find help and advice?

Organisations such as Scottish Enterprise offer a range of support services to acquire the must-have knowhow to sell services and products planet-wide. This includes not only entry to local networking events but also free access to international trade experts. You might also want to join strategy workshops or even embark on an accredited training course. For more information visit www.scottish enterprise.com/international

Theory of evolution

LogicNow, a Dundee IT company that began life in a redundant jute mill, now helps IT professionals across the planet.

What was the Eureka Moment?

When our original company, HoundDog Technology, was acquired by GFI, we got immediate access to a worldwide distribution network that was a significant accelerator to our growth. We were already operating in international markets but the leverage we gained made a huge difference. We were able to access markets that would otherwise have been beyond our reach at that stage.

Is LogicNow a good news story?

Unquestionably. From a two-person start-up in 2004 we have grown to be a global leader in our space, employing around 500 people worldwide. We are still growing at more than 40 per cent year-on-year in revenues and recruiting actively in Scotland and elsewhere. Our HQ remains in Scotland and we have substantial facilities in Dundee and Edinburgh. We are about to move into new office premises in Edinburgh to accommodate our growth and we are also extending our Dundee facility.

What advice would you give to others to take advantage of global business opportunities?

Do your research. Ask people who have experience of what you are trying to do and make use of services that can provide additional information or experience that can help you to make a decision. No one will know more about your products than you but there are many sources of information about markets and customers that can complement your knowledge.

What have been the challenges in business growth and how have you overcome them?

One of the challenges we have faced as we have grown to the scale we are at now is being able to focus on the most important things among the many we could or would like to do and have the discipline not to chase everything in an unfocused way. We are very data-driven, which gives us a way to test things and keep going with the things that work while pulling back on things that don't work so well.

What does the future hold for LogicNow?

We are aiming to continue our strong business growth in existing markets and build our product portfolio. Investments in new markets and they are bearing fruit, for example in Central and Latin America. We have also been working on our ability to use the data within our systems to support our customers' business growth more effectively. We will continue to look for new products we can bring to market and continuing our international growth. Our business in Africa and Asia is modest at the moment and we see significant opportunity in those markets. And the million-dollar question: what is the best business advice you've ever received? If you want to have a productive discussion about something, bring data rather than opinions.

Dr Alistair Forbes is GM of LogicNow

Top 5

Scottish Exports

1 Food & drink £5 billion
2 Refined petroleum/chemicals £3.5 billion
3 Legal, accounting and business services £1.9 billion
4 Machinery and equipment £1.7 billion
5 Electronic products £1.6 billion
Source: Global Connections Survey 2013