We REALLY Care
SIRKit has been Making it Easy® to obtain effective IT solutions and protection since 2007
By Nerissa McNaughton with photos by Rebecca LippiattA90 per cent client retention rate. A nearly perfect customer service rating and 4.9 out of 5 stars on Google across more than 60 reviews. A helpdesk hold time of less than 45 seconds. Who holds these outstanding records? It’s SIRKit, a team of IT professionals redefining solutions for corporate clients of all sizes. Core offerings include managed IT services and SIRKit360, a proprietary custom cloud platform that, for more than 10 years, has allowed businesses to move physical servers at their offices into SIRKit’s cloud to avoid CapEx costs.
Kris Wilkinson, CEO, founded SIRKit in 2007.
“During my employment history in various roles, I noticed that despite having access to advanced technology, businesses were struggling due to
the shortcomings of their IT partners. Everything was reactive and rarely involved a strategic plan or consideration for security. A reasonable portion of these businesses were under an incredible amount of risk, and they didn’t even know it,” says Wilkinson.
Identifying a pressing need for a more comprehensive approach, Wilkinson launched SIRKit.
“I understood that a client wasn’t just an impersonal group but a team of exceptional people with families that depended on them. IT has the potential to protect or destroy a business. Furthermore, business owners had invested everything they had, worked for decades, and could lose it all because of ineffective or inexperienced IT.”
Wilkinson envisioned a company that would emphasize proactive care and a deeply integrated approach. Protection, as he saw it, went beyond just antivirus and firewalls. It required a robust, all-encompassing strategy that incorporated judicious product and vendor selection, continual staff training, 24/7 monitoring, impactful documentation, a responsive helpdesk and a risk-based multi-year technology plan. Most of this was available to huge companies because they could afford 10-20+ person internal IT teams and advanced systems. SIRKit started offering the same services without the upfront and ongoing investment, offering a simple monthly subscription instead.
As with many successful tech companies of today, Wilkinson started his business in his basement – but that didn’t limit the scope of what he could achieve.
“From that basement I offered unique, proactive managed IT services throughout Alberta and the Northwest Territories,” he says. “Now, 16 years later and boasting a 30-member strong team, SIRKit maintains its founding ethos: prioritizing security and service over sales. We protect our partners.”
By staying true to the goals upon which the company was founded, SIRKit realized quick success. Wilkinson hired his first full-time employee and relocated to an office in 2011. Quickly outgrowing that 700 square
foot location meant another move, this time to a 2,500 square foot office in 2014. The growth did not slow down. With an increasing staff roster, long-term clients and proven track record, SIRKit relocated again in 2019 to a 6,000 square foot office.
As of 2022, SIRKit has retained 90 per cent of its managed clients for more than ten years and won several awards, including 2nd in Canada on MSP 501 and Best Managed IT Services Provider Alberta by AI International. The MSP 501 list recognizes top businesses in the industry based on performance metrics like sales, revenue, profit margins and technology. It highlights innovators driving the MSP channel forward. SIRKit is proud to be recognized as a company driving such necessary innovation.
“In this day and time, technology shouldn’t be hard,” Wilkinson says. “SIRKit is unique and genuinely prides itself on helping businesses love technology again by keeping it simple, secure and proactive. While many managed service providers (MSPs) battle on price and landing as many clients as possible, we differentiate ourselves by remaining focused on value and doing it right. If you’re looking for serious protection and a longterm partnership, SIRKit is your team!”
He continues, “We’re all about security. In fact, our number one core value is security first. It’s not just
a function for us, it’s an ethos that guides our every decision. From day one, we’ve championed the cause of best practices to safeguard our clients. This determination has empowered them to protect their businesses from the evolving digital threats of today. We take pride in saying that it’s been nearly a decade since ransomware affected any of our managed clients, and those who’ve adopted our proactive process have successfully dodged significant cyber security incidents.”
“Remember,” he cautions, “cyber security isn’t a one-and-done task. It’s a relentless pursuit that calls for an ongoing, comprehensive strategy. Our proactive process operates like a round-the-clock watchman, spotting gaps and running compliance checks throughout the year. As we uncover these gaps, we fold them into a project roadmap for steady progression. This approach not only tightens your security but also eases the change management process and proves to be cost effective. Think of it as tackling manageable tasks throughout the year instead of facing one mammoth project every few years.” This level of service is possible because SIRKit starts each relationship with an investment of time and resources to ensure a smooth transition.
“Rather than figuring things out as we go, we learn everything we can about your systems from the start.
This intensive discovery phase enables us to hit the ground running from day one, start our proactive process, prioritize key risks and assist with budget planning for the year ahead.”
The unique challenge for SIRKit is to help businesses understand the risk they face daily. SIRKit works hard to change perceptions about cyber security to help business owners protect their livelihoods.
“Convincing certain businesses to take cyber security and IT seriously… there are many more that do, but it’s challenging to see livelihoods at risk and it’s often when catastrophe strikes that it’s finally understood. Behind every employee is a family that depends on them. By protecting our partners, we’re protecting real lives. This is why SIRKit was founded.”
SIRKit is passionate about its community too. Wilkinson coaches female amateur hockey and the company supports and sponsors numerous charities and nonprofits each year.
As SIRKit gears up to protect corporate businesses with experienced, passionate, customer-driven, easy and affordable IT solutions for another 16 years – and beyond – Wilkinson takes a moment to thank the clients that have helped build the brand to the success it is today.
“We will continue to build long-term relationships, protect and empower our partners; we want to be the last IT partner you ever have,” Wilkinson concludes.
“All of our clients have been extremely helpful at providing feedback. We don’t run from it. We want it. This has allowed us to improve our services and continue maturing. Ninety per cent of them are still with us 10 years later and we owe them a lot for the support.”
The future sees SIRKit continuing its expansion into Vancouver and Calgary and launching additional services including its own Telephony Service for Business and MSSP (Managed Security Services Provider). Through the next growth phase, the mission, purpose and core values of SIRKit will remain true.
“We will continue to build long-term relationships, protect and empower our partners; we want to be the last IT partner you ever have,” Wilkinson concludes.