Early dreams of entrepreneurship lead to successful tech company.

Even when he was attending college in Tampa, Fla., in the 1980s, Gilbert Gonzalez knew he wanted to start his own business. So he stopped by the trailer housing the University of South Florida Small Business Development Center to learn more about raising capital.

At the time, Gonzalez wasn't sure what kind of business he wanted to own and would flip through the Yellow Pages looking for ideas. From talking to the staff at the SBDC, which is supported by the Small Business Administration, Gonzalez says, "I knew it needed to be services-driven, not capital-driven. I didn't have a long list of investors wanting to invest in a 23-year-old."

SBDC counselors helped him focus on a concept and ultimately helped him with the strategy he used to start a computer reseller in 1989. A $10,000 home equity loan from his newly built house helped finance the venture.

From those humble roots, Gonzalez's MCS of Tampa Inc. had revenue of more than $20 million for 2005, and he was named the SBA's Florida Business Person of the Year.

Now MCS of Tampa works for clients such as the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Central Command, and Johnson Controls Inc. About 60 percent of the company's revenue comes from contracts and subcontracts with the federal government, Gonzalez says.

It's a far cry from the early days, when MCS "worked with microbusinesses, helping them put in their first networks," Gonzalez says.

His wife was his first full-time employee; today the payroll tops 250 employees.

The business initially was very service oriented, and often helped people get their new computers up and running. By doing something as simple as helping a person load a mouse driver, "they'd consider you a whiz-kid."

By the mid-1990s, MCS still had fewer than 20 employees, and Gonzalez knew that the company would have to diversify in order to grow. "We had to reinvent ourselves after weaning clients off" MCS' computer services.

The company began offering services to state and local governments, such as providing structured cabling to more than 200 schools.

Gonzalez still had not tapped into the possibility of federal contracts, so again he turned to the SBA for assistance.

Working with the University of South Florida's SBDC staff, Gonzalez secured certification under the SBA's 8(a) Business Development program for minority-owned businesses, as well as HUB-Zone status, available to companies in a Historically Underutilized Business Zone, and Small Disadvantaged Business status, says Eileen Rodriguez, the SBDC's assistant director.

"They may be the only business in the state of Florida that is 8(a), SDB and HUBZone certified. That is not an easy feat," says Rodriguez, who has worked with MCS since 2000.

For example, to receive HUBZone status, not only must a company be located in an underdeveloped business area in order to help stimulate the neighborhood's economy, 35 percent of its employees must live in a HUBZone. For a company the size of MCS, "you normally are not going to find the caliber of employees you perhaps might be looking for, especially in the tech business," Rodriguez says.

With 8(a) certification, which helps companies break into government contracting, MCS began working with Mac-Dill Air Force Base in Tampa, which is the headquarters of the military's Central Command. Through its work at the base, MCS has tackled jobs as far away as Diego Garcia, a British territory in the Indian Ocean.

The company has evolved into a convergence contractor, offering things such as Voice over Internet Protocol, security systems and closed-circuit TVs, all converging on a single network.

Ironically, one of the company's current jobs involves installing a surveillance system for the Border Patrol in San Diego, where a half-mile long tunnel was discovered in January, running from Mexico. "We were literally working on top of the tunnel," Gonzalez says.

MCS is installing cameras, cell-phone towers and fiber-optic lines running to a hub that will be monitored by Border Patrol officers. "Instead of 50 to 60 men securing the border, there will be two to three men monitoring it continually," Gonzalez says.

While MCS hasn't turned to the SBA for loans to grow the business, Gonzalez has used its advice to secure capital on his own. Just being aware of his connections to the SBA has made commercial lenders more willing to offer him favorable interest rates and closing costs, he says.

And he made strong use of the 8(a) certification to keep the business up and running during the recession.

Growth has followed in his wake. In 1990, the company had revenue of $800,000. In 1996, it totaled about $3 million. Now, a decade later, Gonzalez anticipates revenue of about $25 million.

MCS' success stems from the fact that "this company is very focused," says the SBDC's Rodriguez. "They knew from the very beginning exactly where they wanted to go and how to get it. We just assisted."

In addition, Gonzalez is willing to pitch in and aid the SBDC whenever needed, such as sponsoring government trade shows, Rodriguez says. "They give back, which so many small businesses don't do or can't do."

MCS OF TAMPA INC.

3926 W, South Ave. Tampa, FL 33614

[phone]

www.mcsoftampa.com

Founded: 1989

Employees: 250

2005 revenue: $20 million