Client Story | Brant Rathe, President of Revolution Data Systems
Brant Rathe is the founder and President of Revolution Data Systems located in Abita Springs, Louisiana. Founded in 2015 with Sarah Rathe, the company has experienced rapid growth and now employs 40 people.
The company has and continues to help their customers digitally transform themselves particularly in the areas of paper records, files and documents that must be converted and saved, stored, managed and accessed digitally.
Their mission is to help organizations get rid of the problems associated with managing paper and digital content.
Tell Us About Your Company
We provide two core services to our customers when it comes to digitizing their businesses.
The first is our Service Bureau division where we are contracted to digitize organizations records on paper, microfilm and microfiche. These digital snapshots of these records are indexed, redacted (if required) and ultimately loaded into a software platform where they can be searched, stored, accessed, preserved and protected. Customers can then destroy their paper records for various reasons (compliance, lower storage costs, reduce risk) while making them virtually accessible to those that need them and have authorized access.
The second service division focuses on implementing electronic content management (ECM) systems. ECM systems allow companies to better organize their content (documents, images, audio, video, etc.) and make it accessible to all employees authorized to access and use it. It also allows for specific document creation, approvals and usage policies to be in place to ensure compliance, protection and proper use.
We have customers in 35 US States and Internationally in various industries including: Federal, State and Municipal Government; Healthcare; Oil & Gas, and Financial Services.
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Tell Us About Your Entrepreneurial Journey
It boils down to one word: Emotional. The highs can be extremely high, and the lows can be exceptionally low and everything in between. And, as the business ebbs, flows and grows so does your sense of responsibility not just to yourself, your partners and customers but to your employees.
Business growth accelerates this added responsibility as more employees join the team. You realize how important to everyone else your business has become. To their families, their hopes and dreams and aspirations and what they want to accomplish in life.
Photo: Revolution Data Systems 6th Birthday | Source
They say you do not know what war is like until you’re in one with live bullets being fired at you. The same applies to wanting to be an entrepreneur vs. being one.
Scandurro & Layrisson Relationship
In 2015 we were looking for a lawyer. Jean-Paul Layrisson (JP) was recommended to Sarah and I from an old friend that indirectly knew of JP through another personal relationship. JP was a friend of a friend’s recommendation. I love a good recommendation. Whether it is a restaurant, where to stay, or a lawyer, a good recommendation is priceless.
We contacted JP and explained our situation and what we were trying to accomplish. JP helped us set up the legal structure of our business and he has been our legal advisor ever since. JP is a wealth of knowledge, a trusted advisor and our key guide in making business and legal decisions that are in our best interests.
JP is, is a master at not getting caught up in the emotion of the situation because he is removed enough and can think clearly on how to put himself in the other party’s shoes, to help explain to me, or to Sarah or the client why someone else is acting the way that they are acting and then how we need to counter that and deal with it. He seems to always be right in that regard. He takes the emotion out of the situation and will create a legal strategy for dealing with the matter at hand. He is a straight shooter and will tell us what he thinks about the situation based on his legal expertise and trial experience.
Equally important for us is that JP is a partner and cofounder of Scandurro & Layrisson. He and his partners are fellow entrepreneurs themselves and can relate to the opportunities and challenges we face as a growing business. And, while many civil cases do not go to trial often, the fact that JP and his partners can take a case to trial if necessary, means two key things for us. The first being that they will see a case through with no hand offs which can increase legal costs for starters. Second, it means the other side knows that we have legal representation that can and will go to trial and prepare the case with that in mind.
“While many civil cases do not go to trial often, the fact that JP and his partners can take a case to trial if necessary, means two key things for us. The first being that they will see a case through with no hand offs which can increase legal costs for starters. Second, it means the other side knows that we have legal representation that can and will go to trial and prepare the case with that in mind.”
What Advice Would You Give Other Entrepreneurs Looking for a Lawyer?
Do not be cheap when it comes to having a trusted lawyer and law firm. You get what you pay for. As I already mentioned, Sarah and I appreciate the fact that JP and the other partners are entrepreneurs themselves. They can relate to what it is like being an entrepreneur and this additional perspective factors into the advice they give and the type of relationship we have with them.