Five of Soliant Consulting's 65 employees pose for a team shot. The company recently recently began a transition from a traditional structure to an employee-owned one.
Between now and #ClarisEngage2021, you’ll notice a series of monthly blogs highlighting Claris’ 2020 Community and Partner Excellence Award recipients. The third installment of this series features Soliant Consulting, the recipient of Claris’ 2020 Excellence Award for Advocacy.
For years, a very special book has been making the rounds at Soliant Consulting. Soliant CEO Bob Bowers finds himself referencing it often. The book is The Trusted Advisor, and it lays out a foundational philosophy for Soliant: technical excellence isn’t enough. A business has to earn trust.
“That term ‘trusted advisor’ has been part of Soliant’s DNA from the beginning,” Bowers says. “The book is one of my favorites and something everyone here reads. We strive to be a trusted advisor to our clients and have a positive impact on their organizations.”
“At some point, it's not just about being the better coders,” Bowers notes.
“The platform and process matter too.”
Soliant, the recipient of Claris’ 2020 Excellence Award for Advocacy, uses the Claris Platform and a holistic approach to solve problems for household names like GAP, Dream Works, REI, Volvo,Wells Fargo, Harvard University, and others.
“Claris FileMaker is something we know and love,” notes Bowers. “Like us, it keeps evolving, and that’s why we’ve relied on it all these years. We use a large portfolio of tools, but FileMaker is our go-to for building custom apps."
Bowers stumbled onto FileMaker more than 25 years ago after getting a new Mac and discovering it came with a free trial version of the software.
He quickly started to use it to organize marketing work for his employer.
“What I loved about FileMaker—then and now—is its mix of flexibility, power, and ease of use,” he notes.
Bowers has built his career on the Claris Platform—first as a developer, then community leader, trainer, author, and ultimately the founder of Soliant.
“I’ve just never considered not using FileMaker,” he says. “Claris is the platform I’ve always trusted.”
A culture of collaboration
Soliant’s 65 employees have long internalized that idea of evolution and going beyond what’s expected: they’re enthusiastic about their work, proud of the company, and passionate about the impact they can make.
Those feelings of enthusiasm and commitment only increased this past year as Bowers began the company’s transition from a traditional structure to an employee-owned one, says Soliant Marketing Director Allison Arthur.
“I don’t know a single coworker who doesn't love working here,” says Arthur. “Once we became employee-owned, it became even more important to invest our energy, time, and effort not just into our work, but into one another.”
According to Arthur, employees never really competed here, but now they actively lift each other up.
“The better we invest in one another, the better work we do for our clients, and the better the company does for all of us,” she says.
According to Arthur and Bowers, Soliant’s mission to be a trusted advisor has paid off. Many clients have been with the 16-year-old company since its early years.
Steph Courdin, founder of the ALS Never Surrender Foundation, meets with a doctor to showcase the app he co-created with Soliant to track progression of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's Disease.
Philanthropic at heart
One of Soliant’s biggest passions is spreading the good news about Claris.
During just two quarters of 2020 alone, the company hosted more than 25 advocacy events. This, alongside generating a wealth of other Claris-related content like tutorials and vlogs at Soliant TV, and blog posts and labs on topics like Tackling Sync in FileMaker Demo Files and Path Conversion Functions in Claris FileMaker 19. Bowers himself has co-authored seven books on FileMaker development. The content is free and available to all.
“A lot of our blog posts, how-tos, videos, and webinars are inspired by the moment when our own developers learn something new and want to empower others,” says Arthur.
But Soliant’s advocacy isn’t limited to its customers, employees, and other developers. The 16-year-old company also offers volunteer development work for a handful of charitable projects each year.
Most recently, in partnership with the Claris COVID-19 Response Team, Soliant worked with the City of New Orleans to build a custom app to help fight the spread of the pandemicc. The app tracked Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) purchases and donations, which helped the City distribute supplies to funeral homes, essential City workers and volunteers who needed it most.
“That project was incredible,” Bowers says. “We were able to make a difference so quickly. It was very fast, but very impactful and high-energy because the need was so immediate and the solution so important.”
Another special project included helping Steph Courdin develop an app designed to help patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's Disease gain more freedom and agency by tracking their symptoms independently.
“Our Humanitarian Committee lets us give back to our communities by doing work we already love,” Arthur says.
One special project included helping Steph Courdin develop an app designed to help patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) or Lou Gehrig's Disease gain more freedom and agency by tracking their symptoms independently.
“Our Humanitarian Committee lets us give back to our communities by doing work we already love,” Arthur says.
In recognition of Soliant’s tireless advocacy work, Claris awarded the company its 2020 Excellence Award for Advocacy.
When news of the award broke, it traveled fast through the Soliant’s virtual office.
"Everyone was proud and excited!” says Bowers.
And yet, he adds, after a few moments of celebrating, the discussion quickly shifted.
“We were excited to be recognized, but we wanted to get to work again, changing lives for the better with the Claris Platform.”
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