Rubyworx Expands to Hacienda

By Scott Eldredge, Hacienda Network Staff Writer

Rubyworx Expands to New Hacienda Location

Following the model of other high tech companies, Rubyworx was started in a garage and has now moved on to bigger things. The company specializes in IT solutions for small and medium-size businesses. It was started by Bill Ruby in 2001; Dale Roberts joined as a partner in 2004; and the company has since grown to eight employees and expanded into a business condominium at 5890 Stoneridge Drive.

The company's core offering involves installing and maintaining network and IT infrastructure components, providing various hosted solutions, server space, Internet bandwidth, VPN solutions, and email and Web hosting. Support emphasizes service and responsiveness and extends to mobile workforces.

"We have a variety of clients in a whole spectrum of industries, including law firms, an inner city school, architects, the Oakland Museum," says Roberts. "We deal with a lot of interesting businesses, which all benefit from our core offerings. Everybody needs things like calendar, contacts, email, file sharing, and remote connectivity. These are some of the services we offer."

Rubyworx is continually evaluating new technologies and trends. A product Roberts has been piloting and is very excited about is Microsoft Office Groove 2007, a virtual office that lets remote workers collaborate to share files, manage meetings, track data, and generally work as if they were all in the same location. The company will be offering Groove as a hosted solution.

"Business needs are always changing," states Roberts. "We believe in providing proven technology process solutions for your business. Any organization can benefit from this service, from the education realm to the business world. This is the type of technology that will revolutionize the workforce, and we believe in delivering it at affordable rates."

Another area of interest and growth is wireless broadband connectivity. Rubyworx has launched another company from its Pleasanton location called Wirelessworx that offers wireless broadband throughout the Tri-Valley, encompassing Pleasanton, Sunol, Livermore, and Dublin, and including businesses in Hacienda. Roberts states that wireless broadband can be half as expensive as a T1 broadband line and provide eight times the bandwidth.

With cheaper Internet access and increased bandwidth, Roberts sees more companies, especially small ones, looking to Internet-based networked solutions for many of their needs, especially for remote users. "Clients do not want to buy and maintain the hardware," Roberts says. "With an Internet connection, they can get everything they need as a hosted solution. We can supply the network, the Internet connection, remote file servers, email, and productivity tools such as Groove."

Roberts is aware of the challenges that growth and success present. He's worked in customer service managerial roles, and has picked up accounts from competitors that could not support them as they grew. He's committed to Rubyworx's maintaining a focus on customer service as it grows, considering the close relationship with its clients the key to the company's success.

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