Strong Forest City Roots Have Propelled Echidna’s Growth

Digital Echidna is absolutely honoured to have been named a finalist for the TechAlliance Techcellence Award for Business Growth. We've come a long way since our early days and it's something we couldn't do without the support of our community, our staff, and our clients.

Echidna started 17 years ago as the stereotypical tech company -- out of a basement. But since then we've seen measured and steady growth. In 2008, we moved into the downtown core at 207 King St. Four employees in 1,500 square feet in the space currently occupied by our friends at the London Fringe Festival. And that was the start of our continued commitment to the core.

In 2011, we moved to the second floor of iconic Burridge Block in the heart of downtown -- Talbot & King. Since then, we've taken over part of the first floor (in the area formerly occupied by Cello), and the building's fourth floor. Now there are over 60 Echidnas packed into the building and we're doing our best to find space for them all!

It may seem we've grown by leaps and bounds (120 per cent growth between 2014 and 2016), but it really has been slow and steady. We've benefitted from having an amazing community of support in London and partners in the downtown core. We've benefitted greatly from having Fanshawe and Western nearby -- and we're proud to partner with them to help develop (and employ) the next generation of talented developers and creatives.

But this growth doesn't happen without the means to fuel and sustain that growth. We pride ourselves on building a sustainable, diversified business. We want to ensure we have long-term resources available to sustain our employee base. And we've been able to do that by focusing on the quality of our work, the talent of the people who work for us, and, most importantly, meeting and exceeding the needs and expectations of our clientele.

We're not the same company we were a decade-and-a-half ago. Over the past couple of years, we've committed to a process that has seen us insert more standardization and rigor in our processes; formalize the "Echidna Way," and set the foundation for future growth. We're continuing that process and we're excited about the results. Because we do plan on growing. We have some aggressive, but ultimately achievable, growth targets.

We are charting a course to continued success and we're committed to doing that right here in downtown London.  This is the community that has supported us through our early years, helps sustain us today, and will be a big part of who we become in the not-too-distant (and long-term) future!

In 2015, TechAlliance honoured us with its Community Engagement award, in 2014 Echidna's Scott Reeves earned its IT Leadership award. We want to again thank TechAlliance for this nomination and we look forward to celebrating with all the amazing companies at next week's awards presentation. Congratulations to all the other nominees across the various categories and thank you all for contributing to this city we all call home.