Monty Myers still remembers buying his first IBM compatible PC while he attended Texas A&M. Another student over at UT Austin named Michael Dell was building them in his dorm room and selling them to people Myers knew. Myers had used Kaypros and Sinclairs, but Dell had a reliable product and a reputation for great service. And you couldn’t beat his prices.
Myers used that computer a lot while he finished his engineering degree in 1986 and started his own company, applying Dell’s customer-focused approach to building custom hardware and software for businesses.
Thirty years later, Myers has more than an anniversary to celebrate as CEO of
It started an amazing journey for guys in my generation,“ said Myers (pictured left), referring to early PCs. ”We’ve all benefited from the jobs and wealth created in Austin, but it was a sleepy little college town back then. MoPac stopped right up here, just north of our office [at Northland Drive and Balcones]. It wasn’t anything like it is today."
But even in today’s Austin, Eureka is thriving. The company focuses on software product strategy, designing enterprise programs and business process automation for desktop, mobile and the web in a vast array of languages and platforms.
Like Dell — who by the way is still selling computers in Round Rock — Myers and his team differentiate on service and longevity in an industry defined by constant upheaval.
“[They dig] down into your business process to see and understand why you do certain things and the rationale behind it,” reads one client testimonial. “That’s important because it has allowed them to create software that’s perfectly sustainable for us.”
Myers credits fresh challenges and a variety of tech for keeping his employees engaged.
“We have a group of nine people who have been here between 10-20 years. That’s a combined 150 years of experience,” Myers said.
The company’s engineering team of more than 20 employees had zero turnover last year.
“Our industry is often too transient,” he said. “We’ve built a culture that’s very special. The core of what we do is applying that experience. It’s great when you can anticipate problems and know the strengths and weaknesses of your team.”
On Myers’ team, Rodney Muras (pictured right) is a dependable player. The VP of solutions and services has been Myers’ right hand man for 20 years. Muras explained the strategy that’s proven profitable for the last three decades will be the one Eureka doubles down on for the next 30 years.
"The tech is new, but the ideas and business pain points are usually the same," he said. "I’ll bet we’ll be solving the same kinds of problems for companies in 10 years, just another way."
“Building the right product is an under-appreciated part of this business,” Myers added.
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