Programmer in Brentwood, Tennessee

Good morning, afternoon or night, depending on what time you read this! I’m Rick Williams, founder and CEO of CloudSmart IT. I may be the CEO but I’m far from a stuffy guy in a suit with a rotating closet of ties, rushing from meeting to meeting with my expensive briefcase. You’ll find me in blue jeans, taking out the trash when nobody else has volunteered (oddly, this isn’t infrequent…) and keeping things simple wherever I can. I come from a world that values real-world experience over fancy degrees that often talk the talk but can’t walk the walk. Education is important, and I do value mine highly, but there is so much that can’t be taught from a textbook. I moved to Nashville in 2000 and have found myself involved with so many small businesses over the years, taking great pride in my relationships with bosses and employees alike. At home, I’m the family man, and I cherish my time with my wife Dr. Amanda Williams and our two children Anna and Asa. I believe in treating everybody fairly and justly both at work and at home, as relationships are my bread and butter and technology is simply the delicious spread on top. My interest in technology started when I was 15, when my dad took me to a warehouse filled with printers that needed refurbishing. I was hooked instantly, taking them apart and rebuilding them before stacking them up and sending them out. From there, I worked as a salesman, selling both new and old computers, and then tried my hand at studying at Lipscomb University. That held my interest for no longer than 2 months, and I ended up starting my first company called Nerds on the Go (you can’t say I’m not self-aware). It wasn’t quite the professional image I was going for, so I came up with Techopoly, which I loved every second of prior to selling it in 2012! Knowing what IT budgets looked like and how to build a great team, I gathered my greatest strengths, added them together, and CloudSmart IT was born in 2015. I love to ramble, so no need to tell me to wrap it up! If you’d like to hear more, however, I’m a cheap coffee date (and I love any excuse for coffee, so please, indulge me). All in all, I’m proud to say CloudSmart IT is more than just an IT company— we’re people who care for people, day in and day out.