Winning the 2010 Information Systems Entrepreneurial Award carries a lot of significance for Andy Kotarba, president and CEO of Dewpoint, but maybe not for the reason most would think.

“It’s because I have a company full of entrepreneurs. I try to instill that spirit into every single employee. I’d rather have an employee asking for forgiveness than permission. Sometimes that backfires, but I’d rather have those kinds of thinkers in my company,” Kotarba says.

Dewpoint, a technology systems integrator and IT consulting firm in Lansing, was founded in 1996. The company, which Kotarba joined in 1999 as CFO, struggled to meager early success under original ownership. Amid downward spiraling revenue and profits, the company has experienced a rebirth since Kotarba transitioned to majority owner in 2004.

“We were in real trouble and there was a lot of risk involved, but my strength has always been turning companies around. I’m not a sales guy. I’m not a real technical guy. But I’m a good financial guy,” Kotarba emphasizes.

Dewpoint, which was highly leveraged and in a position of negative equity when Kotarba bought his controlling interest, then shifted its focus from the products it sold to the service and quality of work of its employees. The strategy has proved successful, as Dewpoint has grown to 65 employees across the Midwest, including 35 in the Lansing area. Dewpoint has additional offices in Indiana, Ohio and Tennessee.

“We got back to doing what was right by our customers. We have built brand recognition around our name that equates to quality support. It’s a strategy that has worked for us that I do not see changing,” he says.

Dewpoint works with typically large companies dependant on huge infrastructures as a vital part of their business. Hospitals and insurance companies are some of the firm’s most frequent customers. “We work to architect for them to determine what they need in an information system. We provide them with the technology and install it. These are typically very complex and very expensive projects. Then we maintain a consulting role,” he says.

For example, in 2004 the company provided Sparrow Health Systems with software, servers and storage to ensure their clinical portal, a technical infrastructure system that provides critical patient information to doctors 24 hours a day, would be available to many users at the same time.

The company partners with Sun Microsystems, Symantec, Microsoft, Oracle, Hitachi Data Systems, NetApp, Akorri and others to bring best of breed solutions to its customers. However, the company’s focus remains on moving brand awareness from that of a reseller to the promotion of Dewpoint’s own expertise and value.

“We compete for big projects with the likes of EDS and Accenture. We have gone up against them and won, but you need great people, great proposals and then you have to deliver. Pretty soon you build your own brand,” Kotarba adds.

Kotarba, who was CFO of Lansing-based Federal Forge just prior to moving to Dewpoint, has led the company to five years of growth in revenue and profitability while building a reputation a leading technology consultant and integrator throughout the Midwest.

Another integral part of Dewpoint’s success was Kotarba’s decision four years ago to target Michigan state government IT projects by pitching the company’s consulting services. Since then the number of IT implementation projects Dewpoint has performed for the state government has soared, he says.

However, even Kotarba admits business did dip a bit in 2009 because of the stale economy. But again, the flexibility of the company has allowed for it to maintain a healthy bottom line.

“We had to go through adjustments in our business. We had to cut costs. You have to be reactive and nimble and to react to the ebbs and flows of business,” he says. “We always have an eye toward a healthy balance sheet. We have to make payroll every two weeks. That’s part of being an entrepreneur. We are always growth focused but bottom line driven.”

The sour economy hasn’t stopped Dewpoint from expanding. The company acquired Indiana-based Moongate Technologies earlier this year in a move that will give Dewpoint one of the largest reseller presences in Indiana.

“[Dewpoint] will continue to look at acquisitions to complement the business, but our growth really is more organic. We simply want to grow through the acquisition of more customers,” Kotarba adds.

Kotarba credits the company’s employees, sometimes referred to as Dewpointers, as the key to his firm’s success during the past five years. The company’s DewGood corporate giving program encourages employees to support charities that are important to them through paid time off for volunteering and financial support.