Go Energistics (GoE) is proudly celebrating the 10-year anniversary of its founding. Over the past decade, GoE has grown from a one-man-band to a strategically located team of subject-matter-experts, ready to serve clients globally. We have celebrated many triumphs and made it through challenging times, learning from every step of our journey.
President & CEO Adam B. Shepherd shared, “When I think about celebrating our 10-year anniversary this year, I am overwhelmed with pride and excitement for where we stand today. I set out to form this company on a mission of service with high hopes, but could never have imagined all we would achieve. As we celebrate, I want to extend my deepest thanks to my fellow leaders and our entire GoE team, as our success is thanks to you. I look forward to continuing to serve alongside this team for another 10 years and beyond.”
To mark the occasion, GoE spotlighted 10 key moments in its history over the past 10 weeks. In understanding the story of our growth so far, we feel even more excited about our future.
The Story of GoE
In 2011, our President & CEO Adam B. Shepherd set out with a mission of “Serving Those Who Serve”, inspired by his own time serving as a logistics expert in Iraq. He coined the name Go Energistics by combining what he felt were the two key ingredients for fostering efficient best practices: energy and logistics. Making a conscious choice to hire Veterans and former clinicians who could offer our healthcare sector, VA and DoD healthcare clients an understanding of their needs, he began to build his team, opting for a remote working environment long before it became popular. In shirking a “business as usual” mentality, Adam set GoE on a path of excellence and quickly got to work. In these early days, the newly formed GoE team of primarily 1099 support staff began to lay the foundation for the industry-leading practices that we apply today.
At first, GoE operated as a subcontractor to larger firms, but within a year, we were selected for a multi-year contract as the Prime contractor, marking a major shift for GoE. From there, we began strengthening relationships with the Department of Defense (DoD) and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), with early wins including the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) Replacement Facility project and the Tampa VA Bed Tower project. With more and more work coming in, GoE engaged in a hiring influx that brought our team of two full-time employees to 10. Things didn’t slow down and in the span of a few months beginning in September 2017, GoE was awarded nine significant VA contracts, including VA Long Beach Buildings 402 & 405, the Jonathan M. Wainwright Memorial VA Medical Center, and San Antonio Northwest Health Care Center. Once again GoE needed expand its small team, this time with the addition of 24 new full-time employees. While still a small business, our robust team of subject-matter-experts had officially taken shape.
As our team grew, so did our profile as a trusted provider of Initial Outfitting, Transition and Activation (IOT&A) services. Not long after expanding our team by 150% in 2018, we also celebrated our first national award recognition. We were named to the Inc. 5000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America list at number #104. In the coming years we would go on to be named repeatedly on Inc.’s national and regional lists, most recently being named number #67 on the Texas regional list. We also received our first HIRE Vets Gold Medallion from the U.S. Department of Labor, in recognition of our efforts to hire and retain our nation’s Veterans, a cause we have championed from the very start. Around the same time, GoE was selected to support a landmark project to match our growing profile. Tasked with completing building and space renovations at two unique and historic locations for the White House Medical Unit, the GoE team worked navigate this project’s many complexities, from additional security measures and COVID-19 protocols coming into play at the height of our activity, to the mere fact that these buildings hold such significant, historical value for our nation. Upon completion earlier this year, the GoE team received sparkling feedback from our client, and exited having left GoE’s mark on these facilities that will stand for many years to come.
Throughout our journey as a small business, community outreach has consistently been at the forefront of our mission. Early on, we partnered with the Yellow Ribbon Fund (YRF), which supports Veterans and their families upon their return from combat, understanding rehabilitation programs are key to a successful return to civilian life. We are very proud of what our team has been able to contribute to charitable causes like YRF over the years through our overall community outreach initiative, accounting for hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations and countless hours of team support. That commitment to giving back came even further into play in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic hit. This was certainly the most significant challenge GoE had ever faced as a small business, impacting several of our projects as well as the personal lives of our teammates and their families. Understanding we were not alone, we worked to support our communities by donating PPE materials to our clients and local communities in need. It is thanks to our team’s resiliency and commitment to giving back that GoE managed to survive and even continues to thrive throughout the pandemic, mitigating issues to meet deadlines on our projects and coming together in support of one another.
Looking Ahead
Today, we stand in celebration of our past and excitement for our future. We’ve had many successes, notably our recent selection to provide initial outfitting and transition (IO&T) services to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Huntsville through a Multiple Award Task Order Contract (MATOC), as well as our recent forays into the private sector with work at the Hawaii State Mental Health Hospital and the University of Missouri. As we look ahead to the next decade of our business with anticipation, we see growth, success and a team that makes it all possible. Stay tuned!