When Vince Mayfield and Louis Erickson joined forces in 2000 to start their own business, they had no idea what challenges, opportunities, and successes the future would hold. The odds were stacked against them, with average closure rates of 48% within 5 years and 65% within 10 years. Combined with their choice of software engineering, Mayfield and Erickson faced even slimmer chances of starting a successful business in the technology sector.
As of Feb. 1, 2025, Bit-Wizards celebrated its silver anniversary after operating for 25 years, a milestone only 15% of small businesses achieve. Few companies reach this landmark accomplishment, and it took our co-founders more than good luck and magic to get there. Let’s take a look back at our company's origins and everything that's happened in the 25 years of Bit-Wizards that led to where we are today.
Humble beginnings and early triumphs
While Bit-Wizards began in 2000, the idea behind the company was years in the making. Both Mayfield and Erickson spent time in active duty military service and worked in the defense industry. As they each grew tired of dealing with bureaucracy and working on software engineering projects that quickly became shelfware, they considered starting their own business.
"The focus wasn't on building programs that helped people or solved problems, so we started looking at doing something in the civilian sector," says Mayfield. "We wanted the freedom to build a place where we could focus on developing awesome software, and that was the vision behind it."
"The idea was that we wanted to create a great place to work—where engineers who loved building software would be happy and treated well," Erickson adds. "One of our greatest innovations was focusing on our engineers in order to take care of our customers."
After writing the initial idea for Bit-Wizards on a Chuck E. Cheese napkin in 1997, the two lifelong friends officially established Bit-Wizards in Austin, TX, in 2000. They spent a year coding in their shared apartment and building their client base before returning to their hometown and opening the company's original office in Shalimar, FL, in 2001. Erickson remembers long days and late nights in that office that contributed to their success.
"We'd go out to other business locations and whatnot to drum up some business during the day, and then we'd write code, make marketing materials, and do other billable hours in the evenings," he shares. "I remember one night when the Shalimar police walked in cautiously with hands over their guns, asking what we were doing in our office at 2 a.m., and we had to explain that we were entrepreneurs."
As the business expanded its client base and gained momentum, Mayfield and Erickson took the next big step and hired John Jackson, the first Bit-Wizards employee who's still with the company today, in 2003. In 2004, the company earned the title of Microsoft Gold Partner and began its longest-running client relationship with TSA Consulting Group. By 2006, the team of three grew to 15 employees.
Operational expansions and achievements
While Bit-Wizards originated in software engineering, it spent many years offering digital marketing services after acquiring a local company and moving into a new space on Eglin Parkway in 2007. With two business pillars in place, the team navigated project failures and successes through economic downturns. Erickson credits the current success of the business to the stress he and Mayfield felt during those downturns.
"The constant stress of worrying about payroll was really rough, but it got me and Vince thinking about diversifying our operations and investing in more recurring business models," he says. "Those downturns may have led to some of the great successes we have now because they made us start focusing on other businesses."
By the 2010s, the company began earning awards that confirmed its success and upward trajectory. Bit-Wizards received the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies award in '09, '10, '11, '12, and '14. The business also earned its first Florida Trend Best Places to Work award, an accolade received for 15 years running. By 2016, the company received its first Inc. 5000 Best Workplaces award, a recognition earned for eight consecutive years.
Around the same time, Mayfield and Erickson were invited to become members of Vistage and continue to network with C-suite leadership across the nation to this day. While the accolades are undoubtedly meaningful, Mayfield believes the most significant part of each was building relationships with other leaders they met through Vistage, Florida Trend, and Inc. 5000.
"Through all these different award programs and learning opportunities, we've made long-term friends and mentors who have been invaluable to our business," Mayfield says. "I can't stress enough how important those relationships are—if you treat people well and value the information they have to share, they might open a door for you that wouldn't have been open before."
Monitored Communications, LLC, and managed IT
One long-standing relationship that shaped the future of Bit-Wizards is the one Mayfield and Erickson share with Stephen Nixon, Director of Legal and founder of TalkingParents. They combined their software expertise with Nixon's legal experience to enhance the co-parenting communication service he created in 2010. The three established Monitored Communications, LLC in 2012 and continue to support those in shared parenting situations. Most recently, the service's app and website were redesigned and optimized for various operating systems in 2024.
After forming their partnership with Nixon, Mayfield and Erickson took a fellow team member's suggestion that Bit-Wizards become a cloud-based managed service provider (MSP). The business moved into a larger office on Memorial Parkway and established its Managed IT Services (MITS) in 2013. Once they set their mission and vision for the MITS branch, Mayfield says they established the company's core values to solidify each Wizard's purpose and create a true family within the company.
"We created our core values and organized them around our vision and mission, and we really tried to live them alongside our employees," he shares. "These values have allowed us to create a level of camaraderie, teamwork, and community that you don't really get anywhere else—you can see it in the way people communicate and collaborate, the things that they do, how much they care about each other."
In 2021, the company refreshed its logo and moved into its current home on Ready Avenue. To this day, the team at Bit-Wizards prides itself on being an award-winning managed IT company. It focuses solely on this line of business, ensuring clients throughout the southeast and across the country have dependable, resilient technology solutions that contribute to their success.
Community contributions and philanthropic efforts
As the years progressed and the business continued to flourish, Mayfield and Erickson found themselves looking for ways to give back to the community that supported them throughout their lives. Both co-founders grew up in Okaloosa County and wished to help non-profit organizations in their hometown. They got involved with the Fort Walton Beach Chamber of Commerce, with Mayfield serving as the 2020 Board of Directors Chair, yet still sought more opportunities to give back.
"I come from a family that taught me how vital it is to take care of others whenever possible, and our business was finally at the level where we had the capacity to make our home a better place," Mayfield explains. "Louis and I took that dream and have now touched so many lives and given so many opportunities within and outside of Bit-Wizards."
"We did it because we love the community, and we know the payoff is worth it because this is our hometown," Erickson affirms. "I've been here since I was 5 years old—even though I left to join the military, go to college, and work in Austin, this place is my home."
The culmination of their efforts resulted in the establishment of the Be the Magic Foundation in 2021, named after one of the company's six core values. A non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the Northwest Florida community through monetary contributions, skill-based donations, and volunteer work, the foundation is powered by Wizard magic. Since they returned to the area in 2001, Mayfield and Erickson have contributed over $3 million to various causes through Bit-Wizards.
Present-day updates and personal reflections
Both Bit-Wizards co-founders are simultaneously unsurprised and stunned at how quickly they reached the company's silver anniversary. The company has achieved so much, from navigating different lines of business to expanding its employee and client base, and each accomplishment took significant effort and intention. Reflecting on the past 25 years, both Mayfield and Erickson attribute the team's success to their overall flexibility and resilience in navigating each year's challenges.
"We've always learned from our mistakes, pivoted as quickly as possible, and never thought we have the formula down because it changes constantly," Mayfield says. "I think many companies failed because they had analysis paralysis and were too risk averse, while we took risks as they came and managed our energy in powering through them."
"We often say the reason we've been successful is that we've simply made more good decisions than bad, and we certainly did make some bad decisions," Erickson elaborates. "We looked at each choice, asked ourselves if we made the best decision that we could with whatever information we had at the time, and learned from them to move forward and grow."
As software engineers who became entrepreneurs and created a thriving business that prioritized its employees, Mayfield and Erickson are exceptionally proud of how Bit-Wizards has enabled them to create opportunities for themselves and others. The company has allowed each Wizard to collectively make a more significant impact than they would have as individuals. Both co-founders pride themselves in moving through these past 25 years while retaining their love for their purpose and maintaining their moral compasses.
"I don't think anybody would put up with all of the different things that we've done over the years if we didn't love it," Mayfield emphasizes. "The element that made us feel part of something bigger than ourselves was critical to sustaining what we've done over such a long period.
"From the start, Vince and I asked ourselves if we wanted to be iconic world-changing personalities like Steve Jobs, and our answers were always clear," Erickson adds. "We never wanted to be renowned business leaders if it came at the cost of our character."
Key advice from the original Wizards
As Mayfield and Erickson pondered what advice they'd share with current and future entrepreneurs from the past 25 years, they both offered the same recommendation: live in the moment, appreciate where you are in life, and keep your values steady through it all. Both co-founders feel that their intentional choice to enjoy each moment brought joy within and outside of the business, from earning national accolades to meeting their wives and closest friends.
"You know, 25 years seems like a long time, but it goes by so fast," Mayfield shares. "If you balance your risks while prioritizing your livelihood, you can have a great life, accomplish good things, and have a big impact on yourself, your family, and so many other people."
"I can still see the early days in our Shalimar office as if they were yesterday, with Vince and I working in the middle of the night," Erickson recalls. "The last 25 years have been amazing and challenging all at once, and the work we've done and the impact we've made is something I'm really proud of."
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