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Our Story

All true success is reflected in the lives of the people we impact. 

Our Philosophy

We believe in using the power of technology, work, and business to help people flourish. This is the true purpose of business: To be a self-sustaining force for good. Business done right creates value, transforms clients, lifts its team, and strengthens its whole community. This is the promise of conscious capitalism, and it comes when we recognize that money is only a means to an end. People are the ends.  

All true success is reflected in the lives of the people we impact.

Captured with care at every step

Mission

We give more then we get

Vision

To positively impact every life we touch

Values

Integrity above all else
Team driven
World-Class Professionalism
Uncompromising commitment to Excellence
Forward-thinking, Holistic approach
Passion in all we do

Work Meaning
Work Meaning
Work Meaning
Work Meaning
Work Meaning
Work Meaning
Work Meaning
Work Meaning
2004
Founded

  • On a cloudy morning in 2004, Ryan Barton’s flip phone rang. It was the manager of a NH nonprofit: “We are frustrated. Our technology is getting worse instead of better. We heard you could help?” He drove his old, 2-door Ford Explorer to their office and spent the day fixing their immediate issues, finding security weaknesses, and explaining to the leaders the best options for IT. He was, and truly talked like, a caring human being who happened to be skilled with technology. He received a hug and a check. Barton Computer Consulting was born.

2006

There’s no way back from here

  • Ryan split his time between his own clients and contracting for an IT company in Tilton, NH.  One day, the owners called him in to their office. It was time to decide: No more contracting, or work for us full-time as a manager.  It would mean more money and a new company car. But… it would be the end of this little business.  Ryan considered.  Thanked them.  Then turned them down.  Driving back, with the windows down in his old Explorer, Ryan knows this is time to treat this as a real business. He does a fist pump, just as Foo Fighters comes on the radio with the chorus: There’s no way back from here
2007

We become a team!

  • Clients just keep coming, and it’s too much for one person to handle.  We become a team!  A dedicated, passionate team who will do anything for our clients and for each other.  We support individual users at home, micro businesses, small, and mid-sized organizations, and it is busy.  The team’s care and quality continues to win a reputation, and growth explodes, with minimal business development efforts.
2008

Mainstay

  • The business name doesn’t feel right for a team, so we change to Paradigm IT Group.  It is a decision we will come to regret within the year. We search for a name that conveys the strength of our support to our clients, and the centrality of their reliance on us. In one magical brainstorm, the idea comes:  Mainstay Technologies.  With 3 names in 3 years had clients wondering who we were running from
2012

Team ribbon cutting

  • The Mainstay offices are shared with a self-storage facility. The rooms are so full, team members sometimes turn around at the sight of the parking lot: no place to sit today.  The conference room was turned to working space long ago, so team meetings are held in the lobby of the self-storage facility.  Time for a new home.  We renovate and move into the old headquarters of Granite State Glass – a client, and a NH company that has grown year over year, in much the way we plan to do. 
2013

The Mainstay Way

  • We sense that growth is pulling us in the direction of a particular kind of business success, and we are determined to go a different direction.  We gather a dozen of us in the conference room and put up every word we associate with “The Mainstay Way.” We painstakingly boil them down until our 6 core values emerge.  Then, the mission: we give more than we get.  We decide we will give our careers to ensure our business will always be a force for good.  For success is found in the lives of people. Period.  We win Business of the Year from BusinessNH Magazine, our first real award., along with Inc 5000 fastest growing small businesses. We pull our one business development person from the road, as service teams struggle to keep up with the growth
2018

Best Companies to Work for

  • We win Best Companies to Work For, for the first time! A sign of the mature culture and teammates care for each other.  Quality IT service requires exceptional professionals who are dedicated to growth, care for people, and technology mastery.  Our clients rely on our ability to recruit, train, retain and unleash these professionals inside a mature company with sophisticated process.  This award is a symbol of the quality of that team and all it represents, and it is deeply meaningful to the team.  We continue our growth, averaging 20% per year, all organic growth, with no debt or outside investment.
2022

Elevate

  • Clients from 2004 are still with us. Teammates from 2007 are celebrating their 15 year anniversary. We believe business is a force for human flourishing, now more than ever. We are committed to building a 100-year company, that is owned internally. The team has won 21 awards including 6 Best of Business awards and 4 Best Companies to Work For awards. Our 80+ professionals are relentlessly focused on tackling the ever-evolving complexities of technology for our growing client base. And the best is yet to come

Awards & Recognition

2024 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services & Cyber Defense Strategies  in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

2023 – Best Companies to Work For – 
Business NH Magazine

2023 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services  in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

2022 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

2021 – Best Companies to Work For
Business NH Magazine

2021 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

2020 – Best Companies to Work For
Business NH Magazine

2020 – Inc. 5000 List – Fastest Growing Private Companies
Inc. 5000

2020 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

2019 – Coolest Companies for Young Professionals
Stay Work Play – Rising Stars Awards

2019 – Best Companies to Work For
Business NH Magazine

2019 – Concord Chamber of Commerce Pinnacle Award Business of the Year

2019 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

CATCH Logo
2019 Rising Star Award
CATCH Neighborhood Housing
2018 Best Companies to Work For - Mainstay Technologies

2018 – Best Companies to Work For
Business NH Magazine

Better Business Bureau

2018 – Torch Award for
Marketplace Ethics

NH Better Business Bureau

2017 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

2016 – Best of Business – Managed IT Services in New Hampshire
New Hampshire Business Review

inc5000
2015 – Inc. 5000 List – Fastest Growing Small Businesses
Inc. 5000
inc5000
2014 – Inc. 5000 List – Fastest Growing Small Businesses
Inc. 5000
2018 Best Companies to Work For - Mainstay Technologies

2014 – Corporate Soul Award
Belknap Economic Development Council

inc5000
2013 – Inc. 5000 List – Fastest Growing Small Businesses
Inc. 5000
Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce

2013 – Golden Hammer (for building renovation)
Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce

Business of the Year
2013 – Business of the Year
Business Services by
Business NH Magazine