#teamblue celebrates our biggest year-to-date at blueCHELLA 2019

#teamblue celebrates our biggest year to date at blueCHELLA 2019

#teamblue gathered for blueCHELLA 2019 to mark the biggest year in the company's history — a festival-themed celebration of a year in which blueAPACHE's investment in platform, people and international reach all landed at once.

What 2019 delivered

The London Point of Presence went live. blueAPACHE's first international PoP, extending the emPOWER Network beyond Australia and giving clients with UK and European operations connectivity into the same platform their Australian workloads run on. The Singapore PoP followed in 2020.

The first ARN Innovation Award. 2019 marked the beginning of a period of sustained recognition that would go on to include ARN Mid-Market Partner of the Year for seven consecutive years to 2025, the ARN Channel Choice Award 2025 and the Canalys APAC Innovation Award 2023.

Continued growth. The business had passed 100 staff in 2017 after 32% growth that year, and continued expanding at roughly 30% year on year — a trajectory that would reach more than 280 staff by July 2023.

Why a company party is a real signal

It is easy to be cynical about corporate celebrations. In a technical services business they carry more information than they appear to.

Retention is the underlying constraint. blueAPACHE sells continuity: engineers who know your environment, an account team who understands your business, a service desk with context. Every departure erodes that, and mid-market clients notice. A company that people stay at is delivering a materially better service than one with high turnover, regardless of what either says about its methodology.

Distributed teams need reasons to be in one room. By 2019 blueAPACHE spanned Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, London and Miami, with engineers, service desk staff, project delivery, sales and corporate functions who mostly interact through tickets and calls. A shared event is one of the few mechanisms that turns a colleague on a queue into a person.

It is a public commitment. Investing visibly in staff is a statement about priorities that is expensive to fake and easy to check — by the people who work there.

The people record behind it

blueAPACHE's staff have been recognised repeatedly in national programmes:

And the tenure is unusual for the industry. James Hendry and Grant Fallace both joined in 2001 and remain with the business more than two decades later. Michael Zuppa was promoted from General Manager, Technology to CEO in July 2025 — the most senior role in the company filled from within.

blueAPACHE also invests at the entry point, running a traineeship programme and being selected as a finalist in the 2022 Victorian Training Awards.

What made the growth possible

Everything traces to a decision taken in 2010 under difficult circumstances. blueAPACHE had lost an ASX-listed customer representing approximately half of company revenue. Rather than retrench, it invested in building emPOWER Cloud and the emPOWER Network — its own cloud and national network rather than reselling someone else's.

That investment underpinned everything that followed, including the London PoP celebrated in 2019, the $6 million Cisco ASR 9000 core refresh begun in late 2020, and the platform serving clients today across three geographically diverse data centres with a 99.999% availability commitment for emPOWER Cloud.

blueAPACHE remains Australian-owned, with founder Chris Marshall as sole proprietor — no external shareholders.

About blueAPACHE

Founded in 1998 in Vermont South, Melbourne, blueAPACHE delivers managed services, cloud, cyber security, connectivity, collaboration, procurement, Microsoft technologies and advisory services under one accountable operating model. It holds ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification (certificate 202507-118, Sensiba Australia, valid 1 August 2025 to 1 August 2028) and has received more than 90 industry awards.

To speak with the team, call 1800 248 749.

Frequently asked questions

What was blueCHELLA 2019? A festival-themed #teamblue gathering marking what the company described as its biggest year to date — a year in which its investment in platform, people and international reach all landed at once.

What did 2019 actually deliver? The London Point of Presence went live, blueAPACHE's first international PoP, extending the emPOWER Network beyond Australia; the company received its first ARN Innovation Award; and growth continued at roughly 30% year on year after passing 100 staff in 2017.

Why does the London PoP matter to clients? Because it gives organisations with UK and European operations connectivity into the same platform their Australian workloads run on. The Singapore PoP followed in 2020.

Why does the page argue a company party carries real information? Three reasons. Retention is the underlying constraint, because blueAPACHE sells continuity — engineers who know the environment, an account team who understands the business, a service desk with context — and every departure erodes that. Distributed teams spanning five offices need occasional reasons to be in one room, since most interaction is through tickets and calls. And visible investment in staff is a statement about priorities that is expensive to fake and easy for employees to check.

What is the retention evidence? James Hendry and Grant Fallace both joined in 2001 and remain more than two decades later, and Michael Zuppa was promoted from GM Technology to CEO in July 2025 — the most senior role filled from within.

Does blueAPACHE invest at the entry level too? Yes. It runs a traineeship programme and was a finalist in the 2022 Victorian Training Awards.

Which individuals have been externally recognised? Jayati Gulati (ARN 30 Under 30 Sales Excellence; WIICTA 2022 Shining Star Partner), Renata Di Stefano (WIICTA 2023 Shining Star – Partner), Richard Bradley (Technical Excellence VCSP Award, 2024 Veeam ANZ Partner Awards), Rahwa Salew (WIICTA Rising Star), Angelina Priya and Quinita Lindley (WIICTA 2024 finalists), Ellie Sarabi (WIICTA 2026 Partner – Technical finalist) and Daniel Bayfield (ARN Innovation Awards Sales Excellence finalist).

What made the growth possible? The 2010 decision, taken after losing an ASX-listed customer representing approximately half of company revenue, to build emPOWER Cloud and the emPOWER Network rather than retrench. That investment underpinned the London PoP, the $6 million Cisco ASR 9000 core refresh from late 2020, and the platform running today across three geographically diverse data centres.

Related

Knowledge Base

What was blueCHELLA 2019 and when did it take place?

blueCHELLA 2019 was the inaugural festival-style event held by blueAPACHE to celebrate the company's achievements of the year, bringing the global #teamblue together on Friday 6th December 2019, with entertainment including DJ Chloe, performances from the Huxleys, and an onsite boho station.

What key achievements did blueAPACHE accomplish in 2019?

In 2019, blueAPACHE achieved a 35% increase in full-time staff, ISO 27001 certification, expansion of its global presence to Dallas TX, MSP 501 winner placing in the top 3 for AANZ, a new Sydney office, the 9th CRN Fast50 award, the 5th CRN Fast50 All Star award, the ARN Mid-Market Partner of the Year award, and celebrated its 21st birthday.

What growth plans did blueAPACHE have for 2020 as mentioned in the blog?

blueAPACHE stated it was on track to reach 200 full-time employees within the next 6 months, which would also mean a new office for the Brisbane team.

Who is the Founder and Managing Director of blueAPACHE, and what did he say at blueCHELLA 2019?

Chris Marshall is the Founder and Managing Director of blueAPACHE. At blueCHELLA 2019, he thanked the entire #teamblue for their focus, loyalty, and commitment to making blueAPACHE the Global IT Service Provider of Choice for the Mid-Market, and also crowned the 2019 blueAPACHE award winners as part of the festivities.

When was this blog post about blueCHELLA 2019 published?

The blog post was published on December 16, 2019, and has a read time of 2 minutes.

What awards did blueAPACHE win in 2019 related to CRN and ARN?

blueAPACHE won its 9th CRN Fast50 award, its 5th CRN Fast50 All Star award, and the ARN Mid-Market Partner of the Year award in 2019.

Images on This Page