38 icubed consulting

Prime Minister Scott Morrison may have a proclivity for so-called “fair dinkum power” (read: coal), but while the government plays politics with energy, businesses are getting on with it.

Enter Nick Canto, founder of fast-growing icubed consultancy, which develops software that helps design wind farms.

It’s been a pretty good few years for Canto’s business, which is riding the wind, so to speak, reaching $11.2 million in revenue in 2017-18, a 102% increase on 2015-16.

Harnessing wind is tricky business, with those pursuing wind energy projects usually looking for someone to help them iron out the design kinks — and that’s where Canto and his team of engineers come in.

They also work on solar projects, and help design bridges too, but Canto says he started the business with a pretty simple principle in mind.

“I really wanted to focus my engineering on interesting projects with people I like,” he says.

A simple, but solid mission. But down to the nuts and bolts, icubed uses in-house software to create a point of difference in its markets, and has focused on niche types of projects to gather a loyal following of customers.

Renewables are becoming less niche though, Canto says, with technology improving and investment pouring in.

But icubed is looking to maintain its advantage, Canto explains.

Where larger competitors are outsourcing technical offices to South-East Asia to cut down on costs, he’s investing in local talent for local clients.

“Our competitive advantage is our investment in training and technology, allowing us to produce great quality work here,” he says.

Rounding out his focus, Canto takes a rather novel approach to helping his employees grow. He actually encourages them to seek out clients and projects in areas they’re interested in, resulting in a better financial result — for everyone.