The Founders View
The Founders View
Eric W. Brackett is the Founder and President of BTI Group, that for 35 years has been a pioneer in providing networked voice, data, and security solutions to its customers. Clients need a vendor that can listen, understand their needs now, and can design the most reliable and cost effective tools to meet those needs. Eric’s ability to understand clients’ needs while knowing the roadmap of the developer and manufacturer communities makes him an asset to client decision makers. Eric’s passion is to understand a client’s needs and then help them cost effectively transition from expensive and proprietary technology into integrated IP based systems that reduce cost and increase efficiency.
This goal is being realized by BTI clients across the United States, Mexico, Canada, Europe, and Asia. He is at the forefront of megatrends in the voice over IP, IT, security, and blockchain industries, all of which are converging quickly. Lending his three decades of expertise in data and network security to advocating for more secure and efficient technologies in the Internet of Things revolution.
Eric started BTI Group in 1985 while enrolled at Northwestern as an Economics Magor and later attended law school at IIT Chicago Kent while running BTI and selling pay phones to restaurants, bars, and supermarkets. His business card simply said, “Eric Brackett, Pay Phone Specialist.” But in a small way, he was taking on a regional monopoly. “I was selling face-to-face and belly-to-belly the idea that instead of giving Illinois Bell all the money in that pay phone coin box, you could have that money for yourself, and I’m here to help you,” Eric says. “We’re doing the same thing with technology today, whether it be helping companies improve their productivity, efficiency, safety, and security in their security division; or improving the stability and efficiency of their IT operations; or helping them communicate and collaborate more efficiently with each other and the outside world.” Eric has grown BTI Group into a multi-disciplined service organization with offices in three states, and happy clients around the world who are themselves surviving and growing and revolutionizing the world today.
Eric’s father, Robert, was a periodontist whose passion to overcome mouth disease led him to develop new surgical techniques to regenerate bone around the teeth and to found the American Society of Preventive Dentistry, which at its height was larger than the American Dental Association. Robert taught Eric the importance of serving the customer no matter what it takes and of service to the community. Eric continues that legacy by funding humanitarian programs aimed at reducing illiteracy, drug use, crime, and human trafficking. Eric lives in Los Angeles with his wife. They have six children ranging in ages from 32 to 12. One of his daughters beat leukemia, and he’s been active in raising money for its cure.
Eric is an active parent but also enjoys a good cigar and reading up on and following the latest economic trends.
"Our customers always have a seat at the table when a decision needs to be made"
Eric Brackett, President and CEO of BTI
Communication Products and
Services
Communication Products and Services Division
BTI founder Eric Brackett’s first job out of college was going door-to-door selling payphones to restaurants and bars. In his own small way, Eric was standing up to the monopolistic practices of big telecom. Back then, customers were shackled to mediocre phone service for extremely high prices. Eric offered small businesses an affordable and flexible telecom solution that gave owners more control at a better price.
That was the seed that inspired BTI Communications Group. The average BTI customer saves 50% on their service provider bills and gets white glove support at no extra cost.
BTI stays true to core principles: To deliver the foremost level of technical quality that can be delivered for a client’s budget.
“At BTI, the customer always has a seat at the table when a decision needs to be made,” Eric says. “At BTI, when customers win, we all win.”
The secret to BTI’s success? High-touch, personalized, human-to-human consultation and support plus the best products, software, tools, and monitoring available in our industry.
BTI helps customers to solve all of their setup, implementation, and maintenance needs. This includes consultation, hardware, software, configuration, on site physical installation, and local support. BTI clients save money on contracts, get it done on time and on budget, and avoid surprise fees. This is how BTI’s customers are able to cut their annual communications bill in half while improving service at the same time.
BTI has strategic alliances with top communications solution manufacturers, distributors, and service providers, ensuring we can provide and support the communications solutions that fit your company’s specific needs.
IT Products and
Services
IT Products and Services
BTI began selling IT products and services back in 1996 when the first IP Phone was released. Since then, BTI has evolved from a cabling company and phone system dealer into an IT reseller, technology integrator, Network Operations Center, and field service and installation provider for its clients. BTI delivers and supports solutions from Microsoft, Dell, Cisco, and hundreds of other IT product and service vendors for our clients.
BTI products and services benefit both big and small companies:
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Small businesses: Can now have the knowledge and expertise of a talented IT team on their side that can procure all the products, services, and solutions to meet all their needs for a low cost.
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Enterprises and large companies: Can procure the right hardware, software, and services at the best cost plus whatever services BTI provides on an a la carte basis. Enterprises and large companies with internal IT save thousands of dollars per month on BTI services on average. More importantly, they increase their value by recovering time and focusing on the high priority items that demand internal attention.
Hundreds of businesses, government, education, and healthcare organizations trust BTI as their partner to fulfill their IT needs. BTI’s quality management, security, audit, and insurance certifications fulfill the government and industry standards requirements to serve defense, medical, banking, and the logistics industries. BTI is also the holder of a Federal GSA and multiple state and Federal contracts.
Security Products and Services
Security Products and Services
The security division is BTI’s newest and largest division.
The shift from proprietary analog security technology to IP based server and cloud based technology was an opportunity for BTI to dabble in the security industry. The security system industry has long ripped off its customers through insane contracts for monthly payments on old, antiquated technology.
In addition, BTI’s clients were experiencing an increase in crime, huge increases in employer liability, and increasing requirements from customers and the government to better secure and protect their physical property and their cyber security.
Enter BTI, with its three-decade experience in connecting devices to computer systems, low-voltage construction, cyber security, and software integration. BTI at its heart is a solutions provider, and we were eager to step in as a trusted partner in providing IT-powered physical security and access control solutions.
How does BTI help clients? We partner with our client to help them understand how to navigate the new security requirements and technological landscape, building security systems and devices that are integrated into their overall IT network and infrastructure, keeping their assets, employees, and customers safe and secure.