Cloud software pioneer channels Tacoma’s “in-this-together” culture to help government save time, money and serve the public better

From his Ruston Way Waterfront offices, Shadrach White’s view is a constant reminder of one of the main reasons he decided to move his family to Tacoma, Washington to grow his cloud software startup cloudPWR.

“Every morning, I get to walk a few blocks to my waterfront office where I enjoy the breathtaking views of Puget Sound,” White said. “Everywhere you look in Tacoma, you can find beauty. “

While White enjoys an active, outdoors lifestyle, he’s always known entrepreneurship was in his DNA. He launched his first venture–an athletic apparel company in New York City–not long after High School. While his days in the retail industry were fast and furious, White got his first taste of running a successful business and never looked back.

He first realized the immense, transformative potential for cloud technology more than a decade ago. He knew an opportunity presented itself to help government agencies move from high-risk, high-cost physical servers to a more secure and cost-effective cloud solution. Now, with digital transformation in government accelerating at unprecedented speed, cloudPWR is looking to expand its footprint nationwide while growing its team here in Tacoma–a city also undergoing an exciting technological transformation.

cloudPWR’s case management, public records and patient registry platform is built to serve agencies of all sizes and exceeds the strictest cybersecurity requirements so data protection is paramount. Its growing list of customers includes hundreds of agencies in Washington State–including the Department of Health and the Liquor and Cannabis Board– and throughout the U.S. For White, building the next frontier of government IT starts with a solid foundation of hard work, tenacity and a word synonymous with Tacoma: Grit.

“We were working class. Lumber, manufacturing, glass, the Port of Tacoma, military. But not a lot of technology, pharma or research–that’s all changing. And we’ve got University of Washington Tacoma; it has consistently grown and is pumping out great talent.”

While his office view looks very different from his early entrepreneur days in Brooklyn, White’s perspective on business, leadership and community does not. He’s proud to be part of Tacoma’s burgeoning cloud computing and data security ecosystem alongside companies like Topia Technology. And as he accelerates cloudPWR’s growth, he is also doubling down on his commitment to give back to a city that took a chance on him and helped him build a successful company.

“People who’ve gone through trials and tribulations can see that innate drive in other people. I felt that first hand when I looked for support in my early founder days, and I found it in Tacoma. Now I’m proud and honored to help pay that forward,” White said.

To learn more about cloudPWR. go to www.cloudpwr.com. Follow cloudPWR on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About the Tacoma-Pierce County Economic Development Board: Since 1978, the private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit EDB has been laser-focused on recruiting new firms to Pierce County, retaining those that are here, and helping all of them expand. The EDB supports companies to create new jobs and to grow the economy of the South Sound and Washington State, USA. In the past two decades, the EDB has worked with companies that have made over $1.6 billion in capital investments and created over 25,000 jobs.