IP Pathways
IP Pathways is a Midwest-based managed services provider delivering proprietary cloud (AdaptiveCloud) and security/compliance (TenaxIQ) platforms alongside X-as-a-Service IT modules to mid-market and public-sector customers in education, healthcare, government, and financial/commercial verticals across the United States.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2007
- HeadquartersUrbandale, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What IP Pathways does
IP Pathways, LLC is a privately held managed services and proprietary technology provider founded in 2007 and headquartered in Urbandale (Des Moines), Iowa. The company delivers cloud, security, data center, and managed IT services to mid-market and public-sector organizations across the Midwest and broader United States, with named offices in Des Moines, Kansas City, Omaha, and Columbus (Ohio). Its customer base spans education (Des Moines Area Community College, Mississippi Bend AEA), healthcare (Madison County Health Care System, Delaware-Morrow Mental Health & Recovery Services Board), local and state government (Iowa Workforce Development), and financial/commercial and manufacturing verticals (Iowa Bankers Association, Kansas Livestock Association, Airlite Plastics). IP Pathways reports ~200 US-based W-2 employees and emphasizes 24/7 engineering support and a 96.7% customer satisfaction score.
The company's product portfolio is anchored by two proprietary platforms: AdaptiveCloud, a public/private/hybrid cloud platform with open APIs, on-demand billing, and explicit elimination of VMware licensing costs; and TenaxIQ, a 100% proprietary security posture and compliance SaaS platform acquired with Tenax Solutions in November 2023. These platforms underpin the Security Posture as a Service (SPaaS) offering and a broad suite of X-as-a-Service modules — Help Desk, Backup, Compute, Storage (5 tiers), DR Compute, Firewall, VDI, DNS Security, Replication-as-a-Service for NetApp FAS, plus managed Sophos Central, Cisco Duo, Microsoft 365, and Zerto DR — bundled for sub-100-user accounts under the TotalTech+ offering. Underlying infrastructure is built on Cisco (UCS, Nexus), NetApp (FAS, FlexPod), and VMware partnerships, with IP Pathways also helping customers navigate post-Broadcom VMware licensing changes.
IP Pathways generates revenue through subscription managed services, usage-based as-a-Service consumption billing, and professional services/engineering engagements, with quote-based pricing and no publicly disclosed price points. Go-to-market combines direct enterprise sales (account managers and solutions architects) with a channel partner program targeting resellers, MSPs, and consultants, supplemented by content marketing, case studies, and regional industry events. The company is founder/management-led (CEO and President Joe Shields), has completed three acquisitions within 2023 (Sophisticated Systems Inc., Netsolus, Tenax Solutions), and has disclosed no venture capital, private equity, or public-market funding.
IP Pathways firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- IP Pathways
- Legal name
- IP Pathways, LLC
- Website
- https://ippathways.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2007
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- IP Pathways is a Midwest-based managed services provider delivering proprietary cloud (AdaptiveCloud) and security/compliance (TenaxIQ) platforms alongside X-as-a-Service IT modules to mid-market and public-sector customers in education, healthcare, government, and financial/commercial verticals across the United States.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
IP Pathways industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Managed IT and Cloud Infrastructure Services
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182), Computer Facilities Management Services (541513), Computer Systems Design and Related Services (5415)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373), Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Managed Application Platforms (App PaaS & Runtime Services) (HDABAAAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Industry/Vertical Cloud Platforms (e.g., Gov/Healthcare/Financial Cloud Regions) (HDABAAAL), Enterprise PaaS (App Runtime & Managed Application Platforms) (HDAEAKAB), Platform Engineering & Internal Developer Platforms (IDP) (BPAEAKAC), IP Address Management (IPAM) & DNS/DHCP Management (DDI) (HDAFAGAF)
Keywords
Where IP Pathways is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Urbandale
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
IP Pathways business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Managed Services: Core revenue stream including managed help desk, backup as a service, compute as a service, storage as a service, firewall as a service, VDI as a service, network management, and monitoring. Revenue generated through monthly recurring fees with predictable per-user pricing for bundled solutions.
- As-a-Service Offerings: Infrastructure, backup, compute, storage, firewall, and disaster recovery delivered as consumption-based services. Customers pay per user per month on a consumption basis, transforming capital expenses into predictable operating expenses.
- Professional Services and Engineering: Custom technology solutions, implementation, migration, and engineering services. Includes consulting engagements for IT infrastructure planning, design, and deployment.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | TotalTech+ bundled solution for companies with 100 or fewer users |
| Subscription | Monthly | Office 365 management services |
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Tiered storage with five performance tiers |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
IP Pathways product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IP Pathways is a managed services provider that delivers proprietary cloud, security, and data center platforms alongside a broad portfolio of X-as-a-Service offerings (help desk, backup, compute, storage, firewall, VDI, disaster recovery) for mid-market and public sector organizations. Its flagship proprietary platforms are AdaptiveCloud (public/private/hybrid cloud) and TenaxIQ (security posture and compliance). The company bundles these capabilities into solutions such as TotalTech+ for organizations with limited internal IT resources.
Product overview
IP Pathways delivers a proprietary platform-plus-modules portfolio anchored by the AdaptiveCloud cloud platform (supporting public, private, and hybrid configurations) and the TenaxIQ security/compliance SaaS platform (acquired via Tenax Solutions). Around these core platforms, IP Pathways offers a broad suite of managed services organized as X-as-a-Service offerings (Help Desk, Backup, Compute, Storage, DR Compute, Firewall, VDI, DNS Security, Replication-as-a-Service for NetApp FAS) plus add-on modules for monitoring, patching, managed Sophos Central, managed Cisco Duo, managed Microsoft 365, ConnectWise management, and Zerto disaster recovery. The company also bundles these capabilities into a unified TotalTech+ bundle for smaller organizations. Together, the AdaptiveCloud and TenaxIQ platforms serve as the proprietary technology backbone, while the managed services modules provide specialized security, data protection, infrastructure, and productivity capabilities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- TenaxIQ: Proprietary security posture and compliance management platform used in Security Posture as a Service (SPaaS) offering.
- AdaptiveCloud
Products and services
- AdaptiveCloud
- TenaxIQ
- Security Posture as a Service (SPaaS)
- Help Desk as a Service
- Backup as a Service
- Compute as a Service
- Storage as a Service
- DR Compute as a Service
- Firewall as a Service
- VDI as a Service
- DNS Security
- Replication-as-a-Service (for NetApp FAS)
- TotalTech+
- Zerto Disaster Recovery
- Managed Cisco Duo
- Managed Sophos Central
Quantifiable outcome
- 96.7% customer satisfaction score
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use IP Pathways
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
IP Pathways technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
IP Pathways partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered strategic, core and supporting.
- Systems Support, Inc. (SSI)strategicStrategic partnership announced October 30, 2025, for cloud hosting services for PowerPRO TMS Software. IP Pathways provides private cloud hosting option to SSI customers enhancing security, scalability, and cost efficiency. The partnership demonstrates co-selling approach with complementary technology providers.
- Sophisticated Systems (SSI)coreStrategic partnership announced February 27, 2023, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. SSI had provided technology services for over 30+ years since 1990 under CEO Dwight Smith. The partnership expanded IP Pathways' presence in Ohio and allowed SSI to integrate into the IP Pathways brand. This partnership strengthened competitive edge and expanded geographic coverage in the Columbus region for managed services and IT solutions targeting private and public sectors, healthcare, and education. SSI fully integrated into IP Pathways including name and branding changes.
- NetAppcoreTechnology partnership for FlexPod Datacenter implementations and storage solutions. NetApp FAS storage, Flash Cache PCIe intelligent caching, OnCommand Unified Manager, Snapshot copies, SnapMirror replication, and FlexClone volumes form the storage infrastructure for customer deployments. IP Pathways offers Replication-as-a-Service built on NetApp FAS architecture for NetApp customers.
- CiscocoreTechnology partnership for UCS (Unified Computing System) blade servers, Nexus switches, and networking infrastructure. Cisco UCS enables reduced complexity, increased scalability, and higher performance for customer environments. IP Pathways is a NetApp partner and Cisco solutions provider offering enterprise networking and compute solutions.
- VMwarecoreTechnology partnership for virtualization through VMware View VDI and vSphere management. VMware View enables virtual desktop infrastructure deployments while vSphere provides server virtualization management. IP Pathways helps customers navigate VMware licensing changes following the Broadcom acquisition.
- SophossupportingSecurity technology partner providing managed Sophos Central for endpoint and network security. Sophos products support IP Pathways' managed security services offerings including threat detection and response capabilities.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
IP Pathways competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Ntiva: Mid-market MSP offering managed IT, cybersecurity, cloud, and strategic IT consulting. Comparable recurring revenue model and customer profile to IP Pathways' mid-market and education/healthcare accounts.
- Dataprise: Mid-market managed services provider delivering managed IT, cloud, security, and help desk across the U.S. Similar X-as-a-Service packaging and vertical mix, with comparable scale and target buyer profile.
- Expedient: Cloud and data center operator with multiple U.S. markets offering managed hosting, colocation, and DR services. Comparable to IP Pathways' AdaptiveCloud and data center footprint, with overlapping vertical coverage.
- LightEdge Solutions: Des Moines, Iowa-based cloud and managed services provider offering colocation, hosting, and managed security to mid-market and regulated customers. Closest geographic and capability peer to IP Pathways, competing for the same Midwest customer base.
- Marco Technologies: Midwest-headquartered managed IT, cloud, and security provider serving SMB and mid-market customers. Direct overlap with IP Pathways in Iowa/Minnesota/Wisconsin geography and vertical customer base.
Broad incumbents
- ConvergeOne: Enterprise-focused IT solutions provider and systems integrator offering collaboration, cloud, and managed services. Overlaps with IP Pathways on Cisco-centric infrastructure and managed services but at much larger enterprise scale.
- Rackspace Technology: Public cloud and managed services provider across multi-cloud, security, and data center solutions. Comparable managed cloud positioning to AdaptiveCloud but with global footprint and hyperscaler partnerships at scale.
- Presidio: Large national technology solutions provider and integrator delivering cloud, security, and managed services to enterprise and mid-market. Competes for similar RFPs but with significantly larger delivery footprint and vendor scale.
- CDW: Large-scale technology solutions provider offering hardware, software, and integrated IT services including managed services. Competes for the same mid-market and public-sector customers with significantly broader catalog and national reach.
- OnX Enterprise: Larger managed cloud and infrastructure services provider offering hybrid cloud, managed services, and enterprise IT solutions. Comparable services portfolio but broader geographic and scale footprint than IP Pathways.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
IP Pathways social profiles
Digital presenceIP Pathways financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
IP Pathways leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
IP Pathways subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries3 records
IP Pathways funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
IP Pathways M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about IP Pathways
What does IP Pathways do?
IP Pathways is a managed services provider that delivers proprietary cloud, security, and data center platforms alongside a broad portfolio of X-as-a-Service offerings (help desk, backup, compute, storage, firewall, VDI, disaster recovery) for mid-market and public sector organizations. Its flagship proprietary platforms are AdaptiveCloud (public/private/hybrid cloud) and TenaxIQ (security posture and compliance). The company bundles these capabilities into solutions such as TotalTech+ for organizations with limited internal IT resources.
Is IP Pathways a public or private company?
IP Pathways is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was IP Pathways founded?
IP Pathways was founded in 2007. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is IP Pathways based?
IP Pathways is headquartered in Urbandale, United States, in the North America region.
How does IP Pathways make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Managed Services are the primary driver. The others are as-a-Service Offerings and professional Services and Engineering.
Who are IP Pathways's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Ntiva, Dataprise, Expedient, LightEdge Solutions and Marco Technologies. Broad incumbents are ConvergeOne, Rackspace Technology, Presidio, CDW and OnX Enterprise.
Does IP Pathways have an API?
No public API is recorded for IP Pathways.
What industry is IP Pathways in?
IP Pathways's product category is Managed IT and Cloud Infrastructure Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDABAAAD, Managed Application Platforms (App PaaS & Runtime Services), with a secondary code of HDABAAAL, Industry/Vertical Cloud Platforms (e.g., Gov/Healthcare/Financial Cloud Regions). Its NAICS code is 5182 and its SIC code is 7373.