Good People, Great Work and Business Success: Inside Lantec’s Journey to Operational Excellence

Tradespeople don’t get enough credit.
There. We said it.
And it’s true.
The people who keep buildings safe, the lights on, and security systems working rarely make headlines.
So we decided to do something about it.

For Simprosium 2025 — Simpro’s annual flagship event where we recognize, champion, and elevate our customers and the work they do every day — we launched the Simpro Customer Excellence Awards to celebrate their accomplishments in business and beyond.

Among this year’s nominees, one story stood out in the Operational Excellence category — and couldn’t be more deserving of the award.

A family-run company in business since 2009.

Founded by a managing director who leads from the heart and built a team with 100+ years of combined experience.

And an unwavering company ethos rooted in hiring good people, doing honest work, and treating customers right.

While that might seem too simple to equate to operational success, it’s clearly paid off for Steve Lane and his team at Lantec Security – the UK-based fire and security company defining the standard for operational excellence in the trades.

“It’s not glamorous work, but it’s really important. And I like to think we run things the right way — good people, doing good work, treating customers right.”

Success Doesn’t Happen Overnight: The Road to Operational Excellence

With three decades in the security industry under his belt, Steve Lane has learned a thing or two about what good business leadership looks like – and what it doesn’t.

Before starting Lantec Security, he represented major industry players like Pelco, where he says it wasn’t the company’s size or the reputation that left an impression, but the leadership. That experience shaped everything that would come next. Steve saw early on that success in the trades isn’t just about skill — it’s about people.

“I always said, if I ever ran my own business, I’d take the good bits and leave the bad ones behind. So when we started Lantec, it was never just about doing jobs and making money. It was about building a team that actually enjoys coming to work,” Steve says.

Easier said than done, but it became the cornerstone of his approach: build a company where good work and good people are inseparable.

That philosophy is still alive and well at Lantec today.

“We run a flat management structure,” Steve explains. “The management team works autonomously, and we all work together as one team. Everyone knows what they’re doing and we can’t do the job without each other. There’s a trust thing there. I’m not micromanaging: I’ve got to help them out, they’ve got to help me out. That’s how it works..”

That care shows. Under Steve’s leadership, Lantec has evolved from a security company into a family-run business with a tight-knit team of people (with tenure as long as 10+ years – rare in the trades!) who genuinely want to be there and who trust and rely on each other to do the job right.

Still, operational excellence doesn’t happen by accident, and having the right team in place to support the vision is only one part of what contributed to Lantec’s long-term success.

“About seven or eight years ago, we hit a wall. We were doing fine, but we were running on spreadsheets and Word documents — total nightmare.”

When the team’s commitment to excellence began to outpace the tools they were using, Steve understood the company needed technology built for the way his team worked – and not the other way around.

Putting the Right Technology in Place: One Platform Running the Entire Business

As Lantec grew — more jobs, more customers, more moving parts — their systems couldn’t keep up. Most of the day-to-day still lived in spreadsheets, shared drives, and the occasional sticky note.

Jobs slipped through the cracks, double-bookings crept in, and too much time was spent chasing information that should have been at their fingertips.

“When you’re a security company, you can’t afford to miss things. If an alarm system isn’t tested, if a service visit isn’t logged properly, you risk more than just money — you risk trust.”

After reviewing several platforms and doing side-by-side demos, Simpro stood out for its flexibility and integration with Xero, the accounting platform Lantec was already using. The team wasn’t chasing shiny new tech — they needed reliability. A platform that could scale with the team as they grew, instead of working against them. Once the team made the call, there was no hesitation.

“I tell anyone starting out — surround yourself with good people and good systems. That’s it. You can’t do everything yourself, and if you try, you’ll burn out.”

From there, a different challenge arose: navigating the changes that come with any new platform or software implementation. Steve understood that introducing new technology would make life easier for the team. It could also potentially kill morale. So he rallied everyone to get on board. The entire team – from office to field – played a role in making the new software work in their favor.

“Once we jumped in, we went all in. No half measures. Everyone got trained, every process went through Simpro. You can’t do anything in our business now without it going through the system.”

The buy-in came fast. Within weeks, every department was operating through Simpro — jobs, scheduling, invoicing, project tracking. It all clicked.

It’s like the spine of the business,” Steve says. “It underpins everything we do — every job, every customer interaction, every piece of data runs through Simpro. It’s the foundation for how we operate.”

The impact wasn’t just operational; it was cultural. Visibility improved, workloads evened out, and team morale rose even more.

Hours a week were saved on admin alone, and those hours translated directly into more time spent with their families and customers.

“It’s not just an operations tool — it’s the way we work. And the team loves it because it makes life easier.”

Steve shared a story that sums it up perfectly:

“One of the lads, for example — he’ll finish a job late afternoon, get home, have tea with the kids, and then just jump on later to finish the paperwork. Before Simpro, that would’ve meant staying on site another hour or two just to get it all done, but now he can do it from home in half the time.”

To Steve and his team, little things like that make a big difference. Employees have increased flexibility – something Steve can take pride in as the boss – and stress isn’t carried into the next work day.

Meaningful moments like these get straight to the heart of why Lantec made the leap. The software solved a critical business problem. More importantly, it gave people their time back and made doing business even better.

“We built a culture around the product: this is it, no alternatives, no going back.”

The Power in Genuine Partnership

Even the best partnerships experience rough patches. After several years of using Simpro, Lantec hit one of its own.

“There was a time a couple of years ago where we hit a rough patch,” Steve admits. “Support was slow, and we felt a bit left behind. We were frustrated.”

But what happened next redefined the relationship moving forward. Steve reached out and shared his concerns with his contacts at Simpro. From those conversations, Simpro worked through the obstacles Lantec was facing. They re-engaged, realigned, and got the train back on the tracks.

“The thing is, that’s what separates good partners from bad ones. We reached out, and to Simpro’s credit, they listened. We re-engaged, worked it through, and it’s been great ever since.”

That moment of friction became a turning point — one that strengthened the relationship. And for Steve, it later came full circle.

When a friendly competitor reached out with questions about setting up Simpro for their own business, Steve paid it forward. He invited them down to Lantec’s office, where his office manager spent the morning training their lead — getting them sorted and confident.

For Steve, that’s what good business looks like: collaboration and advocacy, not competition. It’s the same principle that drives Lantec’s success, and one that naturally extends beyond the business, too.

Beyond the Business: The Freedom to Step Away and Give Back

Seventeen years in, Lantec is running stronger than ever. The systems are solid, the culture is healthy, and the people who helped build it are the ones keeping it moving every day.

Even with Simpro plugged in as “the spine of the business,” it’s still the trust Steve has in his team that lets the whole thing stand tall.

“If the business only works when I’m there, then I’ve failed. You have to build it so it runs without you — so your people can make decisions, your systems keep it moving, and you can step back when you need to.”

That belief has shaped everything — from how he leads, to how his team works and lives. The same flexibility that empowered one of his technicians to head home for dinner before finishing up paperwork later from the couch is the balance Steve’s built into the whole company.

It’s not about checking boxes or clocking hours; it’s about running a business that supports people: employees, their families, customers, and the communities Lantec serves.

That freedom doesn’t stop at the office. Earlier this year, Steve took on a new challenge: trekking Mount Toubkal in Morocco, North Africa’s highest peak.

A brutal climb and one of the toughest things he’s done mentally in years, the trek wasn’t just for the experience — it was for a cause. Steve and 14 strangers left their phones and laptops behind and raised £123,000 for the Atlas Foundation, which helps disadvantaged kids access sports and outdoor activities. The camaraderie on the trip was brilliant, and somewhere on that mountain, Steve found new perspective on the business.

“I came back feeling grateful — for my health, for my people, for great customers and a business that runs well enough that I can actually step away for a week and climb a mountain. Not many people in our industry can do that.”

That mindset — persistence, people, purpose — has evolved Lantec Security into a standout in operational excellence. For Steve and his team, success goes beyond awards or growth charts. It’s knowing his people are thriving, his customers are happy, and the business runs just as well when he’s halfway up a mountain. It’s about consistency. Quality. Trust.

“When I first started, it was all about survival — getting clients, paying the bills, proving I could do it. Now, success looks like stability. A happy team. Loyal customers. Being able to give back.

In the end, that’s what the trades are all about — building something that lasts, and taking pride in the work that keeps the world running.

Simprosium

Simprosium is Simpro Group’s premier customer advocacy event. This two-day conference provides Simpro customers an opportunity to immerse themselves in the latest industry insights and predictions, directly from experts shaping the future of the trades and field service management. Simprosium 2025 is laser-focused on championing our customers – the people who power the trades, while giving them the knowledge they need to stay ahead of industry trends and navigate challenges ahead.

Attendees engage in high-impact, collaborative sessions, interactive workshops, and expert panels, all designed to equip our customers with actionable strategies and practical tools that can be immediately applied to their businesses, driving growth, profitability, and reward.