Of course, there was plenty of opportunity to set things straight.
“It was always fun running rings around my male counterparts on projects,” Daniel said.
She is the founder, CEO and president of Aliso Viejo-based IMRI and its cybersecurity division Cytellix.
In addition to cybersecurity, the two firms provide a variety of technology, program management, and engineering services.
Her firms have been mainstays on the Business Journal’s annual list of largest women-owned businesses over the years.
She founded IMRI in 1992 after successful stints in the U.S. Navy and in the corporate world.
“Being a Black female, coupled with the doubts when I walked into the room, I was challenged many times,” Daniel told the Business Journal on Jan. 23.
“But I was never intimidated because my military background prepared me for that level, because women were always in the minority there.”
As the country celebrates Black History Month, she reflected on the long road since founding her company almost three decades ago.
OC Success
“I was told that I would not be able to be successful in Orange County as an African-American business, a Black-owned business,” she said. “Obviously that was not a true statement.”
In 2018, Daniel was inducted into the Black Business Leader Hall of Fame, while her business success and philanthropic work are long and varied.
Where did her success come from?
“My role model was my mother, who encouraged me to climb any mountain. She encouraged me even in situations in the South where I was restricted due to segregation,” Daniel said.
She cites President Joe Biden’s selection of Kamala Harris as his running mate and a wide array of backgrounds in his Cabinet choices as signs of diversity.
“I had the opportunity to meet with him some years ago to discuss small business initiatives,” Daniel said. “He is genuinely a believer of America for everyone and not just a few.”
Optimistic on Future
Looking ahead, she is optimistic as she sees more Black-owned businesses opening up locally.
“We will see the next generation of Blacks and African Americans venturing more into entrepreneurship. I would anticipate that we will see a lot more African American and Black businesses,” she said, pointing out the positive effects of greater educational opportunities.
The outlook includes the willingness to take the risk of owning a business rather than moving into the corporate world.
“I even hear some of my grandkids saying ‘I want to have my own business,’” the CEO said.
“To me even just hearing that being said is nice.”
Growth Plans
She said last year’s combined revenue for IMRI and Cytellix dipped by about $6 million to about $10 million, but she is projecting a rebound to $18.5 million in 2021 thanks in part to a recently awarded contract.
In addition, she is raising capital for the Cytellix division, where business has been growing due to increased threats to computer networks.
“Right now, we are excited about the growth of Cytellix,” she said.
Cytellix handles the managed cybersecurity services for commercial and federal customers, while IMRI focuses more on consulting services and operations support for federal government and military contracts.
Daniel and her firms have been honored by the Business Journal several times over the years; she won a Woman in Business award from the paper more than two decades ago.
The technology the company provides its customers has changed plenty since then, but Daniel’s success hasn’t waned.
Last Oct. 7, she was one of five honored during the Business Journal’s 2020 Family-Owned Business Awards.
Long Career
Daniel’s tech career started in 1970 with computer science studies in junior college, followed by a Bachelor of Science degree in computer information systems from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, and an MBA from the University of La Verne.
She also served as a cryptologist in the U.S. Navy, and later counted a successful corporate career, including roles as chief information officer at FDIC/Resolution Trust Corp. and senior systems engineer at IBM.
She likes to say she has chosen the right people to build the company, including her daughter Maronya Moultrie, the chief operating officer and general counsel of IMRI.
Difficult 2020
Clients include the Navy, Army, and Air Force, as well as small and midsize businesses and Fortune 500 companies such as Wells Fargo, Lockheed Martin, and IBM, according to the IMRI website.
She notes that 2020 was a difficult year with the effects from the coronavirus.
“We’ve had our challenges because the majority of our work has been with the federal government,” she said of parent company IMRI. “We anticipate that in 2021, where we are now, things will get back in order and we should be able to begin to increase our revenue to get more contracts.”
She said that IMRI, with help from the Payroll Protection Program loans, has not had any pandemic-caused layoffs, but it did move a 24-hour security operations center to Arizona because of labor restrictions in California.
Tips for Black Would-Be Business Owners
Martha Daniel calls Orange County “receptive” and “very open” to fledgling entrepreneurs.
She offers these practical tips for would-be Black entrepreneurs and plenty of others looking to get a business foothold here:
• “Your business plan has to be irrespective of your ethnicity.
• “I would advise them to network and make sure they get the proper relationships built, and just open the door just as they would any place else.
• “Once they know you and they understand what you’re doing, the support of the community is just wonderful. That has been one of the foundations for my success here in Orange County.”
• And in a piece of advice applicable to everyone: “Make sure that what you’re selling is what they’re buying.”
Daniel says her mother provided her the inspiration to be a success when she was growing up in the segregated South:
“Mother always encouraged me by saying things will change and all you have to do is be ready with your education so when the door swings open you will be qualified to walk in. She was my role model—deprived of her education but gifted with so much wisdom.”
