What drives us to be the Summit of IT solutions?

Summit Solutions IT was founded with one mission: to deliver IT services that are proactive, personalized, and focused on real business outcomes. We are driven by two key principles that run three generations deep in Derek's family. An interest in technology and a drive to find solutions to help others.

 

Derek's grandfather, Robert (Bob), a retired National Guard member and Army Reservist 1st Lt., has lived by these two principles his entire life. After graduating with degree in chemistry, Robert worked for PICCO, a family owned chemical company in Clairton as an analytical chemist. In 1965, with some of his chemical analyses taking a long time to complete, he realized that computers were the way of the future and that he needed to get one within the next 5 years. It was at this time he accepted a job offer at USS Chemicals (formerly Pittsburgh Chemicals and eventually Aristech Chemicals). While working at USS Chemicals, he took Fortran programming courses while lobbying for his laboratory to get a computer to help better analyze chemical samples. Finally in 1969, the first computer was purchased which greatly reduced the time to analyze samples.  He continued his computer education, getting a degree in computer science and teaching, in evenings, for eight years at Point Park College. After being transferred to the IT Department of Aristech Chemicals he retired in 1999 as a Senior Network Architect and was retained as a consultant working on the Y2Kbug. Gramps has used technology ever since and still uses a computer, a tablet, and an iPhone today!

 

Derek's uncle, also named Robert (Bucky), has worked in the computer industry for 45+ years. His first job was a Computer Lab Supervisor while in college at W&J. He is a well-known Cybersecurity Officer and Infrastructure Architect in the IT Industry holding a Master's Degree in Information Systems Management. He has worked throughout the Pittsburgh area most of his life helping businesses and friends with their technology.

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Derek's story begins in 2010, when Derek first discovered his passion for technology in a high school computer class. A recruiter from the Bradford School of Business introduced him to a Computer Networking program with a strong promise—job placement upon graduation. Seeing the value in starting his career early, Derek enrolled and graduated in 2012, landing his first role at a local Managed Service Provider (MSP) in Plum, PA.

It was there that Derek found his calling. Working across a wide range of industries, he gained hands-on experience and insight into the diverse IT needs that various businesses face. In 2014, he proposed a new kind of role—Technical Account Manager (TAM)—designed to help clients not just fix problems, but plan strategically for the future. Although the idea wasn’t implemented at the time, it shaped Derek’s long-term vision.

After moving on in 2017, Derek continued to thrive in the MSP space, earning the trust of clients who followed him from one company to the next. In 2018, he was presented with an opportunity: a job as a helpdesk manager role at a large pharmaceutical corporation or a senior technical role at another local MSP with the potential for ownership stake. True to his commitment to hands-on learning and client impact, he chose the MSP once again.

That company was eventually acquired by a larger Pittsburgh-based MSP, where Derek was promoted to vCIO where he led and transformed the TAM department to bring real value to customers. In 2025, after years of refining his approach and building lasting client relationships, he founded Summit Solutions IT to offer the kind of IT service he always believed in—responsive, strategic, and genuinely invested in each client’s success.​