A tower of power in the growing digital space

DIRECT SERVICES GROUP Thomas Davenport, chairman of Gastonia-based Direct Services Group makes a point of learning every aspect of the business, even learning to climb a cell tower for maintenance.

According to recent U.S. Census Bureau data, Black-owned businesses grew by more than 50% between 2017-22. 

That boon is great news for the Black community given the well documented link between economic power and improved social equity. Those truths are not lost on Thomas Davenport, an Atlanta-based private equity executive with more than two decades of experience in the finance industry. 

Davenport recently bought Gastonia-based Direct Services Group, where he is chairman. 

DSG launched in 1994 as a technical infrastructure business and has kept in step with evolving technological demands on cellular and solar power. 

“I’m a big believer in the resurgence of the Southeast from a manufacturing and infrastructure standpoint,” Davenport said. “I thought ‘This is a business I can get my mind around,’” citing the company’s location, growing industry relevance and his personal skillset blend. 

Assuming the acquisition was strictly a dollars and cents driven investment for Davenport would be wrong. 

“I love the people part,” he said, adding that he enjoys “coaching, developing and understanding” the people who work for him. 

“There are a lot of underserved communities that have requisite talent and manpower. A lot of the time that’s severely underutilized by traditional business practices.” 

Since assuming the role of chairman, Davenport has prioritized hiring local talent and creating skilled roles throughout the digital power, tower and solar industry. 

“We’ve got a good workforce, a good balance of access to talent but an old school [mentality] where people care about what they’re doing,” he said, adding “They do a good job, an honest day's work. And they’ve got integrity.” 

Blending spirited entrepreneurialism, business acumen and social consciousness is something Davenport says is in his DNA.  

Born and raised in Atlanta, Davenport was influenced by his parents’ ambitious and entrepreneurial attitudes. His father, after leaving the military, took a job as a maintenance worker for the Postal Service. Over time, he took advantage of USPS continuing education opportunities. 

“He ended up managing the portfolio for all post offices in Alabama and Southern Georgia,” Davenport recounts. 

Davenport’s mother spent nearly two decades as a nurse before making the transition to financial advisor. His decision to go into financial services was not solely inspired by his mother’s success, though.  
“There were a number of Black men that [she] worked with who were very polished, very well spoken, always dressed really well and I got to interact with them,” Davenport said. “I think subconsciously that was a big influence.” 

As a youth, Davenport was also impacted by the edgy, glamorous and high stakes business boom of the 1980s. 

“I grew up in an era where hostile takeovers were all the rage,” he said. “I would watch the news with my parents, and I was intrigued by the concept of ‘you can go and buy a company.’” 
Davenport recalls the specific moment he felt being a part of “big business” was within grasp. 

“I distinctly remember being in a Kroger grocery store in Decatur, Georgia, and seeing Reginald Lewis on the cover of Black Enterprise magazine. Arms folded, cigar in hand, he had just closed almost a billion-dollar transaction,” Davenport recalled. “He was suited and booted, confident and…he looked like me.” 

The fires of ambition ignited, Davenport spent his late teens and early 20s amassing an impressive academic record. A 2002 finance graduate of Morehouse College, Davenport went on to earn a MPA from Baruch College and an MBA from the University of Chicago. As a National Urban Fellow, Davenport worked in various capacities and locations, including Saint Paul, Minnesota. 

After working as an investment banker for firms in New York City and Chicago, Davenport’s desire to stake his own claim emerged. 

Thomas Davenport is CEO of Gastonia-based Direct Services Group.

“The thought that you could build a portfolio of businesses and hire and coach and develop [was an] inspiration,” he said, which became reality in 2012 when he launched his own company. 

“I opened Davenport Capital Management primarily as an advisory shop,” he said, adding that the initial goal was to provide big bank level services to lower market business. 

Like many small business owners, though, things were not always smooth at the start. 

“The advisory business is lumpy,” he said. “There were feast and famine days, but I got to the other side and I learned a lot.” 

Davenport poured those early lessons into DSG. While very much the “high polished, well dressed” businessman he admired years ago, Davenport discourages the image of a big man behind a big desk when it comes to leadership. He prefers a more humanized, hands-on approach. 

“I love interacting with our workforce,” he said. "Being in the office, walking the warehouse.” 

Davenport has tries to understand every role of his employees.

 
“I should have a good understanding of what they are going through on a daily basis,” he said. 

Davenport recently put his money where his mouth is by participating in tower and rigging training followed by ascending a cell tower and participating in a simulation emergency rescue operation. 
“It’s good to experience what [I’m] sending moms and dads out daily to do,” he said. “Safety culture starts at the top.” 

While investing in the people part of a business is fulfilling, it is not without its worries. 

“The things that keep me up at night are what I call the ‘seeing around the corner’ issues,” Davenport confesses. “What’s next? How do things evolve? [The hard part] of creating an enterprise that provides paychecks for folks is keeping that sustainable.” 

The efforts Davenport and his support staff at DSG make are what he calls “future proofing,” such as strategizing economic longevity and environmental sustainability. There are other factors to consider, too. 

“We’re supporting AI infrastructure with boots on the ground,” he said. “[We] help construct data centers and cell phone towers. You can’t really outsource getting up on a tower and replacing equipment.” 
Ironically, the irreplaceable qualities Davenport connects to DSG’s success are also at the core of being a consummate business owner. 

“You can’t really outsource getting up on a tower and replacing equipment,” he said. “Those things require human touch and judgment.” 

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