Here at Acumatica, “Community” describes who we are and how we operate. Learning, growing, and connecting through personal interaction between customers, partners, developers, and the Acumatica team is how we ensure that every person and business that selects Acumatica as their business management technology thrives.

Today, we want to take a moment to remember one of the founders of this very special Community, John Howell Jr.

John’s Vision Helped Mold Acumatica

John passed away on March 29, 2025, in his home in Naples, Florida. Details of his work, life and family are here in this touching tribute.

John played an instrumental role in the company’s founding. Acumatica CTO, Mike Chtcheklonogov, explains further: “[Acumatica] started in Moscow with a few people; it was about five or six guys from Parallels. We were developing a platform for the next generation billing solution. We thought this technology suits very well for the ERP market, so we had a discussion with Serguei Beloussov and John S. Howell Jr. We decided to create a split company from Parallels and founded a new start up where we focused on using ERP software.”

From the get-go, the Acumatica founders and early employees —which also included Ali Jani, Chief Product Officer—saw Acumatica as a platform company purpose-built for the cloud. With John’s input, Acumatica became a special product that democratized technology for small and midsized businesses. These technology visionaries took core business functions and infused them with modern ERP principles while also deciding to sell Acumatica solely through a partner channel.

“John Howell really believed in the channel, being 100% committed to the channel,” Ali says. “So, everything that we did from day one was not about adding sales members or doing direct sales. We recognized the platform, and the power of the platform can only be exposed if we have people who want to leverage the platform, to build products and adapt the ERP solution for their end customers.”

John’s Entrepreneurial Spirit and Dedication to Innovation Lives On

Acumatica’s success as a cloud ERP leader is due in part to John’s incredible business expertise and vision. Because of John’s strong support of the channel, Acumatica has been able to set itself apart as a business driven by expert partners who are dedicated to leveraging, customizing, and building our platform to deliver best-in-class solutions.

“John was one of the founding members of Acumatica. With his deep experience in the ERP industry and extensive connections within the VAR community, he played a pivotal role in supporting the company during its formative years,” says Mike. “Beyond his professional contributions, John was a genuinely kind and warm person. He will be deeply missed.”

Our hearts and thoughts go out to John’s family and friends during this difficult time.