Men on the Scene: Joe Rhem

Tech entrepreneur and Sarasota native Joe Rhem is doing something he does best, is tarting a new company providing game-changing functionality for businesses. WiredIQ is his sixth tech business. Rhem launched his first in high school. Previous notable ventures include Mindwave Technologies, which Rhem launched in Sarasota after graduating from Georgia Tech with a degree in information and computer science. He sold that company to the colossal Computer Associates. Rhem then began tinkering with a concept for an internet-based business telephone system, which quickly grew into Star2Star Communications, now with worldwide annual revenue of $90 million. As usual, he thought bigger with Wired IQ. He created a patented system that manages the total technology needs at a business location or across many locations via one intelligent appliance, the WiredIQ BrainBox, providing better, safer technology for less money. It includes IT management, voice communications and premise security with surveillance, alarms and access control, and “internet of things” controls for lighting and HVAC.Network security is managed with pre-audited PCI and HIPAA compliant templates, and revolutionary SD-WAN technologysecurely connects the office to the cloud and other locationswith military grade encryption over multiple Internet providersproviding faster, safer connections that rarely ever fail. Rhem also incorporates Star2Star telephony and acquired Sarasota tech company Kangas Cloud. All of this is monitored and managed 24/7. At 55, he says Wired IQ is his last business, but he’s defining retirement in his own way. Rhem’s plans include establishing his own winery in Michigan’s Old Mission Peninsula to pursue his love of wine, working with farm-to-table groups developing sustainable, non-GMO hydroponic farming, and providing incubator space for new generations of Sarasota-based high-tech entrepreneur