History

1987

Suran Systems, Inc. was founded by Rev. Randy Clay and Sue Clay in response to growing interest in CDM+, then called Church Data Master Plus. Randy served as the senior minister at First Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Versailles, KY and had developed CDM+ for use in his own congregation.

Suran is a portmanteau of Randy and Sue's names—Sue + Randy = Suran.

1989
Randy and a fellow Disciples minister, Gary Kidwell, formed Biblical Preaching Institute (BPI), a publishing and print house serving the religious industry. BPI's first publication, Biblical Preaching Journal, provided ministers a curated set of sermons following the Revised Common Lectionary. These sermons, some of which were written by Randy, provided subscribing ministers source material and inspiration for their own messages.

As Suran and BPI grew, Randy, Sue and their employees developed skills and expertise in software development and support, desktop publishing, printing, binding, and mailing.

1993
Suran established its Bindery Division, offering trade binding and bulk mailing services to local printers and business, often focusing on non-profit and religious organizations.
1997
Suran's first user's conference was held at Shaker Village. CDM+ users from around the United States travelled to the historic home of the Shakers to learn about CDM+, network with other CDM+ users, and spend two days enjoying the beautiful Kentucky scenery. Held every year since with the exception of 1999, the user's conference has become a premier event for CDM+ clients, hosting individuals from around the country in Lexington and nearby major cities such as Nashville, TN, Cincinnati, OH, Indianapolis, IN, Knoxville, TN, Louisville, KY, and Columbus, OH.
2002
Suran formed a strategic partnership with Wisdom Concepts, an IT Services company located in Lagos, Nigeria. Wisdom Concept's founder and CEO, Oyelola Adeoluwa, connected church and district offices with CDM+ and continues to sell and support CDM+ for organizations throughout West Africa.
2006
Suran acquired the software, staff, and user base for DonorWorks, a robust software package serving the non-profit industry. DonorWorks has since become a full Suran application, sharing and extending the platform and functionality of CDM+.
2013
Suran formed a strategic relationship with DealerBuilt, a software development company serving the automotive dealership industry. Suran separated and expanded its payroll component from CDM+ into a new product, DBPayroll, which provides payroll calculations, reporting, and HR services for dealerships of any size.
2015
After many years of dedication and service to Suran and its clients, Sue Clay retired from active work with Suran in 2015.
2019
In March 2019, Alex Clay became the company's new CEO as Randy Clay reduced his time spent at Suran to focus on other business ventures. Randy continues to be involved with Suran as its CFO.

Now in its second generation of leadership, Suran is well-positioned to strengthen its service to its current clients while expanding to meet new and exciting opportunities.