Chicago – October 07, 2026 -- Tusker, a midmarket IT services provider, has named Matt Gaudio as Chief Executive Officer, succeeding Matt Zafirovski, who is departing for a leadership role at a publicly traded technology firm.
Gaudio rises from Chief Solutions Officer to CEO after 20 years in the technology industry
Gaudio previously served as Tusker's second-in-command, overseeing solutions, professional services, managed services and delivery operations. He was a key architect of the company's "One Tusker" strategy, which integrates operations across the firm's acquired businesses.
Tusker targets $1 billion in revenue through a dual organic-and-acquisition growth model
"Half of our growth to date has been organic and half has been achieved through acquisition, and we expect that to continue as we advance toward our goal of becoming a $1 billion company," Gaudio said.
Six acquisitions since 2017 built Tusker's national footprint from a single Chicago-area distributor
The company originated from Arlington Computer Products (ACP), a Chicago-area IT hardware distributor founded in 1984. Zaf Group acquired ACP in 2017, followed by Green Bay's Camera Corner Connecting Point in 2018, Duluth's Citon Computer Corporation in 2022, Boston's Versatile Communications seven months later, Chicago-based Mindsight in 2025, and Cleveland-based cybersecurity firm Fortress SRM last month. The company rebranded from ACP CreativIT to Tusker earlier this year.
Tusker now employs more than 450 staff, including 250 technologists, across six regional hubs
The firm operates major hubs in Chicago, Boston, Green Bay, Duluth, Eau Claire and Cleveland, serving clients in education, healthcare, retail, manufacturing and government/public sectors.
Zafirovski led Tusker for six years, the last four as CEO following two years as COO, a period that included the company's strongest performance to date earlier this year. Tusker Executive Chairman Mike Zafirovski said Gaudio has been central to the One Tusker transformation and is positioned to lead the company's next phase of growth.