Knowledge
TechMine Grow Fast Case Studies: event report
At TechMine we have a deep conviction that the greatest value and the greatest successes arise at the intersection of different fields, competencies and experiences. That is why we connect entrepreneurs, deliver valuable knowledge and inspire continuous improvement. With such an introduction Lukasz Zjawinski of TechMine opened the event. He then presented in a few sentences TechMine’s current activities, including new initiatives.
Several dozen gathered participants of the event had the opportunity to listen to three talks and ask the invited speakers in-depth questions.
The event was devoted to the issue of the growth of companies traveling the road at a fast pace “from the garage” to the global market. The speakers were three entrepreneurs from different industries, of different ages and with different experiences, but, as it would turn out, speaking with one voice in many areas. They were also united by the fact of being owners and heads of companies that over the last decade reached significant turnover and scope of operations, starting practically from scratch.
The first speaker was Aleksander Gruszka, owner and CEO of Polfendo Sp. z o.o., a manufacturer of roller garage and industrial doors. A graduate of GWSH in Katowice, as a forty-year-old manager he states that what he does professionally gives him great joy and does not take up all his time. He likes visiting little-known places, is passionate about quantum physics and molecular biology, and is active in charity, running a foundation.
Aleksander made the thesis that “everything big is created from something smaller” the motto of his talk. The company was founded as a family business operating in the roller blind market. The decision to start producing doors was made intuitively. As usual at the beginning, quality turned out to be the problem, and consequently the low market value of the product. This problem returned with every subsequent increase in the scale of the company’s operations. However, being aware of it and focusing on delivering ever greater value to the client, a significant position in a market niche was developed. The speaker discussed year by year the changes in turnover, employment and the number of doors produced. Within eight years these values increased tenfold; the plan for the next ten years provides for their value to grow again by an order of magnitude. The fundamental factor in the company’s success is people, those managing the company and those working in it. At Polfendo the management is able to replace any employee on the production line. Employees can also replace each other. In a company that is small overall (with a turnover of ten million zloty, the company employs 24 people) such interchangeability is very important. That is why, as Aleksander says, “people should be hired slowly and fired quickly”.
Importantly, the speed of Polfendo’s growth was and is controlled. Increases in turnover, production scale and margins are subject to continuous analysis. Such an approach is possible thanks to solid foundations, a developed technological advantage and an effective sales model.
The next speaker was Mateusz Pycia, founder and CEO of Globkurier.pl, a graduate of the University of Economics in Katowice, winner of the L. Czarnecki award. Globkurier wants to be for logistics what Booking.com is for the hotel industry: a platform that lets you choose the best courier to deliver goods from point A to point B, in the optimal time and at the optimal price.
Mateusz pointed out seven (one bonus) aspects of operation that every entrepreneur should take into account: scale (related to humility; not everyone immediately becomes an Uber with a two-billion deficit and dynamic growth, and does not have to), people (a topic recurring with all the speakers), the IT system (better to trust professionals where possible and not do everything yourself from scratch), costs (with the rapid growth of a company it is easy to lose control over them), data (the fundamental factor of advantage is access to complete and reliable data), globalization (every country has its own customs; national systems do not scale to the whole world) and profit versus scale of operation. The bonus was pointing out that agile is not scrum, but the explanation of why was given to the audience as homework.
The last to give his talk was Grzegorz Dymek, co-owner and board member of Anshar Studios S.A., incidentally a “child” of TechMine: the partners met at one of the past TechMine events. From the beginning of his professional career he has been associated with the IT and telecommunications industry, among others as director of the Computer Centre of the Silesian University of Technology, director of technology and development at 2Si S.A., CEO of 2Si Software&Serwis sp. z o.o., managing director of Exorigo sp. z o.o., board member of TELE24 sp. z o.o. Member of the Supervisory Board of PiLab S.A.
Grzegorz invested in a partner’s idea who, initially as a start-up, proposed that he would take a lot of money and that there should not be too much checking of what he did with it. Grzegorz, on the contrary, said he would give much less, but in return would watch closely. As it would turn out, this was the right model for moving in four years from a two-person start-up to a company employing sixty full-time employees and another sixty working on contracts. Anshar produces computer games under its own brand and game elements for other producers. It operates in a market that is global by nature. It consciously grows conservatively, increasing the scale of operations and turnover linearly. The market, although flourishing, is highly unstable. Like the two previous speakers, Grzegorz also emphasized the role of people and how they are treated in the company. At Anshar there is no forced overtime, but there is expensive training for everyone who wants to take advantage of it. Seemingly these are large costs; in fact, in the longer term, a factor of staff stability, i.e. cost stabilization. The speaker named as success factors a coherent ownership vision, positive cash flow flowing from cost awareness, and management focused on employee satisfaction.
At the end there was a discussion with the participation of the host Lukasz Zjawinski and the three speakers. The most important success factors were emphasized: first, you need to build a financial base, you need to have money for making mistakes, then you need to maintain positive cash flow; while start-ups fail because they offer products nobody needs, the main cause of failure of companies already operating is liquidity problems. Finally, the fundamental role of people in the initial period of a company’s development was emphasized once again.
Having exhausted the event’s program, at around 7:30 pm the participants had the opportunity to continue the discussion, make contacts and share experiences.
