Eyes towards the Future

Constantly developing and redeveloping is the key to a successful business, according to the management of Duna Elektronika, a dynamically growing IT firm that provides cost effective, modular IT services for both global accounts and SMEs.

“Some 20 years ago, the concept of computers on every desktop and in every home was very new in Hungary, while in the United States, it was already a standard business and home utility. Evaluating the opportunity, it was clear to me that with the opening of the Iron Curtain, these technologies would be a great demand,” says one of the first entrepreneurial investors in Hungary, Peter Freed, Managing Director of Duna Elektronika (and also the Publisher of Diplomacy and Trade that carried this article in its June issue), on the establishment of his company.

At the time, he still had to wait for the legal framework to allow the importation of high-technology products to the Eastern Block. “Of course, this occurred in very short order and the business plan for Duna Elektronika was implemented throughout Central Europe. The company became instrumental in working with many multinational companies who began to establish themselves in the region.”

Recalling milestones in the history of his more than two-decade-old company, the Managing Director points out that history is nice but it doesn’t often contribute to the future. With over 40 years’ experience in the IT industry, he does nothing but constantly looking forward. He quotes Michael Moncur who once said “I look to the future because that's where I'm going to spend the rest of my life.”

Freed is very proud that his firm has always managed to keep pace with the changing trends and technologies. “Constantly investing into the training of our engineers to receive industry-recognized certifications is a key to our success,” he notes. “After all, today the most important product of Duna Elektronika is its people.”

He also highlights that even in the light of the recession, the company has been able to increase its workforce by 50%. Mark Badi, Co-Managing Director of the company agrees that a critical piece of the Duna Elektronika puzzle is that their – mainly young professional – employees are up to date on the latest products.

“Not only on the hardware but on the software side as well, including Microsoft and VMware,” he adds. “With their contribution, it’s no wonder that Duna Elektronika has established itself as a top Managed Service provider in the Hungarian market both within our client base and through international Managed Service agreements. This gives us the opportunity to address most Managed Service Tenders in Hungary.”

Badi reveals that Duna Elektronika had great successes in the past year, one being the renewal of their contract with one of the largest multinational companies to supply their staff nationwide. “We are also the winner of a bid to provide services for one of the largest German automotive manufacturers in the world,” he adds.

Multi-tasking

“As a multi-vendor support organization, our task is to hand over a fully serviced system, including planning, cabling, server room implementation, telecom infrastructure, IP telephony and security,” joins in Gábor Juhász, Director of Operations at Duna Elektronika. “Also, we are especially interested in seeing our clients use their systems problem-free.

We operate our own call center for contracted companies that can provide problem resolution within hours,” he adds. “We have built a strong reputation by providing products and services to multinationals as well as SMEs, with a long-term philosophy.” According to Freed, Duna Elektronika has always maintained its ability to understand the so-called ‘road map’ of the industry.

“We work with global manufacturers and suppliers such as Dell, HP, IBM, Lenovo, Cisco, Microsoft and SAP with whom we have well-established authorized partnerships. We also work with their client base planning the implementation of their requirements. This is true not only for the development of the networks, whether it’s LAN or WAN, but also for the analysis of their server or storage requirements and the necessary services to support them,” he notes, adding that keeping their finger on the pulse of all their clients’ activities is crucial in this business.

“We find that companies are increasing their reliance on IT service providers from both a cost and efficiency point of view. With the pressure of reducing costs, it is even more important to offer personalized services, in the field of communication, storage, networking and the cloud. Desktop outsourcing is also a hot topic among IT management.

Many IT support departments struggle to recruit and retain staff with the right skills, or are unable to focus on strategic projects because they are too busy ‘fire-fighting’ day-to-day support problems. We can custom build desktop services, network systems management or help desks to fit each individual situation large or small.”