Southeast Europe could become the future engine of information technology expansion

Peter Bartha, director of Avnet Technology Solutions for Hungary and leader for the Southeast Europe region, speaks in an exclusive interview for the Bosnian news agency Patria about the company that, as part of a new agreement, is expanding its relationship with IBM.

Among other things, Bartha explained which of the 12 countries in this large market represents the biggest challenge.

PATRIA: Avnet has been selected as a partner for IBM in achieving growth in Central and Southeast Europe. Which of the markets in those 12 countries represents your biggest challenge?

BARTHA: Avnet is appearing on the market for the first time in most countries of the Central and Southeast Europe region, except for Hungary and Romania, where we have been present for several years. In all four markets, we are entering as a distributor of IBM hardware, software and service products, and in addition, we offer Avnet training services called the Avnet Academy. There is only one exception, Serbia, where we are already present through Avnet Ascendant, led by Radoslav Didić. They are an Avnet company that provides services. Another exception is Slovenia, where Avnet organizations, Avnet Silica and EBW, are already present, which are separate subsidiary companies of Avnet and represent a special part of activities in relation to Avnet Technology Solutions. They deal with component distribution. Therefore, we will share premises with the existing Avnet companies, but we will build the business from scratch. In Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia, we will employ local experts, and from there we will also cover BiH, Macedonia, Kosovo and Albania. In addition, we will have regional pre-sales representatives, whom we will employ in these countries. They will be responsible for regional pre-sales and technical configuration activities. We have also hired quality local staff in Bulgaria. Therefore, we are mainly focusing on the four more developed countries in the region: Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia and Bulgaria, but the others are also very important to us.

PATRIA: In the area of Central and Eastern Europe, the number of users of the Internet and new technologies is growing, and BiH is one of the markets in that region. In what way did this influence your decision to expand into this market?

BARTHA: With the emergence of digitalization and the spread of the digital movement, as well as the increasing use of e-government, there is a huge demand for information technology all over the world. In the Southeast Europe region, we see that more and more countries are approaching the EU, which brings faster development to every country that decides to become part of that process. This happened in Poland, in Hungary, and in the Czech Republic. So we see a growing demand for high-level IT, and the Southeast Europe region could become the future engine of that expansion, since a lot remains to be done in terms of digitalization and digital trends.

PATRIA: How important are the Southeast European markets for Avnet, and are you familiar with the business environment in the countries of this region?

BARTHA: We started this year with the IBM software and hardware portfolio, as well as the services portfolio, and in addition, there are the Avnet training services called the Avnet Academy. We will invest a lot in these markets, and if the market responds adequately to Avnet's values, we will continue to invest further and expand our portfolio in the future, as is the case, for example, with the company Lenovo, from January 1st. We believe in honest, quality business, mutual trust and credibility, and long-term partnerships. Avnet started its operations in the Central and Eastern Europe region from scratch, and over ten years we achieved organic growth and became one of the largest companies in all countries of this region in the field of solutions and value-added distribution. The Southeast Europe region is one of the areas in Europe where there are great opportunities for growth and great growth potential. We think it is worth investing here.

PATRIA: How do you intend to implement your business strategy of expansion? Will it be a gradual process, entering countries one by one, or is there a system that will cover all 12 countries at once?

BARTHA: Avnet is appearing on the market for the first time in the entire Southeast Europe region, except for Hungary and Romania, where we have been present for several years. But we have already started working in all 10 new countries. We have even received our first orders from Serbia, Croatia and Bulgaria, and we are working on achieving business agreements in other countries this year. We are trying to develop a systematic strategy for all 12 countries.

PATRIA: Given that IBM has been a leader in the information technology sector for years, does this represent an additional motivation for you, as their partner, to achieve a successful expansion in the market? What are your expectations?

BARTHA: Avnet and IBM have been business partners for more than 25 years, and we cooperate on a global level in all regions and in more than 80 countries. In addition, Avnet achieved revenue of three billion US dollars annually through the sale of IBM technology solutions and services, with over 20 percent year-on-year growth during fiscal 2010. Avnet's role in providing training services for IBM on a global level helps us achieve long-term strategic goals by enhancing our IBM portfolio and expertise. The fact that IBM, as one of the world's leading IT companies, recognizes us as a reliable provider of training services enables us to further expand our offering of value-added services, especially after the recent launch of the Avnet Services segment. More importantly, it helps us provide training that enables our partners and distributors to grow their business and best respond to their clients' business challenges. Together with IBM, we gain new insights into distribution activity every day, and we will continue to do so. We can safely say that the cooperation between IBM and Avnet provides both companies with stability, and at the same time gives a sense of responsibility. We treat each other as partners, which allows us to transfer the acquired knowledge to new business partners.