Interview with Andrey Leshchenkov, responsible for process and organizational development at Denk IT GmbH.

2020 forced many companies to get creative. However, this was not always sustainable. Denk IT GmbH, with a total of eight locations, over 40 employees and more than 3,000 customers, specialises in the area of customised and individual implementation of IT projects. The portfolio ranges from IT workspace offerings and IT infrastructure to IT services & support as well as complete outsourcing. The IT system house sees itself as a reliable problem solver and innovation leader with the latest technologies guaranteed. This is achieved, among other things, through (gold) partnerships with Microsoft, Telekom, Dell, Citrix, VMware or Nethinks. In an interview with Andrey Leshchenkov, responsible for process and organisational development at Denk IT GmbH, we talk today about the changes in the working world after Corona, why we must continue to advance digitalisation and why opportunities and communication are closely linked.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: 2020 has probably changed our working world forever. What do you think will disappear after COVID-19 and what will remain?

Andrey Leshchenkov: Everything that was previously normal in terms of collaboration, communication and productivity has fundamentally changed over the past year due to the pandemic. The fact that employees want to do their work from home with the right tools and still feel connected will remain in the future. Companies of all sizes are getting used to this situation and investing in tools that enable teams and individuals to remain productive and in close exchange with each other and their business environment – even when they have to work remotely. Such companies will have a significant advantage in the new working world in the coming years, as their staff respond to these future-oriented technologies with balance and satisfaction. However, the switch to decentralised and hybrid working was born out of necessity in 2020, and the transition was often quite rushed. Now is the time to anchor the proven structural technologies in long-term corporate practice.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Why should digitalisation continue? Isn’t what we digitalised in 2020 enough?

Andrey Leshchenkov: In 2020, everything had to happen extremely quickly. Many solutions implemented in the course of the ad hoc digital transformation measures were quickly cobbled together and are suboptimal in the long term. As personal contacts, even telephone calls, were suddenly replaced by data-driven communication channels, cloud-based video conferencing software services suddenly ranked number one in the growth rankings. But it also happened that companies used cobbled-together products that didn’t really fit together, didn’t adjust their video conferencing licences to the increasing number of users or, for example, forwarded office numbers to colleagues’ private mobile devices. Caution and foresight are required here!

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Where do the future opportunities of decentralized collaboration lie?

Andrey Leshchenkov: Even with smaller companies, the trend is increasingly moving toward cross-border and even intercontinental cooperation – the future is location-independent! It is both a challenge and an opportunity to equip decentralized workers with the right technology for optimal collaboration. Companies that choose a solution which can adapt to groundbreaking new technologies are well advised. Here, you can fully rely on Microsoft Teams as a flexible medium.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: How do you see tomorrow's communication?

Andrey Leshchenkov: In the future, employees who would otherwise have walked down the hall for a quick question can simply open a chat window. Instead of a project meeting where everyone sits in the same room, this will take place via screen sharing with recording, and the daily status meeting becomes a Teams conference. Phone calls will increasingly be replaced by video calls. Live events bring even large groups of participants together in dynamic conferences, topic summits, or virtual trade fairs. All functions that were previously available at a company location must now be sustainably digitized and constructed just as solidly and stably as an office building. Microsoft Teams offers all these possibilities and more – with the reliability and security that a company needs to be future-proof and crisis-resilient!

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: What is your favorite solution? And why?

Andrey Leshchenkov: At Denk IT GmbH, we have firmly anchored Microsoft Teams in our corporate culture. With Teams, we stay connected, and it is where all the functionality we need in our daily work is centralized. Additionally, Teams is a real advantage when it comes to completing tasks quickly, securely, and effectively. Our company has been working closely with Microsoft for many years and focuses on their on-premise and cloud products. Our architects concentrate on the cloud platform, productivity and content, mobility management, as well as Microsoft’s communication and messaging services. In doing so, we consider security to be the foundation of all these productivity services, so that our customer companies can fully focus on growing their business.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: What is your Why and your USP?

Andrey Leshchenkov: Our core concern is a profound understanding of our customers and their market environment! We develop individually tailored solutions for their specific needs. We see ourselves as problem solvers. By showing interest in operational processes, employees, their skills, and wishes, we develop quick, reliable, goal-oriented responses, ideas, and strategies – and not impersonal standards!

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: We read about security vulnerabilities in new technologies every day. Is this hype or do security concerns have merit?

Andrey Leshchenkov: The rushed introduction of video tools in companies and educational institutions has indeed led to security breaches in some cases. In addition, companies must also ensure risk-free, protected data collection and the privacy of users. Therefore, entrepreneurs should ask their providers as early as possible about their global standards for security, controllability, and data monitoring. If a provider cannot offer comprehensive support to its customers, a change is advisable!

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: How does a company know if it has reached the limits of its platform?

Andrey Leshchenkov: Given the explosive increase in video and other data, many providers have reached the limits of their network capacities and require additional physical hardware within existing data centers. For companies, it is crucial to pay attention to limitations in new contracts and to quality and consistency degradation in old contracts. Providers with scalable and globally distributed architectures are likely better equipped to handle the data flood.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Is Teams reliable?

Andrey Leshchenkov: Unlike other meeting solutions, Microsoft Teams leverages the full power of Microsoft Azure’s global network – one of the largest in the world – to connect users regardless of their location. Microsoft collaborates with thousands of internet service providers to provide direct access to their infrastructure. Such a connection minimizes network outages and ensures an optimal meeting experience. Other cloud-based meeting solutions route their calls over the public internet, making it impossible to predict or control call quality.

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Do you have a case example for us of what one of your IT solutions might look like?

Andrey Leshchenkov: Of course, gladly! A medium-sized e-commerce company that prioritizes excellent customer service as its top priority asked us for support. The customers of this company expect a seamless shopping experience, regardless of their location or communication channel. To meet these expectations, only cloud migration was an option. And not just the migration of computing power, but also the telecommunication systems! When the pandemic forced the company's employees into remote work, the cloud solution we developed proved to be a real stroke of luck: the company was well-prepared for the challenges of decentralized work and was able to maintain its productivity, profitability, and integrity – and continue to keep all its customers happy!

DIGITAL FUTUREmag: Thank you, Andrey, for this comprehensive insight into your solutions and services as well as your forecasts on how the digitalization journey will continue.