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Can you please share a few facts about your background?
I originally come from India. After I acquired a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering, I was working as a software engineer for private and public companies. One year down my career line, I felt I needed to start focusing on management, so I went ahead and did my Master’s Degree in HR and Business Analytics and then spent 6 months working for BYJUS Think & Learn and 18 months for PricewaterhouseCoopers. In January 2022 I joined Granton as a talent and client acquisition specialist. And I’ve recently moved to Prague.
Does Granton have a branch in India?
No, the company is based in the Czech Republic but it has operations that require international expansion. I saw the job posting online and as I was thinking about a possible move out of India, I applied. Throughout the interviews it turned out that my experience and skills fully matched the job description, so I was a perfect fit, including my knowledge of English.
I am currently responsible for connecting with clients outside the Czech Republic and I am part of a team of three who focus on international expansion.
Which countries and areas do you want to expand into?
We are an IT consulting firm, offering IT consultants and experts who work for example with business analytics, CRM systems, software development for other companies, so we naturally want to grow as an IT company but we are mainly focusing on the banking industry, financial and investment companies as well as pharmaceutical companies. That’s where we have most skills but it may change in the future.
When it comes to the countries of interest – at the moment it’s the UK and the CBCC is our first step to enter the UK market. The UK is a hub of start-ups and provides opportunities to newcomers – once we get acquainted with the market, we plan to reach out to the companies there. Of course, new client acquisition in the UK is the final goal but first we want to network with people and get to know them and their future requirements to see where we could help them in the future.
Has your company been impacted by Covid?
Not really. I started interviewing in August 2021 so during Covid, and the whole process worked well. I could not move out of India until now because of Covid though. And all the work we do is virtual anyway. Our company did not feel any impact but we really missed meeting colleagues and being in the office.
How is Granton growing?
About 50 consultants have joined us this year. The management team is small but our consultants are outsourced. We are continuously growing and every week we have two to three people joining us.
Is there a big demand for your services out there?
Yes, there is a high demand in the IT industry and Granton is known for helping clients by providing great-quality services. These two go hand in hand. The IT solutions we provide are needed. We offer diverse services: we can work on migration of technical processes e.g. from Waterfall to Agile or supply experts to address other technical solutions - it is always based on the demand.
How do you work with your clients?
Few of our clients are permanent and have been with us for 10 years but there are others that work with us on specific projects. But these relationships are long lasting, and companies typically want to continue to work with Granton and get new consultants.
How competitive is the market?
That’s a tricky question. If the requirement is for testers, then we can support our clients easily but for example when it comes to the demand of highly experienced requirements such as Solution Architects or IT Analysts, then it is harder to source these skills and it needs more work.
First impressions from Prague?
I like Prague and people here have been really helpful as I don’t speak Czech. They are patient enough and very welcoming. I am blessed to have my work colleagues; they are so supportive. There is a lot ahead of me, plus I want to learn Czech as sometimes it’s a barrier not to speak the local language.
What do you do in your spare time?
I do a lot of cooking. I am also very organised and need my space to be clean. My landlady is very happy to have me as I have been cleaning so much! She also has pets that I miss (I have pets at home), so I’ve been also spending a lot of time with her pets.
How would you define yourself in three words?
Organised, highly motivated and adaptive. You put me in any corner of the world, and I’ll be like ‘ok I can do this’.
Last word?
This is my first company where I am driving the entire project by myself and my aspiration for now is to get introduced to companies based in the UK so that I get to know them, not necessarily to drive the business on the first go, but to get the feel for their needs and requirements. I hope I will achieve that with the help of the CBCC.
More information about Granton and its service is available here.
By Tereza Urbankova, member of the CBCC Executive Committee
We are looking for more CBCC members to be interviewed! Please email tereza@cbcc.org.uk if you are interested.