New path for Computerland

Computerland has presented a new strategy, which it initiated at the beginning of April. The company hopes to increase operating profit to eight percent in the next two years from the current level of five percent. "We hope that gross profit will reach zł.59 million in 24 months," said the company's president, Michał Danielewski. Last year's gross profit was zł.21.5 million.

The strategy will bring changes in four fields: sales, buying, software implementation and organization of production. However, cutting costs and improving effectiveness mean laying off workers. "By the end of August we want to reduce employment by 200-250 people," Danielewski said, adding that the company employs 2,300 people.

The company plans to concentrate on the most profitable clients. "We want to cut the client list by about 35 percent," the company's vice president responsible for sales, Dariusz Chwiejczak, said. He added that the completion time for projects will be limited to a maximum of 18 months. Also the number of suppliers is to be significantly reduced - five times less than the 2005 figure of nearly 1,000 suppliers.

"This is not a one-time project, this is intended to increase our competitiveness in the long run and it should make us the most flexible company on the IT market," Danielewski added.
Despite the cost-reduction plan, the company has allocated zł.75 million for expansion and acquisitions. Computerland Group's president, Tomasz Sielicki, said that 150 companies have been analysed, but not many "made it through the sieve."