This is an interview I recently conducted for Czech Cool Trade's For Business Magazine. I would like to thank especially Martin Kovalský, who made this interview possible. It gave me a chance to tell you more about myself and my thinking. Let's do it ...
He has gained experience in corporate and international markets. Now he passes them on to small and medium-sized companies in the Czech Republic. Through his podcast, networking events, sophisticated incubation and acceleration programs, and most importantly through personal collaboration. We spoke with Martin Hurych.
Martin, what was your first contact with entrepreneurship?
Entrepreneurship, or rather entrepreneurship, is in my blood, as the entrepreneurial tradition goes back several generations on my father's side. So when I was at university I started helping my parents in their company, which was a great start. In the 1990s, small business owners were often afraid to pass on their know-how to their employees. They were afraid that you would repay them by opening your own practice and pulling clients to you. So you had to learn on your own, you repeated the same mistakes and your learning curve was slow. That's where I had an advantage. I didn't have to discover the blind spots.
So your parents were your first mentors?
You could say that. When someone senior is willing to share their know-how and worldview with you, you can grow far faster than if you're floundering on your own. I was similarly lucky in the corps. My boss left me a lot of decision-making space and had the ambition to build our entire group into a multinational management team. He knew that to be successful, his team had to be successful. As a result, within a few years we grew into an international divisional board where the oldest were around 35 years old.
Tell us more about your career in a large international company.
I started out as an ordinary salesman in the Czech Republic, but because I didn't say no and always took on challenges, I quickly got a lot of opportunities. I was the oldest in our team, I was still under 30 and lucky to be studying Russian. That's why I was first put in charge of the Caucasus, then Central Asia, Russia, Eastern Europe, and eventually briefly joined Emerging Markets and the United States. I am grateful to the corporation for all the opportunities. As you grow through the hierarchy, you go through tons of training and you're constantly expanding your horizons. Most of those who have worked their way up to a management role in the corporation will tell you that they have taken away a lot of positive things. Ironically, it is through this development that you reach a stage where you begin to understand that some things are not in line with the official concept of business. The higher up you are and the more you understand the workings of the whole machine, the more likely you are to dislike it.
How did you feel about it?
I've always pointed out the burning issues, that's why they called me a troublemaker. I used to function as a kind of libero at the intersection of business development, product development and innovation. So my end didn't come as a bolt from the blue, but for a while I felt that someone was cutting a branch under me. One day I walked into my boss's office with the intention of solving a specific problem, an argumentative shootout ensued and I walked out without a job. It hurt, but I soon knew it was meant to be. That it was time to move on.
Moving on meant starting a business?
As I mentioned, entrepreneurship, or rather entrepreneurship, is in my blood. Even in corporate I had that role; today we call it intrapreneur. I have always started new countries and built teams. I had to know how to take care of myself. Analyze, build, deliver. And so on and so forth. When I finished at the company, I realized I was unemployable in the Czech Republic. But I also realised that there was a lot of interest in my experience and ideas. What was a matter of course for me was and still is often completely unknown to small and medium-sized companies after the sin.
And that?
For years, I have developed an expertise that is most commonly known in the Czech Republic as consultative selling or sales
long-cycle sales. There are more possible names, but there is a well-established term in the world of complex sales.
Why complex?
Because you are selling a product or service that the buying party perceives as expensive and risky, whether it costs several million or a few tens of thousands. Thus, many people have a say in the decision making process and the decision process is long. It is complex, which is why such a sale is also a project-driven affair. Companies in our country usually deal with complex sales intuitively, leaving everything to one contact and not working systematically.
What are the consequences?
The sales cycle is disproportionately prolonged, there is no controlled relationship building between the entities, and in the end you are left with price as the only manipulable item in the fight against the competition. Otherwise, you can shorten the sales cycle significantly and increase the selling price at the same time The product is often complex and you are selling expertise at the same time. Most complex technical products are sold this way, but also hardware and software, for example. And because the Czech Republic has long been technically and manufacturing oriented, there is enormous potential. But we are not exploiting it and unfortunately it is still often the case that we are more of an assembly plant. I see this attitude even in the younger generation of entrepreneurs; many startups are content with the first sale, brokering people or applications abroad, instead of going into uncertainty and trying to develop a tailor-made solution. And then selling that on under their own name. I am reminded of the words of the famous Czech designer Petr Novag, who says that added value and wealth is created when you know what the customer wants and tailor a product to them. We Czechs are a very clever nation. But at the same time we like warmth and peace, which is why I think we have only a handful of innovative and expanding companies per capita compared to other countries. We all know Rohlik, Kiwi, Productboard, but there should be hundreds, thousands of such companies. That's why I try to help companies that believe we can do better. I am most pleased when I can share my experience and then see how companies can apply positive principles and evolve. If I could contribute even one company to the aforementioned thousand, I would be happy.
Contributed by sharing my wealth of experience?
I started a community called B2B Business Sphere, around which my activities are packed; a B2B business incubator program for start-ups, corporate workshops, the Ignition podcast where I invite senior experts, networking or personal collaborations. I am also preparing a new B2B business accelerator program, which will be focused on larger companies. And I have one new thing in mind that I'll keep to myself for now. No one is doing anything like this here and I'm sure it will accelerate companies quite safely. I'm trying to build an island of positive deviance for all those who want to move forward, but for various reasons have run aground. Maybe they're not doing well and need to push back, or conversely they're doing so well that they can't keep up and know that the experience of others will help them. I want to combine the experience I bring from the corporate world with the SME approach to maintaining friendly relationships, as tends to happen in family businesses. It's just that in those, it's at the expense of business development. We need to find that edge where we retain our humanity while continuing to do business. Unfortunately, my experience has been that the smaller the company, the more it is driven by feelings, regardless of the underlying data. Now I'm not just talking about the business, but general management overall.
But the business is your domain.
Yes. The business is the only activity that is capable of consistently bringing positive cash flow into the company. The rest are costs. Maybe controversial, but that's how I put it. However, it's not the only area you have to tweak to make the business work. A business can't function without HR, marketing, production planning and more. If you don't deliver the product on time, at the price and quality the retailer promised, they will never sell anything to the buyer. This is clear. Recent years have highlighted the importance of business. We have lived in a long period of conjuncture, companies have prospered and have completely abandoned the acquisition business. When everything came to a standstill, sales teams had to kick in. Acquisition deals are inherently difficult and unpleasant, which is why acquisition salespeople are so rare, and so royally paid.
Martin, you do a podcast aptly titled Ignition. Is it purely a business tool or entertainment?
In the beginning it was honestly a pure PR and marketing tool and a big step out of the comfort zone. Today, Ignition is my hobby, a sort of second MBA. Because every story is original; you can have 30 different guests from the IT sphere, but each will have their own unique journey. I enjoy learning from my guests and I believe they have something to give to those who listen or watch Ignition.
What about networking events, are those also a learning tool?
In my entrepreneurial beginnings, I met a person at a networking event who brokered my biggest contract for a long time. Everything happened because of openness and willingness to help each other. That kick-started me. I have always loved meeting and getting to know people across countries and industries. That's why when I started building the B2B Business Sphere, I wanted entrepreneurs and executives to be able to meet and get to know each other. There are two mistakes people sometimes make at networking events. Either they go downright salesy or, conversely, they go completely aimless. But your goal should be to listen and get to know. Because you never know who has what background and contacts. You will only find out by being open and also willing to help. It will come back to you. And business is really generated there. I have data to back it up.
Martin, in conclusion, try to summarize your entrepreneurial ambition.
I want to be and hope to be someone who accelerates the development of companies. Especially technology and manufacturing. It could be a billion-dollar company or a small start-up. I want to be the one who helps companies break down the established order, take people out of their comfort zone, and open up new and unforeseen possibilities. Of course, I won't cover all areas of business myself. However, I can put teams together to help a company at whatever point it is in its development. From setting up basic processes to consulting on board formation. I offer my experience and strength to all companies with the desire to move forward.
The original article and the entire magazine can be downloaded here
Many thanks Bohemia Werbung for the foto.
(Automatically translated from Czech by DeepL)