Working with the big guys

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Monica Stewart
6 years ago
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2 Working with the big guys Konftel 100 for France Telecom Photograph; Martin Gunséus The classic Konftel look was finalised in the spring of Then the production process started as well as various tests. The new product was launched in two models: the small Konftel 100 as a stand alone to be used in a room up to 25 m 2 and Konftel Conference System 300 which was a complete installation solution for large conference rooms that could be operated with a remote control. The cooperation with Telia and Telenor meant that Konftel had a solid base in both Sweden and Norway. During the early years Konftel doubled its turnover at more or less every end-of-year report. Things were looking very good and interest in conference telephone was growing constantly. The product was young and the market in Scandinavia might have been untapped but it wasn t very large. The focus turned more and more to export and larger markets, which is why all the revenue went back to the technical development of the product and another couple of new positions. Soon there would be more than ten employees working for the company. We sold the products to the distributors but soon we identified a problem. When they had stocked up on conference telephones they still 60

There were therefore two main areas to develop in order to keep the business growing: technology/product development and market development.

3 didn t get to sell very large volumes. We were at the mercy of their performance - or the lack of it. A lot was down to interfaces between various types of switches and other small technical details that were obviously important to get right in order to make a sale, Gunnar Ekström says. There were therefore two main areas to develop in order to keep the business growing: technology/product development and market development. As these were two entirely different areas the company was re-formed into two different legal entities: Konftel Technology AB and Konftel AB. A great deal of the technical development was concerned with adjusting the products to various switch systems so that there would always be a suitable Konftel product regardless of what technical platform the end customer was using. That s why, for instance, Konftel 100R and 100D were added to the range. The initial green colour was replaced by the now classic black shell complete with a new set of keys. Designer Johan Gustavsson says: Luckily the new requirements coincided with the rapid development of digital technology. As the circuit boards got smarter they also got smaller and smaller, which meant we could fit more into the shells. Ericsson, Tenovis, Avaya and Alcatel in Konftel colours. Photograph; Martin Gunséus 61

The development projects were codenamed after trees, such as Birch, Asp and Willow. Today project names are inspired by cartoon characters; Asterix, Tintin, Captain Haddock, Obelix and so on.

4 The development projects were codenamed after trees, such as Birch, Asp and Willow. Today project names are inspired by cartoon characters; Asterix, Tintin, Captain Haddock, Obelix and so on. In order to penetrate the market in a more efficient way we started sketching out various possible paths, Gunnar Ekström says. One way would obviously be to build up our own retail network but we soon came to the conclusion that it would not be realistic nor would it be in line with our style. Partnership is our model. We decided to work even more closely together with those who knew the market such as distributors and retailers but we were still too small to handle the network directly in a professional way. That s why we got in touch with the large switch manufacturers. They were already on the market and might be interested in our technology. That turned out to be a totally correct analysis. This was in the middle of the blossoming IT boom when new technology, new ideas and new constellations were in the ascendancy. In order to get closer to the main players Konftel needed an internal person who could analyse the needs of the switch manufacturers and then 62

5 Konftel, together with world-leading telephone operator Genesys, developed the specially designed Conferencer 200 model in 2001.Via the operator s meeting services the user had access to among other things recording, security locking and a direct button link to 24 hour support from a hand-held controller. coordinate the technical possibilities of Konftel s products and ensure any adaptations were in line with these needs. The person in question was Clarence Jacobsson, then a young technical Project Manager at TeleLarm Care a large Telia-owned company. Today Clarence is Assistant Manager at Konftel with a string of positions within the company behind him. I started in November 1995 as Project Manager for development and production. It wasn t obvious that I would say yes as I was already working for such a large and secure company. Conference telephones were at the time quite a small, relatively unexplored niche. But at the same time I liked the idea of a challenge, Clarence Jacobsson says. I got involved at an exciting stage and since then there have constantly been fun stages of development. The reason we have been so successful is obviously down to the fact that the technology has been top class but also the fact that we have such a great spirit of cooperation within Konftel and towards our various partners. This attitude makes it pleasant to work at Konftel and creates a climate that enables us to constantly develop. Having been a relatively small player has made it necessary for us to listen to our customers in order to solve their requirements. We haven t been able to afford to run our own race. Konftel started sending feelers out to the Swedish switch giant Ericsson as well as to large European manufacturers such as Bosch Telecom, Siemens and Alcatel. The feedback was positive and they started planning ODM (Original Design Manufacturer), i.e. Konftel would produce products that would then be sold under a different brand name. In conjunction with this they also continued with their own production and sales. This also meant more work for Struktur Design in Umeå. For a couple of years there was a lot of activity here with quick jobs and hush-hush projects when we would use special paints and develop various types of conference telephones with different brandings. There was often a real rush to get jobs done, Johan Gustavsson at Struktur Design recalls. The large manufacturers started to realise that little Konftel had unique technical solutions that really measured up in tough sound environments and even if at the time they didn t represent a great increase in sales a lot of contacts were made that would prove important in the future. 63

Clarence Jacobsson. Torbjörn Karlsson. Clarence Jacobsson says: We learnt so much during this time and at the same time important organisations got interested in Konftel s technology.

So far John-Erik Eriksson and the external data process expert Stig Stuns in Sundsvall had been key people in the technical development in collaboration with another couple of external consultants.

6 Clarence Jacobsson. Torbjörn Karlsson. Clarence Jacobsson says: We learnt so much during this time and at the same time important organisations got interested in Konftel s technology. It was rewarding in both directions and we felt there was a clear demand for our knowledge. So far John-Erik Eriksson and the external data process expert Stig Stuns in Sundsvall had been key people in the technical development in collaboration with another couple of external consultants. For a few years there was a lot of work for only a few pairs of hands. We were working like crazy, Clarence Jacobsson recalls. After a while Stig Stuns was asked to find a young, hungry engineer and computer programmer that Konftel could employ. The right person was closer than they expected they found him at Mitthögskolan (a university) in Sundsvall. Torbjörn Karlsson had just got his Masters Degree in system technology focusing on telecoms and had completed his degree work at Telia Research. Throughout his entire education he had been working with the Analog Device s processing platform which was the same as Konftel was also working with. So it seemed logical that Torbjörn was asked if he wanted to start working at the company. Says Torbjörn: I was also offered a job at Telia so it was a choice between working for a giant or, at the time, tiny Konftel. As a young signal operator Konftel felt like an exciting challenge and it has been a stimulating journey in a company that has always been open for new ways of collaborating with skilful partners. Torbjörn Karlsson is today Development Manager and also technically responsible for the link to the factory in China where Konftel has moved its production. 64

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