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On February 27, 2020, Scalefocus CEO, Plamen Tsekov and SAP on Azure Cloud Solution Architect at Microsoft, Jan Třetina welcomed a crowd of over 40 business innovators and thought leaders, introducing the topic of “The Road to S/4HANA and How to Navigate It” at Scalefocus’ office in Sofia. Speakers included Zdravko Peshakov, Sales Executive at SAP and Ladislava Poláková, CEE SAP Partner and Development Manager at Microsoft, who shared the benefits of migrating to a SAP S4/HANA environment. Pavlin Dyankov, VP of Business Solutions and EAM at Scalefocus gave practical tips on how businesses can accelerate the migration process, along with reasons to choose Scalefocus as a strategic SAP partner. It was an action-packed day with valuable expert insight, so we decided to provide you with the key takeaways of the event. It’s Time to Make a Move According to Gartner, SAP has a current global market share of 22% in the ERP industry. Compared to other ERP software platforms, the company continues to stand out from competitors with its fully integrated and modular environment, SAP Cloud Platform app builder with simple extension of functionality, and the best-in-class SAP Fiori UX design seamlessly connecting people and data. Early this year, SAP CEO Christian Klein, announced that the company has decided to discontinue support for its premise-based Business Suite 7 (ECC) applications by 2027, favouring its cloud-based SAP S/4HANA, and offering optional extended maintenance until 2030. This news has pushed 56% of businesses who rely on SAP in order to run smoothly, to devise a coherent migration strategy. Many SAP customers contemplating the move to S/4HANA are feeling stuck. Custom installations seem too complex, and retooling would prove to be costly and ineffective losing precious time. In addition, internal stakeholders are protesting against any changes to essential applications in case they lead to major disruptions in established norms and processes. Customers may seem hesitant to accept new interfaces and layouts. So what is the best approach to take? Businesses must recognize and acknowledge the significance of a cloud computing environment on the digital transformation of their enterprise. Keeping in mind the cloud’s flexibility, speed, scalability, and security, a responsible leader’s next step should be to proactively leverage the benefits by accelerating migration to SAP S/4HANA the proper way. Let us guide you in the right direction. Convince the Decision-Makers It’s important to communicate the benefits of migrating to SAP S/4HANA confidently with C-level executives. A business must have the unanimous support of senior management, as they are usually the decision makers. For that to happen, they need to be convinced of the migration in relation to the company’s strategic effort towards a complete digital transformation. In the process of such a transformation, the following positive outcomes can be expected: Reduced time to market. New features can be deployed in half the time or less. Better user experience. Make the customer journey valuable and exciting. Integration of new technologies. Make use of powerful AI and machine learning tools. Cost-reducing automations. Optimize resources and automate accounts payable cycles with SAP Ariba. Higher performance rates through the latest coding conventions and automated updates. Security that is engrained and no last-minute measures. Smoother business processes through predictive analytics (HANA AFL) and automation. Take A Course of Action To keep the S/4HANA migration process moving along smoothly, C-level executives have the power to establish a clear path towards a successful digital transformation. Here is how you can help them accelerate the process: Make your organization change-resilient. Evolve to a hybrid multi-cloud strategy. Standardize where you can. Customize where it matters. Plan for the long term. Measure in the short term. Partner with a SAP expert. Step 1: Prepare for Change-Resilience To alleviate any disapproval and minimize the stress around the migration to SAP S4HANA, the right tone must be set. First and foremost, it should be communicated why the change is happening, and that this will be the new normal going forward. Employees need to understand and be aware of the competitive advantages that the change will bring. They should gradually accept the change and try their best to adapt to shifts in their work processes, including possible routine software updates, and introduction of new technologies. Step 2: Evolve to a Multi-Cloud Strategy Recent research by Frost & Sullivan reports that 65% of businesses worldwide prefer to use a “cloud-first” strategy, leaving everything else on-premise due to fears of compliance, network latency and migration. In such cases, confusion about the true definition of “the cloud” still remains. Instead of serving as a software delivery model, the cloud is falsely being defined as simply a place. It should be noted, that SAP S/4HANA offers several deployment options. You can run cloud applications from your own data centre or a public, private, or hybrid cloud configuration. The choice is yours. We suggest adopting a holistic multi-cloud strategy that . You may be required to invest in retooling the software and migrating databases, but the benefits will be worth it. A Frost & Sullivan survey demonstrated a 79% satisfaction with a hybrid cloud solution, with 77% reporting the ease of migration across public cloud and premises environments. Step 3: Standardize to Bring Great Results By using the same properties, tools, actions we establish a conformity which brings along consistency and regularity with it. In that sense, standardizing gives us the confidence to feel secure and confident in the quality of work produced. Customization of a series of tiresome business processes is increasingly being replaced by the implementation of standardized execution through software like SAP S4/HANA. Businesses are quickly realizing its advantages in the form of streamlined processes and faster service delivery, and are leaving customization only where it matters most. By limiting customization of software to only the unique features that differentiate you from competitors and that align with your strategic business goals, your company will be able to focus on maximizing functionality and flexibility at a fraction of the cost. When transitioning from SAP Business Suite to SAP S/4HANA, you should be aware that you will no longer waste time in customizing installations that bring along errors and difficulty leveraging functionality. Instead, you’ll be freeing up greater time towards developing innovative new solutions that will put you ahead in the market. Step 4: Keep Accountability in Check It’s critical to keep your team focused and in sync with the migration timeline. SAP S/4HANA should not simply be dismissed and postponed for a later time. Rather than pushing it as a cumbersome initiative, the migration can viewed as an exciting journey towards a complete digital transformation. To ensure a smooth journey, businesses should allocate a sufficient budget and form a dedicated staff that understands the entire scope of the project. All business leaders should be held accountable for meeting deadlines, as well as assigning and closely monitoring resources such as adherence to governance policies and usability testing. Step 5: Partner with a SAP Expert By choosing the right SAP partner, you will be able to deliver services to employees quicker, use predictive analytics to minimize IT costs, and optimize the overall performance of the SAP platform. Make sure you consider the following aspects when choosing a SAP partner to work with: A long-established working relationship with a portfolio of features to prove it. The right cloud for your unique workload. Flexible deployments that support a hybrid cloud strategy. A team of SAP experts that have knowledge in all running versions of SAP. An impressive track record managing SAP S/4 HANA for similar firms like yours. Retooling and optimization of SAP workloads according to your business strategy. A grasp of modern technologies that will help accelerate growth and profit. Scalefocus has a long worldwide experience with large-scale SAP projects and has focused industry knowledge in various domains including banking, retail, eCommerce, Telco, FMCG, IT, manufacturing, oil and gas. We deliver on our promise to provide guidance through the entire digital transformation of a business. In addition, we offer flexible delivery models, fully supporting a hybrid multi-cloud strategy, allowing essential components to remain on-premise if needed. Get in touch with our SAP experts to discover how we can help you migrate to SAP S4/HANA swiftly and achieve your long-term business goals. Six Tips to Ensure Success In addition to the five-step plan outlined above, here are six tips we believe will ensure success during your migration to SAP S/4HANA. Get the executive team onboard. Align budget and staff resources. Choose an expert partner to work with. Set timelines for key milestones. Require readouts of progress. Communicate regularly with all employees. We’ve Got More Events Coming We hope this event recap gave you greater insight on the benefits and process of migrating to a SAP S4/HANA environment. Make sure you follow us on social media to receive updates on upcoming online events, live webinars and featured podcasts.

There were times not long ago when specialists in the IT industry had the order of their day all figured out. Тоday, during the still present different types of lockdown and home office because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the arrangement of their workday is a little bit different, especially for those who are also parents. For some, it was a cause for concern as to how the workflow will continue. Remote working is today's reality, so for the people with kids, it needed to go hand in hand with something else - being in a crisis mode with the same level of productivity while your children are also staying at home from kindergartens and schools. To share experience on the matter, four Scalefocus specialists - and parents - gave their perspective on working from home with kids around - two months after the beginning of the pandemic. Read below. Ilia Pchelarov, Java Senior Engineer, two boys (10 and 8 years old) "My day is certainly different now. The organization is strict because of the need for all of us to have our own space. The workday cannot stay the same length; it sometimes needs to be longer, because of the interruptions. As for what the kids bring to the table - the daily routine is more exciting and challenging. We are together learning the true meaning of teamwork. Kids teach us to have patience - probably because they have almost none of it. From them, we learn that solving a problem is not easy - but sometimes it could be obvious if you look at it from another point of view. And the variety of situations around them can actually bring more productivity at work. The most challenging thing is keeping the focus at times, but it's manageable. Micro-managing the time is crucial, as well as having fun in the chaos. To all IT parents working from home with kids around, I would only say: keep calm. You can do this!" Lubomira Boyadzhieva, Graphic Designer, one girl (3 years old) "My workday at home with a 3-year-old child is pretty calm right now, but only because I have help at home with a babysitter. For the first two weeks of the remote working, though, I didn't, and I felt the complexity of having to stay focused, have online meetings while someone demands your attention. What I learned during this period was that it is entirely possible to remain strictly organized and productive. The hardest thing is when your kid needs your attention or is singing loudly, but you need to concentrate on the meeting. But the best thing about this time is the moments together and the bond. To all parents in this situation, I would say: keep planning, be patient, and have an open mind to the fact that it is an option to work before and after work hours at times." Vesko Peychinov, Senior Software Manager, two girls (5 and 1 yeas old) "Being around my kids for a more extended period during the home office taught me that spending even 5 minutes every hour being playful and relaxed can lead to high productivity in the working process. Yes, it's a little harder to concentrate sometimes, but that, on the other hand, leads to creativity in everyday work and ultimately makes the workflow better. In this particular time that will inevitably end at some point, I would advise all parents: enjoy your work - just like you enjoy the time spent with your children!" Mirena Dimitrova, Junior Software Engineer, one girl (3 years old) "To be a parent is amazing. During the long home office period, though, it can be a challenge. Before the pandemic, my day started at 6 AM, so I could drop my child at kindergarten and go to work after that. Now, I have no fixed start of the workday - I start early before my daughter wakes. One of my favorite (and quieter) moments of the day is her afternoon nap time. А funny occurrence happened once, when, during a meeting of the team with one of our clients, his kid entered the room, laughing and speaking loudly in German. Ten minutes later, my own kid burst into the room loudly. It was hilarious and showed today's realities in a positive way because everyone in the meeting knew it was just something every parent deals with and moves on with their tasks ahead. Right now, I'm working on a complex and intense project, and everyone on the team is giving their best. I realize that sometimes after long hours of work, or after spending time giving a lot of thought on how to do something, a 5-10 minute break with my kid gives me the mental boost I need to finish the work in the best way. A valuable lesson from our children we can put to practice during this time is: you don't always need to think so complexly - sometimes the answer lies in the simple things." Surprisingly or not, it turns out that working from home with your child could bring more positivity and even better focus. Scalefocus' parents' experience is proof of just that. We just need to remember - all change, permanent or not, is for the better when you have an open mind. So let's stay with it!

Last week, an interesting webinar from the Topics of Scale series was put ahead in the digital world by two of Scalefocus' specialists - Vasil Rabuhchiev and Dafar Shaban. After Krasimir Kostadinov talked about how software companies can make sure they have a successful transition and work productively at home in the webinar "All Software Is Homemade Now", we now turned the audience's attention to finance. This hot issue in today's business world was covered with the topic "Crisis Offensive: A Strategic Finance Perspective." Below you can hear and watch the whole webinar, or keep reading to see the main points in the recap. WATCH THE WHOLE WEBINAR HERE Resolving the Immediate Crisis From the perspective of the current crisis, a lot of organizations were surprised by the conditions they found themselves in. Vasil pointed out in the beginning that everybody started talking about the quick response, but even more important could turn out to be "the finance and strategy functions of a business organization that could address the realities of the current economic halt." He also stressed that there might turn out to be a positive aspect of the crisis whereby the realities of today make organizations think proactively about how to address the future and jumpstart a more positive development in the post-pandemic world. "At first, everyone set to think about solving the immediate crisis first, surviving", says Vasil. "But we believe in result-oriented solutions because we know that everything organizations currently do needs to be results and objective-oriented rather than a continuation of business as usual in effect. To reimagine reform and prepare for a different reality is the most important thing and it has to do with finance, strategy, and technology." All those could push the companies forward and help them now but also in the future. "Just to put the current situation in perspective," says Vasko, "some people mention the crisis from 1997 or that at the beginning of the 80s, but none of them had the scale, severity, and speed of what we are facing at the moment." He mentions that before the pandemic, everyone was expecting global GDP growth of about 2-2.5%, but "now everyone is expecting a global contraction of at least 2%" Dafar and Vasil shared interesting graphics illustrating this point in the webinar. (see recording). And what the realizations should be right now? "I personally think that if any business doesn't think this is a long-term shock or they are not thinking that this crisis is going to affect them, they are being delusional", says Vasil. Dafar and Vasil mentioned that what stumbles businesses is the interdependency of all supply chains - a huge issue. "Humanitarian and health perspectives are huge, but the biggest problem is the interconnection between the businesses that are now contracting. That is the essence of this crisis." Focus Points To Success Vasko and Dafar admit that the focus points to financial success in the crisis they are giving in the presentation are "unconventional to a degree." One of them is cash generation and capital management. "In normal business circumstances, businesses are concerned with levels of profitability and earning. Now, this has been turned upside down. Now it's all about cash." But following all cashflow, they say, is crucial. Vasko says "I think a lot of businesses are underestimating the importance of cash generation. The importance of having a real-time view of cashflows is great. It shouldn't be monthly, or weekly, but daily, for most businesses. Vasil gave an interesting perspective and scenarios of what should be prioritized in this situation in the recording. Another focus point should be prioritizing payments and imposing clear reporting metrics tracking liquidity in real-time and another one - to do the so-called scenario building. "Without the resetting of agendas and prioritizing, your business might survive, but it will not thrive", says Dafar. Finally, they explained why it's vital to have a communication plan and communicate proactively and confidently with stakeholders of the business. "That could be shareholders, loan holders, other parties, and it's hugely important and makes everything more open. If you capsulate, and build barriers, people will think something is wrong." The deepening of partnerships in times of crisis can give a lot of loyalty in the long run. As for keeping real-time track of the finance - that could be a mix of things like dynamic dashboards, analytics tools, more regular reporting, more broad reporting, etc. "This gives a better understanding, and it's quite powerful. In these circumstances, you could see things that you normally wouldn't". Technology Does Not Mean CAPEX Vasil says that nowadays, technology doesn't mean capital expenditure. Dafar adds that in the past 3-4 years there is a huge spike in cloud-based or SAP projects. "Before it was something the big businesses needed and afforded, but that is no longer the case." This type of system, Vasil, and Dafar say, "give you the truth about the state of things". The important thing is to allow your business to rely on enterprise resource planning, the so-called golden record of truth, and insightful data visualization, because "the relevance of the information is crucial" and "the bigger picture is in the small details". Hard Currency Vasko says that the goals of thriving along this crisis are connected to a lot of things but mostly preparing for the next steps. "Some of it has to do with ethics and leadership and something we decided to call the hard currency of the business". Seeing for example, that "the current crisis is in a way an ethical challenge for leadership, organizations, at large. And goodwill is something that you build, it doesn't happen overnight." "If you put yourself as an organization that easily trades with its hard currency now, just to get some short-term stability or success, that is harder for your long-term success." Vasil and Dafar say that everyone in the organization needs to be working towards a measurable and realistic objective. How to achieve that? A lot of tools can help, but the point again is on value creation. What else is keeping businesses afloat as a strategy - you can hear in the recording. Almost All Commerce is eCommerce Building eCommerce is a competing field right now and more and more clear that it's a great way of building brand identity and creating financial stability in the future. Dafar talked a lot here about relevance and how building not just eCommerce, but a good platform that will bring success to the business after the crisis "when everybody will be used to shopping online." In the recording, he gives several examples from live projects with real clients of Scalefocus about building a sustainable eCommerce platform and the value it brings. Customer relevance is another thing both speakers focused on, at the same time putting emphasis on being "interesting" - the idea is not to give repetitive solutions, but to be more disruptive and innovative here. Prepare and Invest for Better Times When thinking about the future, there needs to be a clear understanding of where your business stands financially. Dafar and Vasil say that technical due-diligence is becoming increasingly important and give several examples as to why. Another point Dafar makes is the automation of finance as a way to keep track, be more proactive, and stay on the loop in situations like these - because unpredictable moments bring out the innovative mind. Usage of technology and concrete measures to put to use with investment and thinking ahead are vital - and in the webinar, the examples show the truth of that very clearly. For the full insights or Vasil Rabuhchiev and Dafar Shaban, WATCH THE WHOLE WEBINAR HERE. To stay on top of the hottest topics from our webinar series, follow our Facebook page.

During a time when COVID-19 still requires various shutdowns and governments impose stay-at-home orders all over the world, the fintech industry and business, in general, are pondering big questions. On a podcast by Soar Payments, Vladimir Atanassov, a Sales and Alliances Manager at Scalefocus, joined the talk about what changes are to be expected and what unique challenges lie ahead for European banks. Below you can find the whole recording of the podcast in which Vladi discussed in depth the present and future of fintech and payments in Europe. Also, you can keep reading to see the recap of the talk. LISTEN TO THE WHOLE EPISODE HERE Impact & Challenges At the beginning of the podcast, Vladi shared a bit about his own experience - his background with working in the microfinance area, in specific and emerging markets like Africa, the Middle East, and the Asia Pacific regions. "I am familiar with trying to solve challenges connected to the financial inclusion for people who for example, had never had access to financial services due to remote location or lack of infrastructure. This exact type of work is now coming back in interesting forms in present-day Europe because we are facing a bit of remoteness in the market. This is, of course, due to the circumstances, but may become permanent in some ways." Vladi also shared his expertise with markets in Europe and his focus on the consumer side of things. "I would say Europe is an interesting international hub for financial services and technological advances because historically, we have had a great education in the past - strong legacy in universities related to mathematics, IT. The region is a unique mix of relatively low economic standards but, at the same time, a very high level of technological skills, know-how, and drive for innovation." Asked how Scalefocus intersects with finance, banking, and business, Vladi explained that as a software delivery center with a vast range of projects and areas, the company has dedicated practices that serve specifically the insurance and financial services for extensive vendor system. "We have the experience to help them not just technologically but also to add value with the right skills, give them a fully holistic approach towards either an already existing digital innovation, or building completely new layers on the market. We implement core systems; we develop custom portals for clients and create something meaningful and working." With the appearance of COVID-19, it quickly became apparent that fintech and banks in Europe will go through a catharsis resulting in change. According to Vladi, currently, there is a state of cautiousness in the market - "everybody is planning very carefully" - especially companies that provide solutions for the sector. "The interesting thing is that there is a tendency at the moment to drive everything to happen faster - for example, digitization. Even legacy organizations are getting fast-tracked immensely, and that is not a surprise." As for the broader impact, Vladi commented that on a governmental level, within Europe, regulations are going through changes or about to be - and quite fast. "For some countries, this is a surprise because many of the European legislations traditionally are slow and take their time with decisions. Now they do everything possible to be on track of time." What is also interesting, in his opinion, is that more and more digital organizations are looking into other challenges coming their way - the development and release of new solutions are growing immensely. New Trends & Purposes Vladi notes that one of the things we need to pay attention to at the moment is the client's journey. "This is something that's been talked to a lot in the past, was about to become a trend and now was fast-tracked into one." How this relates to actual fintech? "There is a higher demand for a customized service towards their clients' needs. We are now seeing some well-known brands, even losing their loyal clientele to tailor-made brands and companies tailoring their needs to the client." According to Vladi, a lot of loyalties are shifting at the moment. "This is something we see in fintech and financial services, too, to some extent. For example, there are large banks in Europe that held 70% of consumer lending in a specific country - they are now starting to lose their market share to more disruptive players that not only have a better offering but care about their customer's journeys. They become more modern, more acceptable and this includes a lot of integration with social networks, gamification programs, the ease of using the specific applications. This is something that is now truly rising and expanding." Everything seems to be getting up to speed, Vladi says, and it is an exciting time, that is becoming very consumer-centric. The great need for digitization, obviously, is connected to the moment - the lockdowns and the increased demand due to the competition. "It is almost as if COVID-19 pushed all those needs to the forefront. It could be a kind of a two-blade sword though, because yes, it can drive faster change, but the applications must be built sustainably, with a plan. The idea is to launch something that can give you quality in the years to come and not just save the day now." Driven Innovation We are living in a unique time, says Vladi, and there are risks involved. When you consider the rapid expansion of regulations, governments will have a lot to sort out. "Those innovations come from a very unexpected place - a time of crisis - and those regulatory changes will include a need for governmental innovation. We see now a drive for digitization from very central places in the European Union." There are, of course, some concerns. One of them is that the large sharing of data and the drive for digital identities for everybody can prove risky. "I believe though that in the fintech world there are very bright and responsible minds that will use this for better services - things like consumer behavior, giving a big jump to AI, embedded banking and automated services. This is happening in a hurry now and there is also the risk of security breaches but yes, this is long overdue and it is interesting to see how it's going to impact the end customers." Vladi gave his perspective about the security in the online working environment - that it is set to continue for many people and that there are a lot of holistic solutions (offered by Scalefocus) that can address security, even preventative. "The security in general in my opinion is going to be driven in a model which is - subscription model or services-based model." As for what the banking systems are going through, he admits that it can be called a shock. But one of the things he observes right now is a much more relaxed approach in lending and lending through digital channels. "And I think a lot of large banks are now transferring their focus on SME lending - I think this is going to accelerate the drive towards much more tailor-made SME lending products." About automation - he says that it is something going alongside the other changes although probably not so critical. He shared some of the main focus points of Scalefocus and projects like Virusafe, turning the company more and more towards social responsibility more than anything else. At the end of the podcast, you can enjoy a "rapid-fire" round - Vladi was asked 5 questions on the topic that he needed to answer very fast. Listen here for the full experience. To enjoy more of Scalefocus' podcasts and webinars, follow our Facebook page - and stay tuned because there is more to come!

With the current crisis, what many leaders in many sectors are experiencing is a real challenge to their skills. Our CTO, Viktor Bilyanski, took part in DevCast, a community-driven podcast of Dev.BG, on the topic "Leadership In Times Of a Pandemic," to talk about this exact issue. You can hear the whole podcast below, or keep reading to see the recap of the main points Viktor spoke about last week. LISTEN TO THE WHOLE PODCAST HERE The Importance Of Authenticity The first leadership-related questions had to do with the current pandemic and in what way the leadership now has to be more durable. Viktor elaborated that leadership is much more needed now, and there has to be visibility. "The leader is someone who is capable of driving the people around him to the goal he believes in - the purpose he is sure he can accomplish. This is not an easy task, and this is what differentiates some leaders from others. The authentic leader is a sustainable one. Keeping your promises and making sure people's trust is validated. If a leader is not authentic, he will not be one for long. In a pandemic, the sustainable leaders are of utmost importance." "There is a quote that says that rough seas make great captains, and I firmly believe that," says Viktor. He adds that he believes the problematic times will make everybody stronger in the future. Meanwhile, we have to deal with a situation none of us has expected. To join the fight against COVID-19, Scalefocus created ViruSafe, the application that gives a roadmap for the spread of the virus in Bulgaria with voluntarily given information by the users about their health status. Viktor got many questions about the security around ViruSafe and gave details on the idea of the solution. "Our idea was to help pro-bono and maybe that way make the first step towards a new generation of e-solutions in the government and health systems - something that up until now has been hard to do." He explained that ViruSafe is open source, and the community is already contributing - the app also already has over 50 000 downloads and of those, around 70-80% have used it per its purpose. "We all know that people feel worried when they give their personal data. In the case of ViruSafe, your identification number, for example, goes to somebody that already has it - the government. No one from our side - the IT side, us, and the other 3 companies involved with the whole project - has access to the personal data of the users, and that goes for each type of data entered." You can hear more about the technical decisions and the general decisions around ViruSafe and its purpose in the recording. Keeping The Morale Up Viktor admits that, like many other companies, Scalefocus is also impacted by global change. "We've had some canceled projects and had to make some optimizations, but we believe that with a slight change in direction and priorities, companies can get out of this quicker," Viktor says in a situation like the current one, it's normal for leaders to have more expectations of people and the other way around. He shares he notices a rise in productivity in the last weeks when everybody already worked from home. He also spoke about what it's like for Scalefocus to be a professional services company instead of a product one at this moment. "We are currently still working on a lot of projects, with a tremendous technological variety that inspires people who want to experiment. Our portfolio is big, and right now, we can be even more active in our pursuits, which gives us purpose and drive." When asked how does a company decides which people to keep or let go in such a hard moment, Viktor says that it's always a question of who is the top performer. "Also, it's essential to see what type of person the employee is - because someone can be a great performer, but contribute to a toxic environment and spread toxicity around." Asked what he would do in such a situation, he answers that first, the leader needs to identify the person, and after trying to give feedback, context, and drive change, if change doesn't come from the person, there is nothing more that can be done. Is a Leader Born or Made? Viktor states he believes in both. "To be a leader, first, you need to have the qualities for it, and they are innate. Second, having the qualities does not automatically make you a great leader - you need to be a team player and constantly learn together with your employees." "If you are a great leader, in time, you start seeing yourself multiplicated in your team. And that is the biggest proof that your methods work." Viktor says that even leaders have to develop themselves further continually. "Mistakes are important - if you are not making enough mistakes, you are not innovative enough. We need to be internally motivated and have the capacity for bigger things - those are the two most important things for a leader." When asked if a person can go to a leadership class or course, he says, of course. "But look carefully who the lector is. I believe people who have gone through entrepreneurship are the best teachers on how to be a leader. Not just the bookworms that translate what they have read and call it a mentorship. The added value and the biggest meaning in leadership comes from the shared experience." Listen to a lot more in the recording here. To keep yourself updated on the latest events, podcasts, and webinars of Scalefocus, check out our Facebook page.

In April, Scalefocus launched Topics of Scale - a series of webinars in which our experts cover essential and valuable themes of today's world. The first webinar of the series was led by Krasimir Kostadinov - and wrapped one of the hot topics in the current reality: namely, how software companies can make sure they have a successful transition and work productively at home. Krasi shared valuable research and advice on the subject and gave a lot of perspective as to how companies can keep everything professional, and there is no cause for panic. Below you can hear the whole recording - or continue reading to see its recap. CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE WHOLE WEBINAR Virtual Teams In the first part of the podcast, Krasimir spoke about the notion of the 'virtual team.' "Even before the situation that put every business that can work from home in the home office, I had a lot of experience in the matter." According to him, the challenges the companies are currently experiencing regarding the virtual teams are in several directions. First is connected to Newton's first law - sometimes referred to as the law of inertia. And how inertia works, says Krasi, is vital for the virtual teams - it can make or break a project. It's hugely important to change our way of thinking - i.e. the inertia of thinking. "We have to change our way of thinking because we are in a situation that doesn't care what we think or what our habits are - we have no choice but to adapt." The question, obviously, is how? Well, he certainly answers that. Krasi says that "we are all in a situation that is a great equalizer" and illustrates the thought with the book "The world is flat" by Thomas L. Friedman. In it, Friedman argues that at the beginning of the 21st century, we have started living in an economy in which the businesses have the same advantages no matter where they are in the world. Krasi claims though that this wasn't necessarily true... until a few months ago. Now, everybody is home, and we have (generally speaking) the same opportunities, offices, and options as everyone else. "We can say that the workplace is changed forever - and even though our lives in the future may not change so much (again, because of inertia), I would say our workplace will." Тhe virtualization of the teams actually came from the realization of many companies a while back that the benefits of a physical office are not so significant, and the whole workplace can be virtualized - transferring the culture to digital culture. "This gives companies a chance to focus on the core business - what actually gives you revenue, what drives it." This is the so-called disruptive innovation - the one that comes from "challenging everything we used to have or thought we need." According to Krasi, thinking we need an office again comes from inertia - but we are in the process of maybe creating a new type of one. Working From Home: Кееp It Professional There are a lot of jokes about working from home - Krasi says they come from a lot of stigma in the past. People never used to believe their workers were productive from home - but nowadays, we already know that this is an untrue generalization. "It's always good to show the research behind the statements," says Krasi. He talks about a couple of important research papers in the podcast that shows that productivity can rise in a home office environment and also that people get more motivated, especially those with a long commute. In the webinar, he talks a lot more about managing work from home, challenges, and opportunities in detail. What Helps? The short answer is bureaucracy. Krasi talks about the correlation between the set procedures and processes that are equal for everyone and the significant productivity. Structure, predictability, and scalability give an excellent frame to the home office and provide continuity in a difficult situation. The weaknesses of bureaucracy, having to do with slowness to adapt, for example, are also there, but still, according to him, it's a useful tool not to be taken for granted. Krasi also mentions Parkinson's law in the context of time management and managing people working from home. It turns out that having less work sometimes requires more people, so optimizing is the way to go. He also discussed the Hotto Cocoa of Gregor Hohpe, which states that a company should be designed like any other system - the CAP theorem (stating that a distributed database system can only have 2 of the 3: Consistency, Availability and Partition Tolerance.) In short, some losses should be expected but tolerance is really needed in this reality and ultimately, it brings us to the goal. Homemade Software Recipes In the last part of the webinar, Krasi gave practical advice in terms of keeping the workflow productive "while making homemade software." He spoke about the business value of this style of working - reduced operating cost, increased efficiencies, increased revenue, reduced risk, increased customer NPS, time to respond to customer/product team, and strictly met deadlines. He also covered specific ideas and ways to manage the delivery to provide maximum effort and wins for the side without burnout. You can listen to the whole podcast to hear particular plans and designs for building a better workflow for developers (Niko-Niko calendars, Niko-Niko calendars for other team members or teams, team NPS, selecting individual top work buddy of the sprint, etc.) Krasi also gave concrete advice on achieving delivery excellence and effective communication. And what's next? Krasi shares that too. Check out the whole recording and listen to the Q&A session at the end - a lot of gems there. Stay tuned for more Topics of Scale - we will keep the webinars coming with the hottest issues of today. Follow our Facebook page for more.

She is Head of Product Management at Scalefocus, an avid traveler, and a guru in organizing her time. The last one is a pretty obvious must: Nadia's role is closely built around the needs of one of the leaders in personalized e-Commerce in the US, based in the Bay Area, California. The 10-hour time difference and being the main point of contact between engineering teams in Bulgaria and business stakeholders overseas have helped (and pushed) this energetic Scalefocusarian grow into the professional she is today. "I came to Scalefocus for a position that was entirely new to the company," shares Nadia, "so I had to work hard to gain the trust of the big client and prove that a Product Manager could be efficient and bring huge value even while working from a remote location. Product Manager is a key role in tech-product companies, developing new features, products, and driving innovation, so it was a big achievement and success to see the Product team grow over the years". "It was exciting for me to stand before this opportunity for this role and take it. It was challenging because I had multiple responsibilities across several teams, dealing with high-complexity projects, and stretching between 2 time zones while getting to know entirely new for me product area and business." New challenges, she says, are only opportunities. "I've always worked in the IT sector, and I've been in the Product management area for more than 13 years already. It's not a role that you can ever fall out of love with. It brings new and diverse challenges every day, but it's also gratifying. To be a good Product Manager, you need to understand your customers very well, have a deep knowledge of the product, know the business, the market, the industry, then look into strategies to make it more successful and bring more value". Nadia says, "To me, failure is not an option. I like challenges because it's what makes you grow. You come out of them either with a new achievement or a valuable lesson learned." Some of the challenges she encountered at the beginning of her work at Scalefocus are now some of her favorite memories. "It was hard, at moments looked even impossible, but now looking back, I'm so happy I made it. It helped me become the professional I am today with good planning, ruthless prioritization, discipline, and dedication." The current situation is something Nadia finds more than okay, workwise. "Me and the teams are used to working remotely; the concept of a home office is not new to us. I would say we adapted quickly. The only thing I had to ensure for myself is that I still make time to move, exercise, and relax – it's easy to get carried away with work and meetings while staying at home. This is important now since none of us can just go for a walk or to the gym, so we need to find a way to recharge at home - and the time for it." Her team is "full of professionals," she says, " I appreciate them and trust them, I value their adaptiveness to the dynamics of the work. We work hard together, but we're also always ready to have fun." You can see how some of the people Nadia works with describe her below. To deal with stress and recharge, Nadia does sports, reads, and travels extensively, although the last one is temporarily on hold. She's always on the move and travels so much (for work and pleasure) that she hardly ever stays for more than a month at home. She likes faraway tropical destinations and has many souvenirs and mementos from all around the world. As far as sports go - "I like yoga because it gives the body flexibility and strength, and at the same time, it calms the mind. It's one of my favorites - along with HIIT training and running." Other inspirations include reading - "I have a long list of books to read while we are in quarantine lockdown." She shares some of the titles - Ray Dalio's "Principles," "Inspired" by Marty Cagan, and "The Creative Habit" by Twyla Tharp. When asked to share one principle to follow in life, Nadia advises to "enjoy the journey." "Some people say that if something is not happening with ease, maybe it's not meant for you, but I don't fully believe that. Sometimes the struggle, overcoming the challenges, and the mindset to find joy in the little things are more important, and they bring you to the goal. And sometimes, the goal is to learn a lesson and become wiser. So let's never forget that happiness is the way, not the destination." In 2020, Nadia says she will definitely appreciate freedom in a new way. "We're living in interesting times right now. I've always been able to travel and visit new destinations, and now during the pandemic that it's not possible, I had to dive more into my other interests. After this is over, I will be looking at life differently." And if she had to recommend one movie at this moment in time? "Forest Gump. I watched it for the first time recently. That movie had a lot of memorable moments, but my takeaway is that you are not your limitations, and, getting over them, you can achieve anything, the sky is the limit. And when you approach life with kindness and joy, good things happen."

She loves dogs and hiking. And skiing, in spite of living by the sea. She bakes and makes healthy variations of traditional recipes. Meet Violeta, a Senior Software Engineer from ScaleFocus’ Varna office. Like many other ScaleFocusarians, she is extraordinary - not just because she is a woman who is an experienced software engineer. It's mostly her way of thinking and interacting with the world. “The first time I felt my life really changing was when I left my hometown, Sliven, to come study in Varna. I studied something related to economics and went into the IT field later. But it was in the university, 10 years ago, I met my now-husband.” "The globe is a wedding gift - we were saving to go to Australia. The card is from colleagues from when we moved into the new Varna office." Violeta has been with ScaleFocus for a little over 6 months now. “I am part of the Front-End practice in the company, at a senior position, working on a big project that entails many different technologies and challenges. I feel constantly evolving as a professional here and at the same time, I am able to use my experience every day. I started in the field around 7 years ago as a full-stack developer. Later, I found out I am much more interested in front-end.” Violeta starts working at ScaleFocus “by accident but also by choice”. The Varna office quickly becomes like a second home. Her team is diverse and dispersed - because she is in the Varna office, she works remotely with colleagues with Sofia, too. “We are pretty united, though,” says Vili, “and everyone is helpful. It’s important to feel needed and appreciated and I think we all feel that way towards each other in the team.” "Some books that inspire me." Challenges, says Violeta, are common but that it is usual “in a field that is constantly evolving and changing”. She says every developer who wants to stay “on top of things” needs to stay in touch with new technologies and not be afraid of change. “It’s really important to have a supporting team, though. Lately, I am grateful for their support that I’m receiving while implementing some project management and SCRUM skills I’ve been training in.” With SCRUM, Violeta says, she’s feeling a little closer to a childhood dream she once had - to be a tutor, a teacher, and a mentor. Inspiration is important, too and that is why she draws it from a lot of places. She travels with her husband (“We’ve been to over 20 countries so far”), she likes skiing and hiking in the mountain and reading - especially biographic books. The last one is “Shoe Dog”, the memoir of Phil Knight. What else? “I love our dog, the french bulldog Frank. And I love baking and interpreting popular recipes in their healthy variations”* "Because at our house, the dog is KING." When asked about love and success Violeta says that love is “sharing and support” - those two things become the foundation for long-term happiness. Success to her is “giving and receiving the respect of your peers on a daily basis in your profession”. If she would give one piece of advice to someone who is now starting in her field, it would be to “never give up”, because “there will probably be many moments when you will want to”. And, of course, to always keep the love - personally and professionally - alive. Because that is the ScaleFocus way. And the human way.

One of the hot topics in the world right now is the newly spread tendency of working from home. Ever since the start of the pandemic, companies all over the world pushed to continue work without interruptions. But the importance of security looms over more than ever, with an immediate danger for phishing attacks and other threats that could put a whole company, business, and even clients at risk. So how can we stay protected? Listen to one of Scalefocus’ Security Architects, Vladimir Atanasov, who spoke in detail on the topic last night on Blog Talk Live, with host Ravi Das. CLICK TO LISTEN OR DOWNLOAD THE EPISODE HERE Below, you can find a short recap of the information Vladimir covered, including how to achieve WFH readiness and how companies cannot diminish security in favor of functionality. Download the whole podcast to hear detailed advice and the entire account on the topic from an expert in the field. Depending On the Scale After the COVID-19 pandemic hit, most companies had to adapt to working from home pretty much at the drop of a hat. So this begs the question: how can a company achieve full work from home capacity quickly and be secured at the same time? Vladimir gave perspective on this by going into detail about the dependency on the readiness on the size of the company - bigger companies usually already have the policies and systems in place to adapt more quickly. With smaller companies, the tendency is to use most resources online and have their work more exposed, so this could lead to the need for protection, depending on the workload. To go remote securely, companies need infrastructure and adaptivity - because even if mostly nothing changes from a functional point of view, some things do change. Namely, companies become more exposed to additional security risks, and the number of targets is more significant - because everybody is at home. Vladi talked more about the options for the different sized companies and gave practical advice for: Creating guidelines and implementing them quickly Finding ways not to be exposed by hiring professionals to integrate security measures Assess the risks quickly and list the needed measures Challenges & Weaknesses Another hot topic for discussion on the podcast was the challenges with the current situation and the security risks connected directly to it. Vladimir shared his expert outlook and went into detail on the security threats at the moment: - The rise in the phishing challenges - attackers strike when there is weakness, and with the world overtaken by fear and curiosity, the chances of disruption are larger - A greater need for email security and security awareness training and the creation of guidelines - Monitoring of whether the employees follow instructions where applicable - Considering working on the cloud, to provide quicker security when working from home Security Measures & Monitoring On the subject of monitoring and security updates, Vladimir spoke about the importance of procedures, including GDPR guidelines. He also gave details about why businesses should always keep in mind that the employees are operating at home with the same data they are operating at the office. The company information should be safe and some measures can be implemented - here are some (but not all) mentioned in the podcast: Introducing more authentication that does not compromise the functionality Changes for the usage of sensitive data (you can hear detailed ideas in the podcast) Consider adding more security to the infrastructure of different projects; it will be better in the long run Make a decision and assessment as to where to accept risks at the expense of functionality Look at the whole picture and see where the compromise could cost you losses Achieving Continuous Security in Home Phishing and other specific risks were discussed at length in the episode, including the dangers for some of the industries that depend on the security an IT company can provide for their project. Vladi gave concrete examples of the dangers some clients experience and how a company can make sure their client is fully protected. His advice included detailed accounts of: Focusing on the right things (balancing the focus between working remotely and striving to get ahead of the trends of the cyber attacks) Keeping the security tight while keeping the business alive Concrete measures, including keeping software up-to-date, thinking of new ways to update (it is not always a good idea for it to happen automatically), and trusting in the advice of the security experts Securing your home network by cooperating with your employer Follow the employer’s security practices (if there are such) as well as finding a way to create such practices as an employer Look into additional firewalls to the servers Listen or download the podcast to hear the full advice of Vladimir and learn why security is now more critical than ever. Stay tuned for more podcasts on the hot IT topics of the time we live in.

The entire world is currently fighting against COVID-19 and trying to diminish its dynamic spread. Finding ourselves in the state of a global pandemic, the most critical question to ask is, “What is the most important contribution I can make?”. Scalefocus already challenged itself and invested in helping in the development of a national system, which aims to assist in the fight against COVID-19 in Bulgaria. Our endeavor started two weeks ago and had the ambitious goal to deliver a mobile application within just two weeks. Our team worked day and night and entirely devoted themselves to this. Guess what? We did it! We managed to build an app from scratch, which will be an essential part of the national system. ViruSafe can be downloaded for free from the Apple Store and Google Play, tomorrow or on Monday latest. We will open the source for use to the entire world next week. The system and application were presented in the Council of Ministers of the Republic of Bulgaria on Saturday (4th of April 2020). “I want to thank all colleagues, who tirelessly worked to develop and test the application in just two weeks. ViruSafe is currently under review in the App Store and Google Play.” Plamen Tsekov, CEO of Scalefocus The main goals of the overall system, generously developed by five software companies pro-bono, are to inform citizens, experts, and government about the actual situation of the country’s total disease rate. Furthermore, the system will collect, summarize, and processes information in real-time through links to several systems and state registers. Once the data is collected, the system can analyze it and provide relevant insights to institutions, who can use it to help people and make accurate predictions. People can use ViruSafe to track their symptoms daily. The information gets sent to the relevant health authorities, in case further action is needed. We will reveal all documentation and features of the app soon, so stay tuned. We are finding ourselves in difficult times. We need to join forces to help in the fight against COVID-19. We, at Scalefocus, did this by creating a dedicated application, you can do it by using it, once it is available on the App Store and Google Play. Stay tuned for more exciting news. We will keep you informed on all updates, following the app.

Elvis Baburov is a smiling, energetic and self-aware ScaleFocusarian, whо quickly settles into telling about himself. Аn unquestionable extrovert, he seems to be able to thrive in any conversation. "My name was chosen by my father," he states. Yes, he is a Bulgarian. Yes, it's an untraditional name, and there is a funny story about how it was chosen. It had to do with his father's stubbornness and personality, more than anything. "He wanted to name me after my grandfather, but they had a conflict right about the time I was born. And my Dad decided to name me after Elvis Presley because he thought he had the same charisma as him in his youth - true story, by the way." At ScaleFocus, Elvis works as a CRM Consultant in the SAP team but with aspects of SCRUM attached. He thinks communication with people is one of the most valuable things at work. "So I'm happy I'm able to do it because I love talking to people," Elvis says. "I'm really communicative, expressive, and I have a knack for talking to people." He's been with ScaleFocus for a year and three months at the time of the interview and shares with me that one of the reasons he loves his work is the team. "I love my team because I have great chemistry with the people I work with - something super important in every line of work. We are bonded and strong together." As challenges go, he shares that for the first time recently, he worked in pre-sales and had to make a presentation for potential new clients. "It was something new for me and something that worried me at first. Turns out, things really work out if you put yourself in the shoes of other people. It was what helped me make this challenge successful." Elvis, an indisputable social animal, says that the things that give him energy are books ("One of my favorite books is "East of Eden" by John Steinback) and movies ("I love all types of cinema, and I support Bulgarian movies. One of the best ones I've seen is "A dose of happiness.") His passions are also football, fitness, and... robotics. For two years, Elvis' been one of the teachers in Robopartans, a children's school for building robots. "It happened by chance, I applied spontaneously, and I love doing it. The feeling of joy I get when a 9-year-old kid understands what I have just explained is indescribable." Curiosity, Elvis says, is key. For almost everything. Even though he admits, it is sometimes hard on the people around him. "I'm curious about everything, I always want to know more, I ask questions. I struggle with this part of myself sometimes, because I know knowledge can bring sorrow." He says he is currently feeling devoted and energized with his work because it fits his character. When asked to describe Elvis with one word, his colleagues give the answers you see below. Other than being super adaptive and super curious, this ScaleFocus CRM Consultant says that one of the most important things is to try and understand people. "If I had one superpower, it would be to make everyone feel each other’s emotions. If we could step into each other’s shoes the world would be a better place." Аnd if he could turn back time? "If I knew then what I know now... I would change nothing. Life is here and now, not in the past and not in the future. What you decide at the moment is the best thing for it. Never look back and never regret."

We are deep in March, but that doesn’t mean we are not reminiscing about the events and milestones of last month. As usual, ScaleFocusarians managed to make it memorable and keep it filled with knowledge-sharing, fun events, team-bonding and charitable moments. Here’s the gist. Charity & Fun In February, we prepared for March by making martenitsas in our offices at Capital Fort, Infinity Tower, and Varna. The workshops were created in partnership with Caritas - a non-profit organization doing social work to support vulnerable people in our society. Тhe teams gathered to create martenitsas which later were put up for sale at the front desks and the gathered funds were given to charity. In Varna, we held an event to help promote Scalefocus’ Refer-a-Friend program while at the same time make sure the teams bond even more. At “Friends and beer”, we also held two blitz interviews with colleagues from different tech practices. Through fun and informal way, we managed to get to know the projects our colleagues are working on. The evening finished with team-oriented games. Game time! At our other sea-side office, in Burgas, we didn’t hold back the fun either - by organizing a Game Night and playing board games accompanied with pizzas and beer. The most preferred board game turned out to be “Activity”. In our Infinity office, our PHP team managed to have some fun, exercise their skills in bowling and bond at the same time, by joining each other in Bowling night. Even more: in February, our team at Infinity said goodbye to their old office and entered a new home. The farewell party was filled with laughter, fun, and emotion. And to welcome the colleagues in the new office, we ordered cupcakes for everyone. Yummy! A Wine Tasting & Knowledge-Sharing Тhe 14th of February was a special day. We celebrated both St.Valentine’s Day and Trifon Zarzan with a Wine&Dine event. With the help of sommelier Yordan Rusev, our teams in Plovdiv tasted 3 types of Bulgarian boutique wines. We didn’t let February leave without sharing some knowledge, too. One of the lectures was at Сapital Fort where ScaleFocus and SAP joined forces to shed some light on the value of the SAP S/4HANA migration. As you well know, change is the only constant. So it was important for ScaleFocusarians to take the time to discuss in detail the business advantages and competitive edge this move is going to bring. In addition, specialists from Agria shared their perspectives after completing this long-term digital transformation. Moving forward in March, we hope to have great news and initiatives to share with you next month! If you want to be a part of ScaleFocus, check out our current openings here.