„Egy korszak lezárult az életemben”
“I worked in almost all fields of investments and IT. The complicated constructions and the management of them are what I found captivating, and I still consider this as my biggest strength. After executing some more complex projects and saved more companies from bankruptcy, I came to the conclusion of closing this aspect of my career for good. It is an ungrateful task to do.” Interview with Zoltán Jutasi.
You appeared in leading positions and as an owner at many companies in the past few decades. With this experience who do you consider yourself as a professional?
It is hard to tell, but based on the experience of the past few years I was a crisis manager. I was under attack for this. As opposed to the developed economies, here many do not admit that behind the trouble they are in, there are problems that can be defined, and tasks to be carried out. In most of the cases they are the ones causing the trouble. Nobody wants to be confronted with their weaknesses and faults. These company leaders and owners rarely admit that they cannot or do not want to face the issues, and that the involvement of an external professional is needed.
What do you mean by saying you was a crisis manager? You aren’t anymore?
No, I’m not. From 2007 we focused on companies that were in trouble and decided to take part in these businesses in order to achieve better results and realize a profit on this activity. In some cases, I also decided to become part-owner of the company as an investor, which showed my commitment towards the tasks that had to be carried out. Unfortunately, instead of profit we were attacked for doing our job, so I decided to leave behind this phase of my career.
How do you see the KÉSZ, SYNERGON and Morando cases in the light of what you have mentioned?
I think of saving the KÉSZ Group and SYNERGON as success projects, but unfortunately the SYNERGON case was only a temporary success.
The KÉSZ Group almost went bankrupt as a result of the crisis of 2008. The management and ownership at the time denied this, of course, and I assume that today they are in the same opinion. However, the numbers speak for themselves, and as a result of our intervention we managed to make the company creditworthy again. When we led the company in 2008, the revenue of the Holding company reached 4.8 billion HUF, and reached it from scratch, basically, which is a drastic growth compared to the previous year’s close-to-zero result. The company is still operating well thanks to the structure we designed and implemented. Without restructuring the Group, it wouldn’t have a chance in the National Airport project or in the tender for the Government Quarter. Without our help the Group would not be creditworthy and wouldn’t win these procurements.
The other problematic company was SYNERGON. We managed to drastically increase the share price of the company from 140 HUF to more than 450 HUF, in less than a year due to the restructuring. I wouldn’t call this project a failure. Unfortunately, one of the biggest buyer of the company, the BKK acted in a completely unreasonable way, and as a result SYNERGON suffered 2 billion HUF damage. This was the point when NAVIGATOR decided to sell its shares in the company and resign from the leadership position. We couldn’t manage to create this money.
To make things clear: so, you appeared in these companies as a crisis manager on purpose?
Yes, exactly. As opposed to what many say, in most cases this was the exact task I signed for. There is no need for deep analysis to see that I appeared in these companies when they were probably at the lowest point. In some cases, I also was an investor as I wanted to express my commitment, and we brought companies on purpose, because we thought that the result of our job can be realized though increasing the value.
After all this do you consider yourself successful?
Look, the corporate governance model I made in the early-2000s was used for the new ISO standard. Relatively few people know that my work was inspected by an auditor who was in the commission of IQnet (International Quality Network). He saw the system and asked for it. A few years later I saw my work in the new standard. The Hungarian National Blood Transfusion Service uses the very same system I introduced and customized to the institution several years ago. We managed to save many workplaces by saving companies from bankruptcy. However, it is hard to say with just a few words what I think and feel about my career. The success usually cannot be seen. In several it is unpopular what I do or have to do, but altogether I am proud of being able to fight for something most people wouldn’t dare to do. These fights gave me strength and faith in what I do is good. All in all, I consider myself to be successful.
