Branimir Madzarevic is the new Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and Managing Director at FNT. We sat down with him to explore what interests him most about his new role, where he wants to take the FNT Command Platform over the next five years, and what he enjoys outside of work.
Andreas Thieme: Branimir, you joined FNT as Chief Technology Officer at the beginning of the year. What led you to this decision?
Branimir Madzarevic: I was familiar with FNT and the Command Platform from my previous jobs. In fact, I implemented the software myself twice. So, I knew from firsthand experience the value its functionality, performance, and functional depth provides. When the opportunity arose to join FNT as CTO, it was a very easy decision to make.
Andreas Thieme (grins): It almost sounds as if you can sit back and relax in your new role…
Branimir Madzarevic (laughs): Even though I’m a big fan of FNT Command and believe in the solution, it doesn’t mean there’s nothing left to do.
Digital transformation is in full swing and presents our customers with new challenges. We need to provide them with solutions. Together with my team, I will further develop FNT Command in such a way that it will better support our customers to fulfill their digitization tasks – both those of today as well as those of tomorrow – with greater efficiency, security and speed. Some scenarios in which FNT Command can play an integral role include hybrid IT management, 5G rollouts and the Internet of Things, to name just a few. In addition, there are increasing demands on compliance and IT security. And last but not least, the shortage of skilled workers in IT. FNT Command delivers efficiency gains to users, which enables organizations to be more productive even in the face of declining resources. We also have to keep this in mind at all times during further development.
Andreas Thieme: Can you describe in more detail what this means for the FNT Command Platform?
Branimir Madzarevic: In my view, there are three overarching issues that concern our customers that must be reflected in our solution in the coming years. The first one is the different varieties of hybrid IT. To manage hybrid infrastructures, it doesn’t matter whether the computing power comes from your own data center, from a hyperscaler or a co-location provider. Organizations need seamless integration and overarching management to deal with the increasing complexity of their infrastructures and networks while maintaining or decreasing staffing levels. That’s one area we are working on.
The second issue we are currently dealing with is the configurability of our platform. We need more ways to adapt Command to customer needs through simple configuration as opposed to customization – both in the backend and the frontend. This also includes the accessibility of our solution for people with visual impairments, which we are continuing to expand.
And the third issue is modularity. FNT Command is a powerful platform that we want to make more modular in the backend. This will make it easier to scale and increase flexibility. We want to give our customers more choices about how they deploy and use our solutions. From classic on-premise implementation to individual SaaS modules, everything is possible.
Andreas Thieme: Sounds exciting. How will you approach this?
Branimir Madzarevic: Definitely not alone (laughs). We are a team, and an excellent one at that. I have rarely experienced such a high degree of talent, enthusiasm, creativity and professionalism. No matter what road I go down or what question I ask there is always an idea or an approach offered. My colleagues unfailingly bring new concepts, clearly thought-out solutions and creative proposals to the table. They are professionals who are highly skilled in their respective areas. I see this across the board, in all areas of the company.
Andreas Thieme: How do you see your job as CTO?
Branimir Madzarevic: My role is to orchestrate the many competencies that exist at FNT to produce positive results that benefit our customers. I don’t see myself as a composer who dictates every single note. Rather, I see myself as a conductor who brings together individual talents to create harmony. And, of course, make sure that our processes are efficient and that the result – also from the customer’s point of view – is high quality. We work agilely, exchange ideas regularly, hold interdisciplinary workshops and try to achieve incremental results. I am fascinated by the dynamics that arise in these types of innovation processes.
Andreas Thieme: Thank you very much for these insights into your work. One last, personal question: What do you do in your free time?
Branimir Madzarevic: It’s pretty dynamic there too (laughs). I love anything that has to do with speed. For example, I like to ride my motorcycle and ski.
Andreas Thieme: Branimir, thank you very much for the interview.
