Microsoft gold-certified partner Mint is making inroads in its quest to find a black economic-empowerment partner.
MD Grant Hodgkinson, promoted to the position towards the end of last year, says the company has set its sights on concluding an empowerment deal this year.
A deal signed last year fell through on a technicality and Mint had had to relook at the process. However, new discussions are already under way.
Other aspects on the agenda include growing the business and customer base, while staying focused on enterprise search for the time being. Hodgkinson will be focusing on business development in his new role and, while he intends keeping an eye on projects, aims to be more sales centric.
"I plan to leverage our skills, infrastructure and partnerships to provide greater benefit for existing customers and significantly expand the customer base through the acquisition of new business.
"We will improve our services and expand our product lines. We will focus more intently on partnering with our customers to help them work smarter."
Looking ahead
He says that the first half of the year will be a period of consolidation for the company, bedding down successes it has had in the manufacturing and banking sectors.
During the second half of the year, he expects to leverage off the interest that has been shown in its offerings locally and on the continent. Hodgkinson adds that the firm has a project in Namibia that is expected to go live shortly.
Towards the end of the firm's financial year, in June, he says the company will have to strategise around whether to grow organically or through acquisitions.
Looking ahead, he says the company can capitalise on the ecommerce arena. Mint recently deployed the first implementation of Microsoft's Commerce Server 2007 on the continent when it reworked Net Florist's Web portal.
In addition, he sees an increased need for corporate governance among companies and expects to benefit from that, as well as an adjacent need for firms to effectively deploy information around the organisation to all staff in a cost-effective and useful manner.
However, Hodgkinson is determined to drive the company's growth from within the trenches. "In the IT world, executive involvement in business development is vital."
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