Back office service growth fuels optimism for eg solutions

AN upswing in the provision of back office services is likely to present good medium term opportunities for Staffordshire software provider, eg solutions.

On the back of a 69% growth in full year revenues and a return to profits, the Dunston company is looking ahead to the next two years with optimism.

It secured 10 new contracts over the course of the last 12 months, two of which saw the business break into new sectors – telecoms and local government.

“Over the course of the past two years we have built a solid foundation on which the future of the business can be built,” said CEO Elizabeth Gooch.

“Having the right chairman in place has also been a tremendous advantage and he has been able to steer us in the right direction.

“Now the fundamentals are in place we are really looking forward to the future and investors have responded favourably to what we are trying to achieve.”

She said the business had expanded its workforce from 48 to 74 and still had a number of posts left to be filled.

The extra workers are providing the business with the marketing capabilities needed to go out and win new business, while it is also making provision to service the business once the new clients are signed up.

Further growth and investment could also be a possibility should the business continue to flow in.

It currently has a contracted order book for the next three years, which is again providing scope for further expansion.

However, it is targeting new business in both the United States and the Asia Pacific region as it looks to increase its global penetration.
All this is a far cry from the situation chairman Duncan McIntyre encountered when he first arrived at the business.

“When I joined the board we had limited financial resources, market expectations of £5m turnover, a demoralised workforce and management team and lack of appropriate board structure,” he said.

“However, our key stakeholders – customers, employees and shareholders – continued to be supportive as they believed in the group and the significant potential of this new and emerging market.”

He said the plan established at the start of the year was to build on investments made and the key products supplied by the firm. This strategy has led to the transformation of the firm’s fortunes.

 “We have achieved 69% growth in turnover, returned to profitability, re-established cash generation, built a strong management team and board and restored morale within the business,” he said.

The firm said the increase in demand for back office workforce optimisation solutions had been triggered by the ongoing global trend of businesses looking to improve customer service, operational efficiency, cost control and risk management.  

“The group’s products deliver guaranteed benefits for its customers in each of these key result areas and it has an enviable track record of successful implementations and customer retention.  This market demand, together with our ability to develop and deliver products which meet our customer needs, provides a firm foundation for the group,” added McIntyre.