Share IT Smart: consultanța – cheia spre sănătatea unei companii

At the beginning of 2021, we embarked on a journey with our client, High Plast, on a project aimed at streamlining production and logistics processes. The following six months were filled with challenges, but thanks to experience, flexibility, and teamwork, we successfully completed the project.

We thank the entire High Plast team and Mr. Robert Santa for their trust and support throughout this period.

You can read more about the role of consulting services and process digitalization in a business in the interview below, published in Transilvania Business magazine.

A digitalization process can bring added value when the client’s processes are clear and functioning, says Felix Garai, co-founder of the consulting firm Share It Smart. As a direct beneficiary, Robert Santa, manager of High Plast, confirms and adds:
“With the help of the consulting team, we understood things and used that understanding to improve our performance.”

Mr. Robert Santa, as manager of High Plast SRL, you decided to work with the consulting firm Share It Smart to implement the project “Efficiency in Production and Logistics.” What prompted you to take this step?

Robert Santa: High Plast is a young company, established in 2014, which quickly rose within the plastic processing market. In 2015, we produced our first part. By 2020, we closed the year with a turnover of 3.9 million euros. Just as in life you need “school” to gain new knowledge and improve yourself, our company needed the help of a consulting team to “learn” how to improve and handle the challenges that come with rapid business growth, expanding staff, and a growing customer portfolio.

Mr. Felix Coriolan Garai, together with Mr. Raul Pantiș, you are partners in the company Share It Smart SRL. You offer operational consulting, training, and IT services. You’ve completed over 26 projects in Romania, Hungary, South Africa, Bosnia, and Mexico, with sales exceeding 1,000,000 euros. Why is consulting necessary, and how is it perceived by clients?

Felix Coriolan Garai: I see consulting as akin to going to the doctor. A patient – or an organization – must recognize a “symptom” of illness, accept that there’s a problem, and determine whether support from a specialist is needed. Many organizations try “self-medicating.” Just like how we sometimes skip seeing a doctor and take common medications hoping things improve, organizations may treat only the symptoms without truly healing or evolving.

Is there a specific moment in a company’s development when an “upgrade” becomes necessary, whether through consulting or software applications?

Robert Santa: Absolutely. The need arises when you can no longer control things with just “pen and paper,” and you realize that no matter what you do, the results don’t change. Caught in the spiral of daily problems, you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel. That’s when you need help from experienced, pragmatic people who can put you back on the right track. You start discovering the root causes of your problems and gradually eliminate them.

Felix Coriolan Garai: Yes, in at least two cases – when companies grow too fast or suddenly decline. Both situations create a crisis that pushes the organization out of its comfort zone and forces it to act. Some companies, however, are vigilant about market changes and competitor strategies. These usually don’t wait for a crisis and adapt proactively – learning from others’ mistakes.

How and when does the integration of digitalization into consulting services add value?

Robert Santa: Digitalization only works if the processes are clear. From my perspective, this can only be done after a company has matured a bit and become aware of its own processes. To accelerate things, a consulting program is necessary. We started a digitalization process two years ago. We didn’t “know” how to interpret the information we were receiving. With the consultants’ help, we understood it and used it to improve our performance.

Felix Coriolan Garai: It only adds value if the client’s processes are clear and functional. On the contrary, if there are inefficiencies, digitalization can amplify them. Once a process becomes clear and the inefficiencies are resolved, and communication channels are established, digitalization can transform the process radically. For example, at our client in the Tulcea shipyard, the introduction of software led to optimized equipment use and cost reductions exceeding 400,000 euros per year. Their ROI was just two weeks!

Looking at the project’s efficiency: what was it like “before” and how do things look “after,” from both the client’s and service provider’s perspective?

Robert Santa: Before, we were problem collectors. We had no time for daily tasks, let alone process improvements. The project with Share It Smart was a success – it helped us speak in numbers instead of vague phrases like “I think.” It facilitated finding real solutions to our problems.

Felix Coriolan Garai: For us, it’s all about trust and transparency. We build long-term relationships. The client’s strategies and particularities become increasingly clear to us, and our support becomes more specific and better aligned with their medium- and long-term vision.

Can both SMEs and large companies turn to consulting and digitalization services? Are there industries where Share It Smart’s solutions are a better fit?

Felix Coriolan Garai: Until 2020, we mainly worked with large clients, which was natural given our corporate backgrounds. But since 2021, we’ve also decided to work with local SMEs. It’s a strategic decision because we want to “share” what we’ve learned in the corporate world and at the same time learn from our SME clients – their natural flexibility and agility. As for industry? Let’s just say: we feel at home in manufacturing!

Reported by Ioan Șandor