Genis, d. o. o.

First electronic invoicing in Slovenia

Stane Štefančič, the founder of the Genis family company, entered the world  of computers and IT as early as 1972. He worked on population projections  as a student at the Urban Planning Institute of the Republic of Slovenia,and after completing his degree, he collaborated with several Slovenian companies either as head systems engineer or one of the IT managers.  Encouraged by Slovenian independence and increasingly confident in his experience, Stane began considering his own independence. “At the time  there were many people in IT who worked as craftsmen, creating IT systems  on their PCs, but my idea was to implement an engineering approach. And so, in May 1994 my third child, Genis, was born. The name means ‘generating information systems’. The company was well received by our  business partners, IT was on the brink of a revolution and my personal connection with the best developers in the USA gave us an important  edge,” says Stane about the first business steps. At the beginning, he and his business partner and co-owner had to do everything by themselves. “My sons, Marko and Janko, were too young to be part of the company, but computers had always been part of our family life. We got our first  home computer in the 1980s. At the time I mostly tried to make sure the kids would not play computer games too much, but I don’t think I was very successful,” laughs Stane.

In its first years, the most important contract Genis signed was with the Lotus company, known for its Lotus Notes program (now called HCL notes), the first integrated platform for e-mail, teamwork, document and workflow management and development of document-focused applications. “After that,  we had several large successes with pioneering implementations of electronic  internal operation systems in Slovenia. We worked with companies such as Lek, Mura and Sava. Sava Group still uses the same system, both for its tire and tourist companies; we just updated it as needed. We also expanded into other industries and other companies thanks to our excellent references,” says Stane. The expansion of their business was very successful; in 2001, they even received the IBM award for outstanding achievement for their work  on SAP e-Invoice projects in Lek and Sava. Since the very beginning Genis has actively collaborated with foreign consulting companies on the implementation of modern IT systems. In 1997 Genis also became the Slovenian representative for Gartner, a global research  and advisory group. Head analysts at Gartner brought Genis information on cutting-edge approaches to IT implementation across the world, since most large companies make their decisions based on information received from the  Gartner Group. Marko, Stane’s oldest son, was initially employed in the family  company, but later decided to strike out on his own. In 2004 he founded his own company, took over the Gartner group representation for Slovenia and eventually expanded his activities to Kazakhstan. 

In its first years, the most important contract Genis signed was with the Lotus company, known for its Lotus Notes program (now called HCL notes), the first integrated platform for e-mail, teamwork, document and workflow management and development of document-focused applications. “After that,  we had several large successes with pioneering implementations of electronic  internal operation systems in Slovenia. We worked with companies such as Lek, Mura and Sava. Sava Group still uses the same system, both for its tire and tourist companies; we just updated it as needed. We also expanded into other industries and other companies thanks to our excellent references,” says Stane. The expansion of their business was very successful; in 2001, they even received the IBM award for outstanding achievement for their work  on SAP e-Invoice projects in Lek and Sava. Since the very beginning Genis has actively collaborated with foreign consulting companies on the implementation of modern IT systems. In 1997 Genis also became the Slovenian representative for Gartner, a global research  and advisory group. Head analysts at Gartner brought Genis information on cutting-edge approaches to IT implementation across the world, since most large companies make their decisions based on information received from the  Gartner Group. Marko, Stane’s oldest son, was initially employed in the family  company, but later decided to strike out on his own. In 2004 he founded his own company, took over the Gartner group representation for Slovenia and eventually expanded his activities to Kazakhstan. 

Taking over a company during a crisis

What exactly is this system offered by Genis? Their main product is the e-GenDoc IT solution, which allows companies to integrate efficient workflows into all segments of their business, such as orders, sales and organization. It is perfect both for medium-sized and larger companies with  thousands of employees. “The most important thing is that no document ever gets lost, that all documents can be accessed with just a few clicks and are completely traceable. This makes several processes faster and implements a competence order; it is formally known who is responsible  for what, who ordered something, who signed it and who accepted the package. The system takes care of typing and calculations, all that is left to do is monitoring. All this optimization within the company brings much greater efficiency,” explains Stane with the help of his youngest son, Janko  Štefančič.

Janko, who officially took over management of the company in 2013, admits that computers were effectively his birthright. “I have worked in Genis ever since high school. I took on different tasks and I know everything  in detail. Computers are in my blood, and as opposed to many young people  today, who take new technology for granted, I understand the historical foundations of today’s computer science and IT. The transfer of the management and ownership of the company from dad to me took 10 years.  It was very helpful that the transfer happened during a great economic crisis, as this meant I was exposed to the more difficult side of the business  right from the beginning and have not only experienced growth. This experience has been very helpful in the current situation, as we were better  prepared to face a crisis,” explains Janko. 

Coronavirus increased the demand for e-solutions

Genis is part of an industry that weathered the first wave of the coronavirus crisis relatively well. The demand for the e-solutions they offer did not decrease and actually rose. But even Genis had to adapt to the changed circumstances. Practically all employees — just over 30 of them — stayed home and worked from their home offices. This is how Janko sees his   relationship with the employees: “It turned out we didn’t have to implement any additional monitoring mechanisms; we made a plan and the work got done. Our employees know that we all work for a common goal, they know our vision and values, which is why they like their work. But they are also well rewarded for their achievements and good work, both financially and  in other ways, for example with flexible working hours. If it’s a sunny day outside and the afternoon is perfect for exploring nature, I see no problem with employees finishing a bit early, they can simply compensate in the following days. But one thing is clear: the work has to be done on time. The main thing is trust, which needs to be built and then maintained.”

Meanwhile the business goes on and in the IT world especially, progress is made at the speed of light. Today, e-business and digital transformation are just the basis, which is why Genis offers several modules to companies needing a more complex support system, such as e-Office, e-Processes, e-Invoices, e-Orders, e-Contracts, e-Sessions, e-Meetings and e-Travel Orders. Considering the increased and more pronounced transfer of e-business to smartphones and tablets, Genis has also developed several  solutions to support this step, such as their first cloud-based software  solution in 2015. 

Open doors to foreign markets

Since 2000 Genis has been responsible for a comprehensive overhaul of the Civil Register of the Republic of Slovenia. Their first project was the upgrade of the Central Population Register, which included an Oracle database and citizens’ access to their own personal data. “The redesigned basic civil registers (register of births, deaths, marriages; register of residential addresses; register of aliens; register of personal documents, such as biometric passport and ID card; electoral registers) based on cutting-edge digital technologies and the Oracle database became operational in May 2005. The first population registers during the time of Maria Theresa of Habsburg took the form of church archives. The first civil population registers were instituted in 1812, during the French occupation. By the end of the 19th century, civil registers were regulated by law and in 1974  Slovenia instituted the first independent maintenance of civil registers. The project of digitalization began right away, but all the documents were still in paper format. With our comprehensive overhaul in 2004, the registers  began operating completely digitally. To ensure a smooth transition we consulted with the client to design a data model, a processing model and  define the software specifications. The newly developed software was introduced to the administrative units, which significantly reduced the waiting times for citizens. The new civil registers contributed significantly to the outstanding success of the Slovenian administrative portal e-Uprava, which came second among all EU members in 2007,” remembers Stane.  

Janko adds that they had to invest a lot of hard work, energy, understanding  and knowledge to create a register that is still operational so many years later: “Technological updates are required from time to time, but the core has not changed since 2005, which tells you we laid a really good foundation.”It seems long term planning is part of Genis’s genome. “Our goal is not to have 50 or 100 employees; what we want is a stable business and natural growth. But the fact that the coronavirus gave digitization a very large boost  will definitely help us realize our plans for the future. We want to create online services with a wider range of use than those we offer currently. Some  of our strong points are also niche processes, which means we have a lot of  knowledge about specific fields within industries. Doors to foreign markets are also open to us. In Africa, for example, less than a third of children are registered. The UN has put aside five or more billion dollars for register implementation, but the real challenge is finding the right connections and building good business relations with local companies,” say the father and son, thinking out loud about the future. They are so unanimous in their thoughts that we have to ask them whether Genis also dominates family discussions, especially as Janko’s wife Ana is also his right hand in the company. “Less and less so,” replies Stane. Janko adds that the key is finding a balance between work and private life: “Without dad’s support and his knowledge we would not be where we are now. My wife and I also constantly think about Genis. But at the end of the day we have to be able to  put it aside and find some time for our children and for each other.”