Paweł Paliwoda – stay home with Promatic Group

The editors of E-PLAY interviewed Paweł Paliwoda – CEO of the Promatic Group, a well-known European manufacturer of slot machines and software, about how a pandemic has changed the functioning of the Promatic Group. Our interlocutor presents the nearest plans and activities of the company after quarantine.

E-PLAY: How is the company functioning during the pandemic?

Paweł Paliwoda: In connection with the crisis situation related to the COVID-19 virus pandemic, we try to take all the necessary measures to ensure the safety of our employees, as well as all business partners and contractors.

We comply with the restrictions imposed, taking all precautions. I would like to emphasize that the safety of our employees is very important to us. Caring for the safe and healthy of all employees, we try to reduce the number of people working in our offices in Jelenia Góra and Warsaw, so as to minimize the risk of infection in the event of a possible threat.

In the departments / teams in our company, where it was possible, we decided to introduce remote work mid-March, which is continued to this day. We organize online meetings and video conferences to work on ongoing projects as efficiently as possible. We also initiated new activities adapted to the current situation.

E-PLAY: Has the implementation of subsequent projects been postponed? We mean new productions, new games, premieres etc.? Have your planned activities in these areas been modified?

Paweł Paliwoda: We strive to ensure that all our project plans are implemented in accordance with previous assumptions. For some markets, or in areas where it is necessary, we are modifying certain strategies that result from the changing situation in specific regions, but we are very keen to ensure that new productions are implemented as planned. Project teams that have changed their work mode to a remote one (including Project Managers, Programmers, graphic teams, software developers) are really approaching new projects with great commitment. I hope that soon we are able to show the effects of our teams’ work and present new productions that we have been intensively working on.

E-PLAY: Does the production of slot machines in Jelenia Góra in Poland continue to function at the same level? What does the work of this department look like? Have any additional safety measures been introduced?

Paweł Paliwoda: Fortunately, our production works smoothly, we carry out all previous orders as planned. Our production line and warehouse located in Jelenia Góra are located on a fairly large area, which gives us the opportunity to provide our employees with work stations located within a few meters of each other.

In order to maintain production continuity, we try to ensure the safety of our production teams. We have introduced equipment disinfection procedures to protect employees. We provide personal protection kits such as disinfectants and cleaning agents, protective masks and disposable gloves. We were also able to adapt the working time of the production department to its individual needs. We strive to do everything we can to minimize the risk and negative effects of the crisis and ensure the continued functioning of the company in this difficult time for all. Yet, all existing orders and shipments are carried out on a regular basis, without any delay.

E-PLAY: A significant part of the company (including corporate, administrative and IT employees) has been working in the remote work system since mid-March, that is for 8 weeks already. Does this form seem to work well for Promatic?

Paweł Paliwoda: For now, remote work is working really well. As I mentioned earlier, we have minimized the number of employees in our offices and introduced a remote work system, which lasts already the 8 weeks. This mainly applies to office workers, graphic teams, IT department and administration. Some of our employees directly cooperating with clients also provide their work remotely. Service technicians carry out urgent orders and are in constant contact with customers to provide expert advice on technical issues.
We want to maintain constant, daily contact with our employees, as part of project teams or in the area of our company’s internal departments. We also try to care for positive relations between our employees. The HR department conducts group and individual online meetings to better cope with this new reality. We trust this is a very good time to raise our competences, broaden knowledge and develop new strategies, and that’s how we try to use it.
At this point, I would like to thank all our employees for having given up their previous habits, modified the nature of their work and perfectly adapted it to the current situation and possibilities.

E-PLAY: Finally, a bit about solidarity and support. It is worth talking about. Has Promatic Group joined a group of companies supporting the coronavirus crisis initiatives?

Paweł Paliwoda: The SARS-cov-2 coronavirus pandemic has affected us all to different degrees. That is why I believe that at this difficult time for us all, joining forces and joint action is the only way to limit the effects of the current crisis.

We decided to support the fight against the negative effects of the pandemic. We joined the action uniting Polish entrepreneurs who are ready to engage in helping in these difficult times. “Jestesmy razem. Pomagamy” (EN We are together. We help) is an initiative in which healthcare facilities, people injured in a pandemic, or NGOs receive the necessary support. We are proud that we can be part of such a great initiative and in this how we wish to thank all the services that help others with such dedication. The first orders for protective products for healthcare have already been completed and have reached our local hospitals.

We bought 500 protective suits for the Provincial Hospital Center of the Jelenia Góra Valley, we also joined in helping infectious hospitals in the region (Wroclaw, Walbrzych, Boleslawiec). I strongly encourage other entrepreneurs to join the action and support such initiatives. We hope that the inconvenience resulting from the state of epidemiological threat are temporary and soon will pass, and we will be able to get through this difficult time.

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