Mixvoip‘s development: a quick interview with Loïc Didelot
Since its founding in 2008, Mixvoip has undergone a considerable development. What started as a small start-up has now become a mature company with over 100 employees and subsidiaries in several countries. Like for most other companies, a lot has changed for Mixvoip during these past two years due to the pandemic. Loïc Didelot, CEO of Mixvoip, has shared his thoughts on the developments of the past years and plans for the near future in an interview.
Did Mixvoip’s development go as planned since you founded it?
Our initial goal was to gain a foothold in Luxembourg as a small company. But since the beginning we have grown a lot and we even opened subsidiaries in Belgium and Germany, so in the end we have grown much more than we ever expected. We are now far beyond our initial goal and after every step we set new goals. I would be happy, if Mixvoip keeps on growing and expanding, but of course no one can tell in advance if we are able to manage such rapid growth without problems.
What has changed for Mixvoip in the past two years during the pandemic?
A lot. Before the pandemic, fixed-line telephony took the centre stage of telecommunications. During the last two years, video conferences have become more and more important and nowadays, they have almost become the new standard for telephony. At the same time, companies need much more flexibility, for example to make home office possible for all their employees. The telecom market has changed and therefore the competitors have changed too: Microsoft Teams now plays a much bigger role, and big providers like Cisco, Alcatel and Avaya have become less present.
How does Mixvoip differ from other competitors?
Nowadays, a lot of very small providers are pushed to the sidelines, and many of them disappear from the market because they are missing the internally needed knowhow. But unlike other small providers, Mixvoip managed to create a solid and future-proof basis for itself. Compared to bigger competitors such as Microsoft, we are able to take a stand because of how close we are to our customers. We offer direct help and support through immediately accessible customer support and with trained technicians and experts, who can act on site in the shortest possible time if necessary. In addition, we develop many of our products internally and we completely refrain from outsourcing our IT to third parties.
Compared to bigger competitors such as Microsoft, we are able to take a stand because of how close we are to our customers.
Loïc Didelot, CEO of Mixvoip
How have the subsidiaries in Germany and Belgium developed?
Both subsidiaries have developed great so far. The Belgian office is located on the outskirts of the capital, so basically in the centre of activity. Because of this, we had high expectations from the beginning, and we were not disappointed. For logistic reasons, our German subsidiary is based in Trier, near Luxembourg. Since the city is not as big, we knew from the start that developing this site would take a little longer. In addition, it is more difficult to cover a big area in Germany with only one office because of the distances – we have many competitors, and we are starting as a small company. Communication between sites is very important for internal processes. Here, we definitely still have room to improve.
Do you plan to open other subsidiaries?
Not for the next time. But for our Belgian site, we plan to recruit further employees so that we are able to better cover the Flemish part of the country. For Germany, we can imagine buying up other smaller companies, should the opportunity arise – for example businesses that retire. Like this, we extend our network, we can use the expertise of skilled employees and, at the same time, we win new customers. Thus, we combine experience with a young dynamism.
In 2021, Mixvoip made the 2nd place at Great Place to Work. Will you also take part in 2022?
No, in 2022 we will not take part. A good work-life balance is important, but this kind of display creates very high, almost utopian expectations. A workplace doesn’t need to be perfect, since people are not perfect either. Mistakes are a part of our life. Of course, we still try to create a pleasant working environment and a friendly atmosphere, but in return we expect motivated employees who act in the interest of the company and the clients. We are always open to criticism and suggestions for improvement, and we are working together on continuously improving ourselves. It is surely important to take a break every now and then and to have fun with colleagues. This is part of the job, but you also must make efforts to achieve your goals. If you are hardworking and you want to take on responsibility, Mixvoip is the right place for you.
We are working together on continuously improving ourselves.
Loïc Didelot, CEO of Mixvoip
What is planned for the upcoming years?
We started with VoIP telephony, then we added internet, afterwards wi-fi. Our range has expanded in recent years with several products, and now we want to work even closer with our customers via our new service Co-Managed LAN. Co-Managed LAN is a unique service: we provide the iMaster NCE platform by Huawei to our customers. With this centralised platform, they can efficiently manage their network and we help them if necessary to resolve possible problems as quickly as possible. It is an all-in-one solution, a local managed cloud service with centralised management, analysis, automated detection of potential errors and notifications via text message or mail in real time. Mixvoip is a pioneer in this field.
Interested in our Co-Managed LAN solution?
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