|
MAMUT: A LONG TERM
PARTNERSHIP…
Mamut Business Software, a Norwegian company created in 1994, has been on
the Stock Exchange in Oslo since May 2004.
Their Regional Director, Alan Moody, a happily married man, father of Anna,
16 months, “who drives me mad as she refuses to sleep, hyperactive like her
dad was", has a weird Norwegian accent, and for a good reason.
He is Scottish, from Cults more precisely.
And when I tell you that he has known Peter Nicol for about 20 years, that
Peter’s village, Inverurie, is only miles away from Cults, near Aberdeen,
and that he used to play Badminton with Peter Nicol’s sister, Julie, you may
understand why this young company is now associated with Eventis.
How did Mamut decide to work in the squash world?
Well, Mamut, already implanted in Norway, in Holland and in Sweden, had
decided to launch the company in the UK market and of course my boss, Eilert
Hanoa, a fervent squash player, was looking into ways of raising the British
awareness. And as squash is a young and exciting sport, he thought that it
would be a perfect medium to promote Mamut.
What sort of software does Mamut offer?
Ultimately, our products simplifies the way a small business does business.
Our software offers accounting, email and contact management, sales force
automation, logistics, CRM (Customer Relationship Management), Payroll,
Products and Webshop.
Quite a list!
Yes, basically it is design to be a one-stop shop for small businesses.
Having to manage different software can increase the complexity, the costs,
and also the amount of IT knowledge that you must have to run your business.
Mamut offers a perfect solution to simply your life.
Are you compatible with other software?
Yes, we work very closely with Microsoft, actually, our software is built on
Microsoft, and in June, we announced an agreement with them to build what is
called “the Small Business Concierge” which will offer the latest
functionality and products from Microsoft in addition to Mamut.
To whom those products are designed for more specifically?
We are focusing on “the small medium business sector” (typically 0 to 49
employees). We have come to realise that a massive sector of the economy
that has been left behind and not fully attended to, and there are around
3.7 million of those companies in the UK. And Mamut is able to propose to
them a solution that will be profitable for them, and therefore, for the
economy as well.
Let’s go back to your relationship with Peter Nicol…
I’m a bit older than Peter, I grew up around ten miles away from him. Peter
was lucky, he was brought up in a sport mad family, and so was I. It’s quite
unusual to have great champions coming from small villages, and I think that
Peter’s father played a great role in his career, as he was very active and
helped him a lot. There is another person as well, who was an university
lecturer, Eric Farr, a very energetic man who helped Peter with his general
enthusiasm and generosity.
How did the association between Mamut and Eventis come to life?
Tim and his partners were looking for a main sponsor here, and as we moved
into the UK in March, they approached us in early June and asked if we were
interested. The timing was perfect.
Is Mamut going to be associated regularly with Eventis from now on?
Yes, we will look at any opportunity to work closely with them. Generally,
we see squash as being very compatible with the kind of company we are, and
also the kind of people that play squash. And certainly for the UK, given
the quality and level of squash at the world ranking level and the focus
that it has, obviously we are branded with a very successful sport from a UK
perspective.
What do you think of the event so far?
It’s a great event, it’s a great arena, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a
squash tournament in such a location, which is good for players and for the
spectators, as the Crucible offers perfect court coverage.
And about Eventis' skills?
I am very impressed by the organisation. Because they know what they are
doing, what they are trying to achieve, they always have the time to speak
to me, to everybody, they always make themselves available. They haven’t
forgotten anything, if you want something, it’s there, and they know where
it is. They have a great attention to detail.
So you’ll be back then?
Oh yes….
|
Alan Moody
|
I’m a bit older than Peter,
I grew up around ten miles away from him.
Peter was lucky, he was brought up in a sport mad family, and so was
I |
|
I don’t
think I’ve ever seen a squash tournament in such a location |
Supporting the event.
Alan with Cllr Diane Leek of Sheffield City Council
|
