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Doing business in Donegal
12.08.20
GARTAN Technologies is
continuing to grow its operations in Donegal. We
speak with company CEO Malachi Eastwood who tells us
about the foundation of the company, doing business in Donegal and how the
pandemic has changed their operations.
One of the biggest benefits of doing business in
Donegal for Gartan Technologies is ‘’having a
dynamic IT sector in place. When you have businesses
like Pramerica, Sita and 3D issue operating here, it
gives the area a real IT feel’’. The connection with
LYIT is also really strong, ‘’I would say
three-quarters of the team have some connection with
the Institute, whether it’s coming in as a graduate
or via a recommendation, this network is really
important to us’’ outlines Malachi.
So how did it all begin? ‘’The business was actually
set-up by chance at a wedding in Donegal’’ jokes
Malachi. That was in the mid 90s when co-founder
Peter Cunningham overhead a conversation, where the
services of a software developer were sought to
create a payroll system. Malachi was a student in
LYIT at the time, who worked on the project with
Peter. Upon realising there was a demand for this
type of software the two began selling software
packages to several Fire Service operations in
Ireland and set-up Gartan Technologies in 2000.
In the mid-noughties the business expanded into the
UK working with Local Authority Fire Services to
initially provide payroll solutions. As the business
evolved and client relationships grew, Gartan Tech
then developed a solution for the rostering of
staff, something Malachi states that ‘’clients were
really in need of, to ensure they had a robust
solution for availability of first responders.’’
Further innovation saw the roll out of Gartan
Expert, a competency management system which checks
that all first responder qualifications are in place
and up to date. Since 2013 Gartan Tech has also
expanded into Australia with staff in country to
service the needs of Fire & Rescue clients there.
Born and raised in Belfast, Malachi had a slightly
different career path than many Tech CEOs. He moved
to the US during the 80s where he spent several
years performing as a professional musician. In the
early 90s as things picked up in Ireland he decided
to move to Donegal and move into a different career
path, focusing on IT when he began a 4 year Software
Development Degree, with the now retired Peter
Cunningham one of his mentors at LYIT. |
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Malachi Eastwood of Gartan
Technologies presenting at a user group meeting. |
While the Covid
pandemic resulted in a refocus for many businesses
across Ireland, the primary pivot for Gartan Tech
was operational. ‘’Previously remote working was
something we paid lip service to. Occasionally a
member of staff would work an afternoon at home, but
mostly all staff were office based’’, with over 90%
of staff located at the company’s Letterkenny
Headquarters. ‘’The transition to remote working
during the pandemic was smooth with productivity
maintained throughout. The majority of staff live in
Donegal and with the exception of 1 or 2, most
successfully worked from home during lockdown. Post
pandemic, the biggest change we will experience is
embedding a remote working philosophy within the
organisation’’ said Malachi.
With demand for the Gartan Tech’s innovative
services increasing across all markets, they have
begun a recruitment drive. Reaching out to their own
network, Malachi noticed an increase in interested
candidates from locations previously out of reach.
‘’CVs with addresses in Dublin, Cork, Belfast and
London were a little surprising to us, in the past
candidates in these areas would not have been
interested in moving to Donegal. I think the
congestion of cities along with the advance of
living in open spaces has made people reconsider
Donegal as a very appealing location to live and
work.’’ |
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