One month has passed since Vlado Mitev joined our company as a Chief Executive Officer (CEO). He comes straight from the capital city of North Macedonia – Skopje to Bitola. Moving from one city to another can be challenging, but if it is worthwhile then nothing can be difficult. But, don’t take our word for it, read Vlado’s story below – his life, career & the motivation to join us.
The story of Vlado or my story begins in one beautiful city called Skopje, in a beautiful country that doesn’t exist anymore, Yugoslavia. Born in the time of socialism when everybody was equal (at least that’s what we were told in school?) I had to learn “capitalism” in a hard way ?. I was a happy kid, living in a family filled with love, and raised by parents – doctors of science which taught me life values like honesty, friendship, hard work. It is from the upbringing and my parents that I have learned the right path to success in life and probably that was the reason I finished preliminary school as the best student in my generation. I remember that even at school I had a very competitive spirit and attitude, which I still have. And I believe that that spirit guided me through my life and helped me accomplish what I have till now.
I can say that I am in the IT business my entire life in some ways. Everything started when I was a small kid, half-naked with pockets full of coins that I spent on arcade machines playing popular video games like Pac-man, Space invaders, Donkey Kong… Shortly after, in my sixth grade, I finally got my first computer Spectrum 48k, which was followed by Commodore 64, Amiga and finally my first personal computer. So, I tried everything ?. I was finishing secondary school when I got an idea to start buying and selling programs and video games, and I decided to establish my own company with borrowed 500 euros from my father. If you got an idea which seems reasonable it is good to follow it. While I was working in my company, I was also enrolled at the Mechanical Engineering faculty and was actively following the studies. What I have learned during that time was that when you set on something, you shouldn’t give up regardless of how hard it might be at that time. As I young entrepreneur I have experienced every job position within the company and succeeded in growing the company from only 1 employee to 40. That’s when I decided to expand the services being offered and included sales of hardware, along with assembling, selling and distribution. Having established my own company was a great experience, which shaped me into what and who I wanted to become in the future.
During my career, I have worked on projects for implementation of DMS systems and SAP, and somehow, I turned towards software and ERP solutions, which lead to my next destination the Slovenian ERP company Datalab, where I stayed for around 4 years as a Managing Director and moved to where I am now – InterWorks.
All these things have shaped me somehow, taught me the hard lessons of life, but the people who are “guilty” for who I am today are definitely my parents. My parents and my family pushed me straight forward, taught me the basics that I need to know and let me accomplish the things that I want by myself, with their support. Tough life, tough business environment and the willingness to succeed in life, all the effort, and tough work have done the rest of the shaping. Learning from my own mistakes, learning from other people’s mistakes gave me really valuable experience which I use to make myself better.
You decided to start a new journey as a CEO at InterWorks. Why? And how did that reflect your family life as you have to move from Skopje to Bitola?
I recognize InterWorks as a really successful company, well organized and with a proven concept and business strategy, but what really won me over was the fact that InterWorks is recognized as a socially responsible company, and cherishes and respects family values, and even more respects its employees and is proud to have them. As I share the same values in life, for me it is an honor to lead a company of this kind. In addition to this is Bitola. Bitola is one of the most beautiful cities in our country and I love it. So, when you combine those things, it is like when you put all parts of one puzzle in their right place – you can see the entire picture and you realize that it is the right step in the right direction.
Moving from one city to another, and leaving your family behind can be tough and challenging, but life is unpredictable and you never know what will be tomorrow – and that’s the beauty of life. I raised 3 beautiful wild never-exhausting boys who are now grown-up kids ready for high school and they don’t need me that much, so I will be with them during the weekends. This change is a fundamental change which might raise the usual questions such as how will I adapt to the new environment, new home, new people? Will I miss Skopje and my friends there?
But I think, I already got the answers to most of these questions even in my first month. I already feel like a part of one big family here at InterWorks, and I found a really nice place which will be my new home. And the most important in the plot of this story is that all these “sacrifices” are really looking so small, comparing to what I really feel.
Paulo Coelho once said
” When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.”
This is something that guides me in my life. There is nothing too difficult, too complicated, too far or impossible, it’s all about how much you are motivated and how much you want to achieve your goals. These are the premises that led me from a high school kid with borrowed 500 euros to start a business, through a managing director of several IT companies to a CEO position in Interworks. What defines me who I am and set me where I am, is the following: Don’t wait for things to get easier, instead, work hard to get better in what you do.
