Gareth Morrison – Core (NI) Ltd
Name: Gareth Morrison
Organisation name: Core (NI) Ltd
Job title: Technology Manager
Gareth Morrison, technology manager, Core (NI) Ltd
Describe your role:
I am responsible for managing the software development teams, support team and all project management activities. My job involves reviewing software requirements and design, organising site visits and implementations, developing project plans, resource management and providing leadership to the various technical teams.
What is the best part of your job?
Probably being involved in our internal innovation process. We like to think that the technology solutions we provide are cutting edge. We are always trying to find a better way to do things and I find that challenge interesting and rewarding.
What aspect of your job do you find the most challenging?
Our systems are so integral to our customers’ daily activities that they have to work 24/7. It means that all implementations are highly pressured. We have to ensure that our planning and testing processes are 100% thorough. We have also worked hard on developing products that can constantly assess their own status and, if necessary, perform maintenance on themselves.
What are the key issues facing your sector at the moment?
Procurement is a big issue. The solutions we provide are unique so it can prove difficult, and sometimes impossible, for our clients to get multiple quotes for a fair comparison. This causes difficulties in a tender situation and it is another barrier in the sales process. It can be frustrating when you have a solution to a problem and the customer wants to implement it, but can’t due to procurement processes.
How is your organisation responding to these issues?
We have been lobbying the minister to raise the issue of procurement at a higher level. It is not an easy problem to solve and it is getting worse, so we have found ourselves having to focus on different industries.
What is the biggest goal on your agenda for the year ahead?
Developing and delivering our new range of products. We have several new products we are currently developing which we hope are going to unlock opportunities in other markets for us. We plan to implement some of these next year and these products are crucial to the strategy for the ongoing success of the company.
If you had to give one piece of business advice, what would it be?
Focus on your customers. Without them you have nothing but a hobby.
What work experience and qualifications helped you to get to your position?
I was fortunate in that I initially worked in a small IT company. This gave me exposure to all aspects of a job in the IT industry, from developing and supporting software, training staff, configuring networks, site surveys to performing sales demos. This gave me a good grounding and my current role has pushed all of my skills and experience to the next level, which has been very rewarding.
