More than 300 employees. About 200 technicians currently executing projects at 30–35 sites across the world. 155 million DKK of turnover and 12 million DKK profit before tax. Not many people imagined this scenario when Eryk was established 20 years ago. But that’s what happened and the next step in Eryk’s growth is to perform the generational change that we have been preparing for over the last couple of years.
Eryk made its humble entry in Szczecin in 2004. That same year Poland became a member of the EU, and – overnight – that made its qualified and abundant workforce free to work across EU. Free movement of labour is one of the fundamental EU rights, and the two founders Jens-Christian Moller and Lucja Kalkstein saw an opportunity to encourage skilled Polish technicians to work in Denmark and other EU countries – addressing a shortage of skilled workers that lasts until today. Eryk was born under the name of BIC electric which was changed to Eryk in 2019.
The business case turned out to be solid. Eryk continued to grow into the global technical service provider that it is today, focusing on B2B customer contracts within three main business areas:
The latest addition to Eryk’s portfolio is Remote IT Services, based in Lagos, Nigeria.
There are three main reasons for Eryk’s substantial growth and our ability to make a profit year after year – except for one single year during the 2007-2008 financial crisis:
The next step of our growth journey is to implement the generational change that we have been preparing for over the past few years. On July 1, 2024, Jens-Christian Moller will resign from his role as Group CEO.
In Eryk A/S, he will be replaced by his daughter Maj Winther Moller, who will also continue as Group CSO. Maj, aged 35, has worked for Eryk since she in 2014 graduated in Business Studies and Performance Design from Roskilde University in Denmark. She began her career as trainee, but has, for several years now, been part of the management team in her capacity as Group CSO with global sales and marketing responsibilities. Since 2019, she has been a member of the ownership group. In June 2024, Maj completed her Leadership Diploma education.
In Eryk Sp z o.o. – by far the largest part of the corporation – Jens-Christian Moller will be replaced as CEO by Cezary Miller, who will also continue in his present role as Group COO. Cezary Miller, aged 43, has been with Eryk since 2017. He has a Master’s Degree in Management and Economics of Services from Uniwersytet Szczecinski (2005) and an MBA (2017).
Jens-Christian Moller does not retire – he will continue his efforts as part of the Eryk management, focusing on our international Apprenticeship Program and our new business area, Remote IT Services.
On average, Eryk technicians work at 30–35 sites a week; however, we see major growth potential in our three main business areas, not least in light of the green transition which will generate a growing number of increasingly larger project across the world for many years to come.
In addition, we have established Remote IT Services, based in Lagos, Nigeria, offering assistance within software development, cybersecurity, web development and cloud computing.
The average age in Nigeria is 18 years, and the young population has a total command of the digital world. According to the University of Oxford data service, Our World in Data, Nigeria is expected to surpass the US as the world’s third largest population as soon as 2050, and Goldmann Sachs sees Nigeria as the No. 5 world economy in 2075.
The IT industry will be a crucial factor for the future of the country. The labour demands of the Western countries, digital technology and the large population with its unlimited potentials generate infinite possibilities of growth and development – and we want to join the realisation efforts. As in Poland 20 years ago, we are present in the market at an early stage, and for mid- to long-term perspective, Jens-Christian Moller will assume responsibility of this new business area.
All in all, we expect to be three times our current size by 2044 – with at least 1,000 employees.