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dmTECH - GPT chat, new technologies and artificial intelligence. Stephan Seitz reveals details of investment in Wroclaw
German drugstore chain dm is investing and hiring in Wroclaw. They opened their Poland headquarters and the first drugstores in our country in the city, and now dmTECH reports that they have their first international branch in Wroclaw. They will employ 300 people in the IT industry there. Stephan Seitz, managing director of dmTECH in Poland, talks to wroclaw.pl about the details of the investment.
The first international branch of dmTECH launched in Poland is in Wroclaw. Why did you choose the capital of Lower Silesia?
Stephan Seitz: - Lower Silesia is one of the fastest growing regions in Poland. Wroclaw itself is a thriving city with great technological and academic potential in the IT area. These were among the main reasons why we decided to invest precisely in the capital of Lower Silesia.
Of course, the presence in Wroclaw of the headquarters of dm drugstore markt in Poland is not without significance. Thanks to the synergy effect, our IT specialists work together in HomeBase at Jaworska 13, they can not only create technological solutions, but also get to know our daily business better from the inside.
The dm drugstores in Wroclaw are already familiar. And what does dmTECH do?
In the shortest terms, we can say that more than a thousand dmTECH employees are responsible for everything related to technology for dm in 14 European countries. From the area of mobile and e-commerce through logistics systems, Busisness Intelligence, SAP, ERP, hardware, computer networks, to technology solutions supporting our business partners and employees.
In practice, there is probably no IT-related area that we do not coordinate at dm. dmTECH is a kind of technology hub for all dm employees and the entire organization. The exchange of experiences and mutual feedback on solutions are fundamental in our technology processes.
GPT chat, new technologies and artificial intelligence
You are strongly betting on new technologies and artificial intelligence, an example is your dmGPT chat. Will you reveal the details of your work?
There is no area in dm today where technology does not support our daily work. Although there are also more spectacular solutions using, for example, artificial intelligence, such as our secure dmGPT chat. Importantly, it is the employees at dm who have always been at the center of things, and it is they who set the rhythm for our projects and activities.
That's why sometimes simple automations, like a bot adding an automatically sent invoice to the accounting system, simplify daily work and allow us to allocate time to more productive things rather than tedious manual tasks. In truth, from marketing to HR, logistics, finance, distribution network, fixed point sales, mobile app and online store, technologies accompany our daily work at dm. Sometimes they are the silent protagonist, sometimes they perform tasks that previously consumed a lot of time.
Are you looking for employees? Who has a chance for a job?
Over the next year we will want to build a team of about 100 people, looking for specialists in various IT areas. These will not only be programmers, but also consultants, people familiar with the SAP environment, Business Intelligence, or network management in the broadest sense. It's worth taking a look at the dmtech.pl website, where we publish information about open recruitments on an ongoing basis. Importantly, if someone doesn't find a position interesting for him or her, he or she can leave a resume in the "spontaneous recruitment" section.
Already today, thanks to this formula, even before the opening of official recruitment, we have hired specialists to join our team. Ultimately, within a few years in our technology hub in Poland, we want to employ about 300 people, working remotely, but who also want to meet once in a while in a meeting city like Wroclaw, together with other experts from dmTECH Poland. Our space at Jaworska 13 is designed to meet the different needs of employees.
Innovative technologies and dmTECH in Wroclaw
First dm drugstores, now innovative technologies and dmTECH. This is part of a larger plan for investment in Wroclaw and Poland?
Synergy of activities in different areas is one of the factors determining the direction of development of our business. Wroclaw is already a unique point on the dm map. It is the first city where more than one of our companies operates.
Of course, in addition to Karlsruhe, where dm originated and where the company's headquarters are located. From dmTECH's perspective, this location is particularly important. We opened our first international branch here because of the city's potential and the competence of Polish specialists. The entry and development of dm drugstores in Poland - along with stationary stores, an app and an e-commercial - was also an important factor. We support each other a lot and cheer each other on.
Stephan Seitz managing director of dmTECH in Poland
Have you gotten to know Wroclaw yet? The stage in Wroclaw in your career is a promotion, or not necessarily?
I have been in Wroclaw for more than a year now. This city amazes me every time with unusual people, interesting places that successfully combine the past with the present. Creating and managing dmTECH Poland is a completely new challenge for me and a chance to build the first international branch of dmTECH from scratch.
It is also a great opportunity for me to observe a very interesting technological market, which is definitely different from the German one. Polish customers are smart-shoppers who, on the one hand, value quality products at a good price, and on the other hand are technological "hard-users." That's why insights from the Polish market often help me in making many technological decisions, which we implement at dmTECH not only in Germany, but also in the 13 other countries where dm operates.
Stephan Seitz, managing director of dmTECH in Poland and concurrently head of the Customer Technology department at dmTECH. He has been in the structures of dmTECH for more than 12 years, where he was previously responsible for, among other things, the area of technological support for marketing and e-commerce, the creation of an online store for German dm drugstores or many projects initiating the development of dm in the digital area. He is passionate about the practical use of artificial intelligence in business. He graduated in computer science from the HKA University of Karlsruhe.