BUSINESS ROZHOVOR

two of us now. Weare both sitting at home but still

we are communicating and looking at each other, as

if we were in the same room. You don´t speak to me,

nor do I speak to you; we speak to our computers.

We can hear each other well.

Audio is one of the means that enables people to

communicate via technology and human senses.

This relates to a whole lot of things that go handin-hand with sound. Cameras, image projection,

voice recognition used for payment verification,

communication with AI, virtual reality, music that

you bring along everywhere you need. It is a gigantic

business. These are the things we want to be around

and where we try to set the trends. The era is moving

and so are we.

How has the audio business been influenced by the

current situation, when the demands for online and

audio communication are increasing?

This year was good for innovations. People have

more and more started realizing that they want and

need to understand each other. A lot of them work

from home these days. And they don‘t even need

to be at home; they can be in nature or on a bench

in a park. At that moment, they use our products

“on the go”; they put on headphones and they are

basically at work. The generation of youtubers is

growing and they create online content. They buy

quality microphones and speakers; they don’t shoot

just on their mobile phones. This segment is growing

really fast.

The move from the office to the home has had a huge

impact on the audio business. When you are at home,

you want to make it nice around you. People spend

significantly more on home appliances; they buy hi-fi

to make these moments more pleasant. Even though

we expected a drop, the market is turning, and our

business is going up together with audio, which is

a part of the online world.

Text: redakce,

Šárka Kůrková

Kristýna Eliášová

Foto:

redakce ,

Tomáš Juřena

www.tymphany.com

Your company was under Danish company Bang

& Olufsen until 2017. This company is known for

its so-called “Scandinavian management”. Can you

explain how you implement such leadership?

Our factory started fifteen years ago. We came under

the wings of Tymphany in 2017, but for twelve years

we belonged under Bang & Olufsen. When you are

part of a Scandinavian company for so many years,

a company that is composed of Scandinavians, you

will find out that they are far ahead and that you have

much to learn from them. I believe that we managed

to jump on their trend quickly and adapt to it.

Scandinavian culture can be described in one word:

trust. The number of supervisory systems and various

checks is very limited there. Hierarchy is not the

most important thing. The idea is more important,

the fact that people are able to talk to each other

and have a common goal. I see a company more as

a network of people with certain responsibilities, not

as a pyramid.

Moderation by superiors cannot be eliminated

completely, but we limit it by delegating the

responsibilities to the teams. Approvals are basically

16 ǀ POSITIV 4/2020

slowing down business. But we need to be fast!

Another idea of this approach is to give everyone

the opportunity to tell their opinion and choose the

appropriate way to work. Again, this is really not

for everyone; some people really need a precise

“cookbook.”

All of this doesn‘t only bring freedom and an open

environment, but also responsibility. Despite the

open environment, trust and friendly atmosphere,

we know that the result is important. Tymphany is

not a Scandinavian company anymore, but we try

to take the best part from everything. Today we can

describe our company culture mainly with the word

vigour.

It is also very important that people feel good

at work; only that way they can enjoy it. A nice

environment contributes to that. Though our factory

is an industrial building, I would call it a designer

jewel. It replicates the beauty of our products. For

example--in the centre of the production area we

have a glass-walled atrium with a park; between the

development office and production line we have

a glass-walled opening. From every place in the

production area you can see outside through huge

windows.

You write “Give your people a dream; you won‘t

get anywhere with commands” on your blog. What

should we make of that?

We offer a very attractive salary and benefits to our

employees. That’s one thing. But we don’t want this

to be the only reason people work for us. Our motto

is “We love audio.” We want people to try to change

the world through audio. Of course, for the better.

We want them to see that they have an impact on

the person who buys the product. For example,

the operator puts the product together and tests if

it is reliable. The moment he hears the music, he

packs the product and sends it off for sale. The next

person to hear the same music will be the customer.

I believe that this makes an important connection

between them. Audio is a powerful thing. When

you speak about a wedding with people, I am sure

that everyone will remember the song they chose

for their first dance. Or when your grandpa dies,

everyone thinks about what music should be played

for him. They really take care to pick what he liked

the most. We have a huge impact on people‘s lives:

when they want to be happy, they take a speaker or

headphones and play music they like, and it improves

their mood. This is our dream.

As a last thing: please tell me what is your favourite

place in the Moravian-Silesian region.

I love the Beskid Mountains. I have three favourite

places I run up to from time to time: Velký Javorník,

Lysá hora and Pustevny. When I climb up Lysá hora at

night and look at Ostrava and Frýdek-Místek glowing,

I think to myself, how beautiful it is here. I think that

we have beautiful nature here around Ostrava; I like

it here.

Thank you for the interview.