Each week we interview one of our members to find out a bit more about them and their work in the Greater Manchester digital sphere. This week we're speaking with Mashukul Hoque, CEO of dedicated server provider, Datacentreplus.
What does your organisation do?
We’re a data centre and hosting company based near MediaCity. The business was set up in 2015 and we provide cloud hosting and other data centre solutions from our privately owned data centre. We’re experiencing a lot of growth at the moment, particularly with demand from digital agencies, who appreciate our personal service and support.
What do you think is currently the biggest issue facing the digital and tech industry?
One of the biggest issues facing the digital and tech industry at the moment is the difficulty in finding and hiring people with the right skills. There is a lot of demand for digitally skilled professionals and for UK businesses to compete on a global scale it is necessary to have a workforce which has these vital skills. It’s great to see that Manchester Digital is playing a part in helping to deal with this through their Digital Futures and Digital Her initiatives.
What is your organisation’s biggest achievement?
One of our biggest achievements recently is our company being named as a finalist for the Greater Manchester Business Awards 2019 in the Customer Service Excellence category. For such a new company to be recognised for our outstanding customer service and support is absolutely fantastic. It is a great achievement and cause for celebration for everyone involved with the business.
What would you consider to be your organisation’s biggest challenge?
One of our biggest challenges to date has been overcoming the initial scepticism and reluctance for companies to host their systems with such a new player in the market. The company managed to overcome this by obtaining industry-recognised certifications relatively quickly and through word-of-mouth recommendations from our satisfied customers. We are now a well-established business and provide services to some very well-known companies in the UK, many of them based in Manchester.
What do you think the future looks like for Manchester’s digital and tech sector?
It is an exciting time for the technology and digital sector in Manchester and Manchester Digital is set to play a big role in being part of this. Manchester is quickly becoming the key digital hub outside of the South East. For us, this is not surprising as Manchester has everything you need to run a successful technology business – the community, skills and infrastructure are all here. We’re proud to be a Manchester company!
Tell us something we might not know about your company
We are one of the fastest growing data centre/hosting companies in the UK and recently we announced that we are on track to create 20 new jobs in Salford and Manchester in the next 12 months. The new jobs will cover both technical and sales positions and the company is also setting up a number of apprentice positions to provide opportunities to young people who may not otherwise be able to obtain positions in a technology company through lack of traditional qualifications.
If you would like to speak to Datacentreplus, you can contact them here.
If you'd like to see your business feature In The Spotlight, contact thom@manchesterdigital.com to make arrangements.
