Anton Zajac is far from a stereotypical
business executive. With a background in theoretical physics, you’re more likely to hear a comparison between
fractals and organizational structure than
you are to hear management clichés from
the CEO of ESET LLC, a San Diego-based
computer security software company.
With a leadership style he says was influenced largely by his experience in academia, Zajac stresses communication and
collaboration to come to decisions.
“I use my scientific background to present different ideas and draw analogies,”
says Zajac, ESET’s CEO. “Research, discussions and models are the basic tools to
solve problems and reach consensus, and I
use some of these tools in management
and leadership.”
As Zajac is quick to point out, the history
of ESET shows that the company has been
doing something right. More than doubling
its previous year’s sales, ESET posted revenue of nearly $40 million in 2006.
Zajac spoke to Smart Business about
avoiding the dangers of rapid growth
through communication and delegation.
Q: How would you describe your leadership style?
I like to believe my style is swift, nimble
and relentless, just like our products. I started my career as a university researcher and
an assistant professor, and the academic
environment is traditionally very open-minded and liberal. Research and discussions and models are the basic tools to solve
problems and reach consensus, and I use
some of these tools in management and
leadership.
Nimble and relentless means one has to
be able to find new solutions to the problems that he is facing on a daily basis. One
of my favorite quotes is by the commander
Hannibal when he was leading his troops
through the Alps. He said, ‘We will find a
way, and if not, we will make one.’ Being
nimble and relentless is to constantly
search for new solutions and quickly adjust
the strategy of the company to achieve the
goals of the dynamic marketplace we are
facing. Dynamic changes require relentless
involvement of the entire company team.
Q: How do you keep everyone on the same
page?
I challenge the members of my executive
team to be brutally frank and open in our
discussions. Many problems result from
lack of communication or fear to communicate. I want my managers to apply the
same principle to their teams. I want them
to request very open and frank discussions
with their team members and replicate that
cultural element to all of the departments.
As you grow, the communication of what
the company culture is and the core values
we adhere to is increasingly difficult. When
a company has six employees you could
talk to everybody on a daily basis. But
today, I need to make sure that all of our
managers are on the same page as far as
the values they share and apply in their
communication with their teams.
To use an analogy, a company itself needs
to have a fractal structure. Fractals are geometric objects that appear similar at all levels of magnification, and our team, regardless of the scale or geographical location,
should appear the same. Each department
should apply the same principles, values
and culture in its execution of its daily tasks.
Q: What is the danger of growing too fast?
A company is a complex system. The success of that system depends on the success
of all its parts. If marketing generates
10,000 leads a month and sales can only
handle a fraction of those leads, we would
be wasting our resources. If sales could
handle all the leads, but support could not
provide immediate response to our clients,
we would fail again.
One of the dangers of growing too fast is
that there is a system breakdown. The executive team needs to understand that they are
not isolated. A company has a purpose, and
we are all elements of this bigger system,
which needs to work together to achieve the
purpose. We can’t look to only be successful
in our own departments without looking at
other departments.
Q: What changes must a leader make as
his company grows?
A leader’s responsibilities change in
many ways. The smaller the company, the
more direct control a CEO has. As the company grows, he needs to learn to delegate
and surround himself with very capable
leaders. He is no longer managing all of the
aspects of the company operations. I was
lucky to put together an excellent team of
leaders.
Giving up some control is extremely difficult for a leader because you need to have
absolute trust in those who will execute
the company’s plans. The managers have
an impact on the whole team. Without
complete trust, which you only gain after
time, you’re always a little bit in limbo.
Sometimes it is a matter of risk-taking,
but it is inevitable otherwise that the quality of a leader’s life would suffer and that
eventually the company would suffer.
HOW TO REACH: ESET LLC, (619) 876-5400 or www.eset.com
