Danish Software Excitement
December 9, 2008
I have been watching the posts about SurfRay in the comments section of this Web log. I also have included links to stories about the Microsoft Fast issue. IT Factory is–er, was–an integrator and software vendor. I visited the company’s Web site at 5:41 pm Eastern time and was greeted with this message:
On 1 December 2008 IT Factory A/S was adjudicated bankrupt by the Maritime and Commercial Court, Bankruptcy Division. The court appointed Boris Frederiksen, Attorney-at-Law as the trustee in bankruptcy. Please direct all inquiries regarding the bankrupt estate to Boris Frederiksen, Attorney-at-Law (bor@kammeradv.dk), Rune Derno, Attorney-at-Law (der@kammeradv.dk) or Cathrine Wollenberg Zittan, Assistant Attorney (cwz@kammeradv.dk). We ask the public to appreciate that the employees of IT Factory A/S in bankruptcy are still in an employment relationship for which reason they are subject to the general rules of secrecy.
Most of the Web pages describing IT Factory’s services on which I clicked returned little useful information. I did find a snippet in my files from LinkedIn. Here’s that description:
IT factory A/S provides information technology consultancy and software development services. The company offers customer relationship and human resources management, online procurement, and office automation solutions. Additionally, it provides project implementation, management information systems, training, and support services. IT factory partners with IBM, Cisco, Computer Associates, Sun Microsystems, and Oracle. The company was founded in 1997 and is based in Birkeroed, Denmark with an additional office in New Delhi, India.
A list of some of the people who used to work at the company is here. There is a link to an outfit called Elastictime on the LinkedIn page. I lacked the motivation to cross check between the two companies. Let me know if you have information about a connection. Elastictime is a Microsoft partner.
I noted a reference to IT Factory in the comments to this Web log. I don’t know if the information in the comments is accurate. I recall the suggestion that SurfRay’s owner had some interaction with Stein Bagger, the top dog at IT Factory.
At any event, Denmark is certainly working overtime to capture the lead in questionable practices in information-centric software companies. The Los Angeles Times here reported that Mr. Bagger, who fled Denmark, walked into a Los Angeles police station and turned himself in. Needless to say, the LA police were not familiar with the plight of IT Factory. After a bit of checking, Mr. Bagger was permitted to enjoy the delights of the LA jail.
I have an informal search engine death watch on a sheet of paper. Maybe I should develop a list of alleged criminal practices among information-centric companies. In my opinion, as the economy continues to deteriorate, I may be forced to learn about other companies missteps. For me, the most interesting comment in the LA Times’s story was:
At the time, he was on top of the world. Bagger, chief executive of Copenhagen-based IT Factory, had recently been named Danish Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young after leading the previously crumbling computer company into what seemed to be an incredible turnaround. The Danish press reported that IT Factory had doubled its revenue and profit for each of its last three fiscal years.
I am curious about the due diligence performed by Ernst & Young when vetting executives for the prestigious award. Perhaps I should say, “previously prestigious” award?
Stephen Arnold, December 10, 2008
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Good summary of IT-Factory and Bagger can be found here: http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/12/12/it-factorys-bagger-super-sorry-for-the-massive-fraud/
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