Building Strong, Long-Term Partnerships: An Interview with Mr. Peter Custer, CTO at GBI

Recently, we had a very special and dear guest - Mr. Peter Custer, CTO at GBI. Mr. Custer has 30 years of experience leading the development of business technology solutions. During this visit, we had the opportunity to talk to him about the beginning of the partnership with Diligent, his impressions of our past collaboration, as well as the exciting projects and challenges that emerged along this journey.

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How did the collaboration with the Diligent team start?

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Fourteen years ago, our journey began with a small group of individuals that we came across. Initially, our team had excellent expertise in backend technologies; however, we lacked frontend knowledge. Thus, we decided to enlist the help of additional people, and gradually, the company grew. This has been an enduring and impressive ride, filled with countless interesting experiences along the way.

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Which situation/project would you highlight as one of the most successful and why?

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I believe we have accomplished numerous successful projects! In particular, some of them were almost pen-in-hand with everybody from Diligent. We kicked off with the Core, our operational platform for dealing with precious metals. Additionally, we had the incredible opportunity to develop a precious metals platform for one of the world's oldest government mints. Furthermore, we collaborated with a company where we had to be resourceful and think outside the box. When our platform was being tested, they suddenly demanded it to run significantly faster, which posed a challenge. However, we stepped up to the task and not only met but exceeded their speed benchmarks. Since then, the platform has been running smoothly without any issues.

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What is the key to a long-term partnership?

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To ensure a smooth dynamic, it is important to have both respect and trust. Mutual respect should be the foundation, but also commitment, and follow-through. The collaboration is built on solid ground, through perseverance and diligent effort. Everyone is working towards a common goal, maintaining alignment as a guiding principle. Indeed, alignment is the essence of a successful collaboration.

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What made you continue your collaboration with Diligent?

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I would say satisfaction. Our relationship was long-standing and strong, resulting in numerous successful collaborations. We thrived together, and everything was working perfectly. There's this popular Yankee expression that perfectly captures our situation, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." Indeed, why change something that is already working perfectly?

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What would you identify as the biggest challenge in our collaboration so far and how did you overcome it?

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It would be a transition. At one point, everyone at Diligent was solely dedicated to GBI. There were no other contracts, it was all about GBI. However, we entered a period of transition. This transition posed significant challenges, and I believe we are still working on them as we continue to grow. Initially, all the founders of Diligent were in a room, focused on one thing. But as you were growing, you needed to bring in more people. As a result, we are still adjusting to this new model, striving to align ourselves with it. This is the main challenge we're facing, but I am hopeful that we will achieve alignment shortly.

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What does working on a project look like?

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In the past, we had a chance to be more creative. We would enter the room, engage in brainstorming sessions, and create prototypes together. The work was incredibly creative and everyone was actively involved. It was an absolute joy, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. However, things have changed. Nowadays, we are transitioning towards agile methodology. This approach includes regular daily stand-up meetings with the team, as well as backlog meetings to prioritize tasks. Additionally, we have the Sprint review and retrospective meetings, where we analyze our progress. Thus, we have adopted the Agile methodology for our work.

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What do you like the most about our culture and work ethic?

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The people at Diligent are very reliable and adaptable. Their work ethic strongly resonates with Western values. They have always been there for us, never leaving us hanging. I feel confident about any project that Diligent is involved in, as I know I can count on them. I haven't had to stress about needing urgent assistance because Diligent has always come through for me. I genuinely appreciate their dedication and support.

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Three things you have learned from collaborating with Diligent.

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We have been working together for 14 years, and I believe it has been a valuable journey of mutual learning. I have had the opportunity to engage in remote development across various parts of the world. Through this experience, I can confidently say that the Diligent team is not mere robots focused solely on delivering code or completing projects. Instead, you actively participate in discussions regarding the requirements, offering valuable input. What truly sets Diligent apart is the wonderful level of collaboration we have had the pleasure of experiencing.

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How do you like Serbia so far? What do you like the most?

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I enjoy the food here and it's great to reconnect with people I've known for a while. It's such a refreshing change. It's hard to believe I've waited so long for this experience, but I'm glad it's finally happening.

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One thing that has amazed me is how genuinely happy everyone seems to be. During our visit to various restaurants, people were just hanging out and having a good time, laughing and enjoying themselves.

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It's not something I typically witness in the area where I currently live, which spans across New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey. People there tend to be quite serious most of the time.

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Though I'm sure there are pockets of laughter and joy in my environment, it doesn't compare to what I saw last night. It's heartwarming to see people smile, laugh, and hug. Overall, it's clear that people here know how to have a good time and truly enjoy the moment.

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Thank you!

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