What does Dario Gelzer actually do?

He is the man behind the solution that makes a complete order out of a hand movement: simply scan, order, and that’s it done. As the product owner in the Digital Solutions department at HANSA‑FLEX, Dario Gelzer develops practical digital applications such as Scan-to-Order – always thinking primarily of the moment someone will make real use of his solution.

I am a project manager in the Digital Solutions department currently working as the product owner on all aspects of our Scan-to-Order solution. In a nutshell: I act as the interpreter and guide for the people who use our digital applications and our colleagues who build them. On the one side, we have our customers with their requirements and everyday problems, while on the other we have Development and IT. My task is to formulate a product from these different perspectives, one which ends up functioning efficiently. Not only theoretically, but also in real-world use. And of course, it must do so cost effectively.

Imagine that you are standing in your warehouse and need to reorder a fitting or a hydraulic hose line. What normally happens is: you have to spend time finding out the order number, go into the office, give the order to someone in Purchasing, who will in all probability have further questions. Next, your Purchasing colleague logs into the system, fills out some forms, which you then have to sign. With Scan-to-Order, everything is much simpler, easier and quicker. You just scan the QR code or barcode on the shelf or rack and the order goes directly to HANSA‑FLEX. That is the principle behind Scan-to-Order: The ordering is done right there – where the need arises. The effort for the customer is reduced to a minimum.

Above all for customers who regularly buy what the industry calls C-parts from us. These parts are relatively low-value but are nevertheless complicated to procure. A classic example: a part costs a few euro. However, this part must be searched for, ordered and subsequently booked in by specialist employees. All this takes valuable time and thus carries high hidden costs – even at HANSA‑FLEX. This is precisely what Scan-to-Order sets out to tackle. We minimise the process costs on the customer side. For the customer, this means lower administration costs, fewer errors and more time for core business activities.

The end product should feel quick and easy, getting there is not always that simple. That is exactly the aspect of my work I find so enjoyable at HANSA‑FLEX. As the product owner, I must reconcile all the different requirements. The customer wants a solution that works intuitively in the harsh reality of routine warehouse and workshop activities. IT calls for precise, well-structured requirements in order to write code for the app. Whereas Sales has the final task of introducing the whole thing to the customer. Last but not least, the solution should be clearly cost-effective. I spend a lot of time dealing with people, something that simply comes naturally to me. I take on board the wishes of our customers and our internal requirements, evaluate them and prioritise which features we should include next. Occasionally someone is disappointed because we have not yet implemented a specific feature. Explaining why everything cannot happen at once is also part of my job.

My path was anything other than a straight one. I completed an apprenticeship as a management assistant in freight forwarding and logistics in parallel with a dual degree in business transportation and logistics. After this I studied industrial engineering. In 2015, I arrived at HANSA‑FLEX via a period of practical experience in Supply Chain Management and, in 2016, I started work in permanent positions, first in Purchasing and in Supply Chain Management. This time was extremely well spent. I learned how goods flows work, where the bottlenecks are in procurement and the importance of operative excellence. It was 2018 before I made the switch to the Digital Solutions department. For me that was the moment when everything came together: business mindset, a thorough grasp of process and my interest in technology, these aspects integrate perfectly in my daily activities.

Digitalisation is good if it makes things simpler, not more complicated. That sounds self-evident, but often it is not. Many digital solutions develop on an office desk and not where they will be used. I am always interested in the question: Where does the aggravation for the customer arise in their everyday tasks? And exactly how can we go about tackling it? The experience gained in logistics is an enormous help to me today because I can see the customer’s problems not only from my seat in front of the computer monitor. I always say: A good product doesn't necessarily have to be impressive; it just needs to work reliably and truly help users in their daily lives.

We have a superb team, everyone has their own different specialisations and inner drive, which makes our work together so fruitful and interesting. We work closely with Development, Sales, the specialist departments and very often directly with customers. An idea passes through many stages: identification of requirements, pilot phase, then feedback and finally further development. This needs patience and a lot of communication. From the beginning, our Digital Solutions department was determined to break out of the ivory tower, i.e. not to think from the individual perspective of a specialist department but to engage at a higher level with people and processes. This many-sidedness enriches my job every day.

In my private life, I am very family oriented. When you have three children, you quickly learn that solutions must be pragmatic and comprehensible. There is no time for rigmarole. I enjoy power training and experimenting with artificial intelligence, and also build my own applications using AI. To be honest, it is difficult to draw a clear line between that and my job: if you deal with digital solutions at work on a daily basis, you look at technology in a different light in your private life too.