Employees – Mike Dunleavy.

Here at Central, people are at the heart of the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of everything we do.

We started out on our IT journey back in 1991, and our mission and ethos haven’t changed. We’re a family-run firm that pride ourselves on our integrity, honesty, and objectivity – and we make IT stress free by keeping it as simple as possible.

But it’s our people who make this all possible. Get to know them more in our staff spotlight.

Name: Mike Dunleavy
Job title: Client director

Sum up your role at Central in one sentence:

As client director, my role involves dealing with lots of people and building relationships – I work with customers and partners to understand their requirements and help devise the best solutions that will support their business on its technical journey, long-term.

What three words would your colleagues use to describe you?

I’ve been at Central for almost 15 years and my colleagues often call me the ‘fountain of knowledge’, or some use my other title – ‘the muscle man’.

And what do you enjoy most about your job?

I love working with the people – customers, partners, and staff alike.

I also set up Central’s apprenticeship 12 years ago, which is a real highlight. I nurtured many of the staff in the technical team when they came on as juniors, and many of them now have senior roles within the business – I feel like a proud dad.

As well as the people, technology is also a big factor. I enjoy working in a fast-paced, ever-changing environment – it keeps you on your toes, and it’s rewarding to be able to help our customers grow and streamline their business using technology.

Check your phone, what was the last emoji you sent?

The face with the peeking eye.

Who was or is your biggest inspiration?

My wife. She never gives up and makes me a better person – always inspiring me to think bigger.

You’re hosting a three-course dinner party, what’s on the menu?

To start it would be antipasti. For the main, it would be my seafood spaghetti – it’s a speciality in our house – with garlic bread. And for dessert, it would be something refreshing like lemon cheesecake.

Back to Central, what makes the company stand out?

The people. We pride ourselves on customer relationships – seeing our customers as partners. We work with them and get to understand the intricacies of their organisation and we always offer solutions which help and add value – never dictating solutions and using unnecessary jargon.

Tell us a fun fact about yourself we might not know:

I have never been an animal lover, and we recently got a dog. I say we, my wife brought it home without telling me. Now our little Cockapoo, Lily, is like one of the kids and gets all my attention.

What would the title of your autobiography be?

Make it happen.

Central’s mission is to ‘restore faith in IT’ – tell us more about what this means to you:

This goes back to my earlier point about supporting customers with the solutions their organisation would benefit from, both in the short and long term – it’s not about the sale, it’s about adding real value to their business.

Relating to this, we’re always forward-looking in our approach – showing how a solution will meet the requirements and objectives of the company, whether that’s saving costs, gaining efficiencies, or maximising return on investment.

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