They started as system administrators in Emilia Romagna and today they are present in 152 countries worldwide. That of FlashStart Group, a company focused on the online security, it is the story of a project that has been able to leverage Italian expertise, the Made in Italy, enriching it with a global mindset. It is told to Assoprovider, the CEO, Francesco Collini:
"We were founded in 2001 as a systems integration company. At that time, we were pure system administrators and worked in Emilia Romagna, between Piacenza and Rimini. For the first eight years, we installed firewalls and DNS in the cloud. In 2012, we decided to work on our own prototype with the aim of increasing security in the use of the cloud for our companies. This is how the FlashStart solution was born," says Collini.
How FlashStart works
FlashStart leverages artificial intelligence to categorize dangerous domains and investigates Internet activities through machine learning to prevent DNS resolution of dangerous or inappropriate sites. Thanks to its application, CloudBox, which can be physical or virtual, it facilitates the optimization of DNS request and resolution operations. Additionally, its network, composed of various Data Centers on every continent, "is able to ensure a stable and fast service globally":
"In the early years, we focused on the Italian market. In 2016, we were approached by Bintec, a German company leading in router production. They told us they were not satisfied with their security solutions and wanted to try ours. The fact that a German company was looking at an Italian tech solution made us proud. We then opened our first database in Frankfurt," continues Collini.
International expansion
The first international client shifted the focus of Collini and his team from Italy to abroad: "It became a challenge for us. We told ourselves that if the solution works well for Germany, it can work well worldwide," recalls Collini. From there, the company began to open offices abroad, first in the United Kingdom, then in Canada, and later expand into Asia. Meanwhile, the team is growing and today employs 20 people (average age 25-35 years):
"The Pandemic and the Italian management of the health crisis accelerated our expansion abroad and allowed us to learn the lesson of flexibility and adaptability. If you can challenge yourself every day, understand how people think in each nation where you offer your solutions, you can compete even against American multinationals. We are all good at presenting products and creating high-performance software, but few know how to listen. Listening to customers, as well as to your collaborators, is essential to project yourself into the future," advises Collini.
The meeting with Assoprovider
"The Titanic sank in one night, whereas many small boats would have managed to save themselves. In our vision, local operators, when they join forces, can prevail and create a culture of trust with customers. That's why we chose to join Assoprovider, after reading a 'post' by Marcello Cama (vice president and communication manager, ed.)," says Collini.
FlashStart Group has strengthened its relationship with Assoprovider to become one of its partners.
What do Collini and his team expect from the association of proximity operators?
"First of all, to support us in spreading the culture of cybersecurity, an increasingly decisive asset today for every company. And then to support us in enhancing the value of Made in Italy. Today we are chosen by over 700 partners, but we still suffer from the Italian culture, which considers a company successful only if it has a mega headquarters and a beautiful image, without truly considering the performance and quality of its services. This is an old stereotype that does not exist abroad and we must fight it together, because it limits the growth of our companies," concludes Collini.
