Pager Services is dedicated to connecting the present with the future

In a robust looking building in Gemert, less than half an hour away from High Tech Campus Eindhoven, we find Pager Services headquarters. Initially, it seems like an odd choice for a high-tech company, this quiet village in the Dutch countryside. However, once we have gotten to know the company a bit better, choosing Gemert actually makes a lot of sense. It perfectly fits Pager Services’ vision, as well as the future that they look to confidently.

The building resembles the men whom we’re going to meet today. From the outside it looks reliable, calm and presentable. On the inside exciting things are happening. It offers room to grow and a lot of freedom, which is exactly what these pioneers in pagers are envisioning. From Gemert, it is an easy commute to those locations that are important for business – both when it comes to knowledge, as well as the dealer network – while all personnel are home in a jiffy. And family is important, all three gentlemen agree. That focus for welfare and wellbeing is exactly what makes them so proud of their products. Because people are ultimately what pagers are all about. Aid workers and dependents trust on the little, handy devices daily and entrust them with their futures.

“The pager is still the only completely reliable communication tool”

“Most people don’t even know that pagers play such an enormous part in our society.” says Piet Schueler, the company’s commercial director.
“The only time you hear something about anything, is when things go wrong. The fact that there’s hardly any news that involves the pager, is very telling.” adds founder and managing director André van den Elzen.
“It is still the only completely reliable way of communicating. Some hospitals tried to switch to a mobile network, but had to fall back to pagers. The mobile system just wasn’t as fool proof as the paging system.”
Frans Kanters, technical director, chips in with clear pride in his voice: ”A pager is more than a beeper. This device offers possibilities few yet know about. The common denominator of those possibilities, is that it can win valuable time and thus lives.”

Versatile and responsible, you can count on the people at Pager Services

We meet the men in the meeting room of the head office in Gemert. The room is tastefully decorated and shows that eye for detail, that keeps coming back to us throughout the organisation. The innovative products that will be presented at the end of 2019 are not the only things that have been well thought out. The corporate structure clearly is as well. André van den Elzen tells us that no one has ever left Pager Services, except to retire. That is quite an achievement for a company that has existed for twenty years. The reason? André has always given his staff members a lot of room for individual contribution and involvement.
“Every single one of our staff is versatile and independently deployable. They themselves determine how they achieve their goal, as long as the result is what it should be. They can therefore take full responsibility for their product and methodology. We have created a close-knit team with overlapping areas of expertise, which enables them to back each other up and form a stable unit together.”
“As a result, we do not have middle management,” Piet says, “and that is how we can guarantee that our company always runs. Even in the unlikely event that all three of us are incapacitated, all will just go on. That makes Pager Services as reliable as her product. We always work.”

Time to get to the forefront

“Because of the incomparable freedom that we offer, there is a lot of room for creativity. That enables us to come up with ideas that will take pager functionality to a higher level.” Frans says. “The possibilities that we are developing at the moment, will revolutionise the way we organise human safety.”
Which brings us to the reason why we are sitting here today. Pager Services is about to enter a new phase in her existence. Up till now, she, like her product, has been doing her important work in the background, quietly and steadily. However, lately so many exciting things have been happening within the company, that Pager Services wants to let everybody know what’s going on. As said, a new product portfolio will be presented within half a year, which will totally change the pager market. The company is also going to heavily invest in their dealer partnerships, in order to be able to serve the market even better. But there’s more. After all these years, André will gradually step back and Piet and Frans have joined Pager Services.

“Our product connects people at times when they need it the most”

Committed to Connect

André took his time to find both gentlemen.
“It is important for the continuity of our company and maintaining our high service level to uphold our corporate culture. Our people are our strength. And continuity is our ultimate goal. It was therefore essential, that any new people would fit in seamlessly.”
“Continuity is exactly the reason why I will be financially participating in this company.” Frans says. “That way I demonstrate my complete commitment to Pager Services.”
André has known Frans for over twenty years and Piet has been a frequent visitor at the office for years as well. Plenty of time to find out that both men share the values which characterise André and his staff. That the three of them are a perfect match shines through in the in depth interviews that follow. More often than not, they answer personal questions in practically the same words. They obviously have the same priorities, both in their personal and their professional lives.

We are 100% committed and involved

“We want to be there for the people around us, fully, always.” Piet says, while his two companions nod appreciatively. “That is exactly what our slogan ‘Committed to Connect’ means.” André reacts. “We are 100% committed and involved; we are dedicated to connect with our network in everything.” “That doesn’t only apply to us as a company,” Frans adds, “but also to our product. Our product connects people at times when they need it the most.”