“People need tools they can actually use” – Zalan Heil built the ServiceNow powerhouse Sofigate CEE from scratch
Senior experts, high-impact work, real autonomy. Led by a visionary who bet on the cloud before it was cool. Sofigate CEE’s Managing Director Zalan Heil has grown the Hungarian subsidiary from the ground up.
For Zalan Heil, a career in IT Service Management was a coincidence. ServiceNow, however, was a deliberate choice. As a student a couple of decades ago, Zalan worked in a company where he was asked to learn an ITSM tool, one of the predecessors of ServiceNow, in just two weeks because nobody else in the team had the experience at the time.
“And so I decided to ‘boldly go where no man has gone before’ like in my favorite TV series, Star Trek, and kind of accidentally got into this field. Later, I noticed an interesting new player, ServiceNow, and was convinced it was the future. It worked in the cloud which few believed in back then. The climate was very cautious and different – whereas today enterprises see innovation and AI as key for survival,” he says.
It took three years for Zalan to convince companies that cloud services and a new vendor could be trusted. But once the path opened, betting on ServiceNow led him on a successful, over 15-year career path.
Carving out a market advantage through expertise
Over the years, Zalan has lived in Hungary, Romania, Austria, and the UK and served customers in more than ten EU markets plus the United States. He has led multiple companies and worked in “pretty much every role” around the ServiceNow platform, including support, business and technical consulting, architecture, project and service management, sales, and leadership roles.
Zalan’s expertise and know-how culminated in 2017 when he partnered with Sofigate. Three years ago, together with the Sofigate leadership team, he launched Sofigate CEE, the company’s Hungarian subsidiary.
Today, Zalan lives in Budapest and works as the General Manager of Sofigate CEE. He has built a 51-person team of seasoned ServiceNow experts who serve clients across multiple industries. In CEE the average ServiceNow experience is eight years per consultant, about double the market average.
“Our bench is intentionally senior. CEE consultants shape outcomes with trust, clarity and real ownership,” Zalan says.
Remote-first leadership, built on trust
Zalan’s team is spread across EU countries with most team members situated in the Budapest metropolitan area. The team works remotely without a permanent office.
“Our people chose this set-up, and we meet when it makes sense: sometimes for coworking in the city, sometimes for something as simple as a community cooking evening by the Danube. It’s working out really well for us.”
According to satisfaction data points, CEE’s experts thrive under Zalan’s lead: internal surveys show near-universal satisfaction in CEE, and ServiceNow partner CSAT is consistently strong.
“Especially seniors value autonomy and freedom. You have to trust and give space for experienced people to operate and solve problems. I try to match this in my leadership style: to be supportive, available, clear and transparent. I don’t believe in micromanaging.”
Three principles guiding work
When asked how he and the team operate, Zalan points to three principles: start from the outcome, make it human, and build for tomorrow.
“We always start from the outcome, the goal, and work backwards to concrete solutions that help achieve it. Clients usually end up with results they wouldn’t even expect”
By making it human, Zalan means that technology alone always fails.
“People need tools they can actually use. Adoption, enablement, training and engagement have to be designed in from day one.”
The third principle is about looking ahead with architecture: building solutions that live long, staying aligned with both the customer’s and the platform’s roadmaps.
“That’s why you plan for change in advance and avoid unnecessary customisation.”
“Always look on the bright side of life”
Right now, as a parent of five- and seven-year-olds, Zalan says parenting is “his hobby”, as most of his free time is spent with the kids. Away from the laptop he recharges by hiking with them.
Every now and then, when time allows, he enjoys old-school LAN parties with university friends with a couple of rounds of the classic game: Counter-Strike.
“Although it’s turning more into an ’old-boys club’. My reflexes aren’t what they used to be, and now any teenager has a better score than me,” he laughs.
Of all the places he has called home, London remains his favourite. The local mindset and absurd sense of humour may have stayed with him, too.
“My life philosophy is the song title from Monty Python’s Life of Brian: ‘Always look on the bright side of life’. It’s also a very popular song in British funerals,” he smirks.
Want to work with Zalan?
If you’re a ServiceNow expert who values autonomy, clean architecture, and cross-border collaboration under a supportive leader, this might be your next team. Keep an eye on open roles!
Fast-track your AI project: avoid these 4 mistakes
Every month of delay reduces value: achieve day 1 readiness in 3 months
