Careers at Prezi

Mission

Prezi provides cloud-based presentation software that allows users to create, share and present from anywhere and on any device. The Company uses a software-as-a-service model.

History

Prezi was founded in Budapest, Hungary in 2008 by Peter Arvai (“Arvai”), Peter Halacsy (“Halacsy”) and Adam Somlai-Fischer (“Somlai-Fischer”).

In 2001 digital architect Somlai-Fischer was working on a zooming presentation platform, with a view to developing a more dynamic and effective alternative to the traditional slide or page-based presentation format. Somlai-Fischer used the platform personally for several years, with no intention of monetising the concept.

He, however, met Halacsy in the mid-2000s, with whom he developed the concept further, working in particular on developing a simple editing system for the platform. They later met Swedish businessman Arvai who convinced them to leave their full-time jobs to devote their time fully to the development of Prezi, with the aim of breaking the monopoly of Microsoft’s Power Point in the visualisation of presentations.

Prezi was initially sponsored by think tank and media lab Kitchen Budapest Talent Program and Magyar Telekom, Hungary’s largest telecommunications company. In 2009 the Company received $1.5 million in its first round of funding from Sunstone Capital and Bootstrap Labs. To date, Prezi has received more than $72 million in funding, with $57 million coming in the most recent round of funding in 2014.

Benefits at Prezi

Health insurance Dental insurance Vision insurance Life insurance Disability insurance 401k Plan Stock options Vacation & Paid time off Paid holidays Paid sick days Volunteer Time Off Company social events Free lunch or snacks

Business model of Prezi

Customer Segments

Prezi is targeted at individuals and organisations that are required to make presentations. This largely comprises corporate and academic clients. Prezi is widely utilised by businesses, both internally and externally, including companies such as payment solutions provider Verifone, architectural firm Gensler and technology company Navis. Prezi software has also been used to present at a number of conferences, notably being employed by several speakers at TED Global, including by TED founder Chris Anderson.

Prezi software is also used by in academia by both students and teachers, primarily within higher education institutions and by e-learning platforms. Among Prezi’s reported educational clients are Oregon State University, the University of Edinburgh and Glasgow University.

A number of media outlets are also included among Prezi’s customers, notably business news outlet Bloomberg and UK broadsheet The Guardian. In 2011 The Guardian used Prezi software to create a new world map graphic to accompany its coverage of the newly-independent South Sudan.

Value Propositions

The key value of Prezi’s software is that it can be accessed online from any device and includes simple sharing and editing options that allow teams to collaborate efficiently on group projects.

Channels

Prezi can be accessed online via any device at its desktop and mobile websites at www.prezi.com, as well as through its iOS and Google Play apps, available on mobiles and tablets. Premium subscribers are also able to access the Prezi software offline.

Customer Relationships

Prezi is a self-service platform. Both its basic and premium packages allow users to access the Company’s software products once registration is complete, with premium users able to use Prezi’s presentation tools in offline mode. Companies and organisations that subscribe to the team package require a more personalised service, in particular if the package is to be used by more than five users.

The Prezi website also includes a community section where users can interact with one another and with the Company itself. The Company also runs its own blog to keep users informed with regard to developments and changes to its services, as well as a support forum where users can find troubleshooting guides and tutorials.

Key Activities

Prezi provides cloud-based presentation and visualisation tools for businesses, educators and conferences, and sells licences for its presentation solutions. Its products enable users to create, share and post presentations – including videos, images, and audio – from any device. The Prezi software can also be used to make presentations directly from a web browser via desktop or mobile.

Key Partners

Prezi’s key partners primarily include technology companies and conference organisers. The Company is also a technology partner in the White House ConnectED Initiative, which aims to get high-speed internet and educational technology into classrooms across the US. Under its partnership agreement, Prezi will provide $100 million in Edu Pro licences to hundreds of thousands of high schools across America.

Prezi is also a partner of non-profit conference organiser TED Global. The two collaborated in launching a contest that calls upon the Prezi community to create presentations inspired by five of TED Global’s most renowned talks, with winning presentations being featured on the TED blog and promoted by TED curator Chris Anderson via social media.

Prezi has several technology partners, including Logitech, with which the Company has a co-marketing agreement and integration solutions. Prezi also entered a recent partnership with crowdfunding platform RocketHub. Prezi files can now be embedded directly into crowdfunding pages at the touch of a button.

Key Resources

Prezi’s key resources are its software and technology infrastructure. Searches of records held by the US Patent and Trademark Office identified two patent applications in which Prezi is named as the assignee. These applications relate to zooming and display elements in presentation software.

The Company’s other key resources include its server space and personnel, notably its sales and marketing and engineering and design teams.

Cost Structure

Prezi incurs costs related to the development and maintenance of its software platform, including the employment and retention of engineering, software development and sales and marketing personnel.

The Company operates offices in Budapest, Hungary and San Francisco, California which accrue fixed costs relating to rent and utilities.

Revenue Streams

Prezi generates revenue through its user subscriptions. The Company’s basic subscription package costs £3.17 per month, while the premium package costs £8.42 per month. Both are billed annually. The Company also offers products aimed at teams starting at $795 per year for up to five users.

Our team

Peter Arvai,
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer

info: Peter has served as Prezi’s Chief Executive Officer since the Company’s establishment in 2008. He is also the founder and a director of Swedish healthcare provider Sanocore. Prior to co-founding Prezi, Arvai served as Vice President of Product Management at information technology services provider Mobispine from 2006 to 2008. Arvai was also formerly a trainee at Fuji Xerox, where he worked on a research project relating to the automatic video indexing of meetings. Arvai holds a master’s degree in Media Technology Engineering from Sweden’s Royal Institute of Technology and a master’s degree in Business Administration from Stockholm University.

Peter Halacsy,
Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer

info: Peter has served as Prezi’s Chief Technology Officer since 2008. He also served as the Company’s Head of Product from 2010 to 2012. In 2007 Halacsy founded corporate media lab Kitchen Budapest Talent Program, of which he was the Technology Director until 2008. Prior to this, Halacsy’s focus was on academia, working from 2002 to 2008 as an assistant lecturer at Budapest University in the field of Technology and Economics. Halacsy holds a master’s degree in Engineering and Computer Science from Budapest University and a PhD in Computer Science from Eotvos Lorand University

Adam Somlai-Fischer,
Co-Founder and Principal Artist

info: Adam has been with Prezi since co-founding the Company in 2008. He has held several other roles within the technology and academic sectors. From 2002 to 2011 he was a director of media architecture company Aether Architecture. He was also a program director at Halacsy’s Kitchen Budapest from 2007 to 2009. Somlai-Fischer’s earlier roles relate to academia. He held guest researcher positions at the Swedish Interactive Institute and the Budapest University of Technology and Economics between 2002 and 2006, prior to which we was a teacher at Sweden’s Royal Institute of Technology specialising in Computational Design. Somlai-Fischer is a graduate of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics and the Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden.