Featured
Modernising legacy software
Modernising legacy software: when refactoring is enough, when the ‘strangler’ approach is appropriate, when a rebuild is necessary, and how AI is changing the game.
Author · Co-founder
Slawa Ditzel
Executive Partner · nextlevels GmbH
Thinks solutions through from the code to the business model and writes about them for next-levels.de, it-daily.net and ITWelt.at.
- Mönchengladbach & Düsseldorf
- At nextlevels since 2013
At a glance
- 47
- Posts
- 2
- Guest articles
- 7
- Topic areas
- 300+
- Projects since 2013 (nextlevels)
- latest post
Focus areas
- ERP integration
- Replacing legacy systems
- Shopware 6
- AI agents
- GEO & AI visibility
- BFSG & accessibility
About Slawa
Slawa Ditzel is co-founder and managing director (CEO) of nextlevels. Together with Paul Kalisch, he founded the digital agency in Mönchengladbach in 2013 and has been responsible for its strategic direction and development ever since.
As CEO, he works at the interface between technology and business development. He helps companies and brands master the challenges of digital transformation – from custom software development and enterprise solutions to online marketing and SEO.
Before founding nextlevels, Slawa Ditzel gained experience in the software and app industry, including in the Sage Software environment. This technical background is still part of the way he works today: he stays close to development and thinks solutions through consistently, from the code to the business model.
His aim is to treat technology not as an end in itself but as a lever for measurable growth. He relies on pragmatic, scalable solutions and a collaborative partnership on an equal footing.
Career
- since 2017Managing director, nextlevels GmbH
- 2013Founded nextlevels with Paul Kalisch
- before 2013Software and app industry, including work around Sage Software
Awards (nextlevels)
- 2025Kununu Top Company 2025
- 2018Innovationspreis-IT Best of 2018 (Apps)
- 2015Innovationspreis-IT Best of 2015 (Web 2.0 & Social)
Guest articles & media
Expert articles by Slawa and coverage of nextlevels in IT and business media (in German).
- Report · Ziel: barrierefrei
Barrierefreiheit prüfen: Kostenloser BFSG-Check
Read article (opens Ziel: barrierefrei in a new tab) - Guest article · it-daily.net
Wie der Mittelstand Altsysteme schrittweise statt per Big Bang ablöst
Read article (opens it-daily.net in a new tab) - Guest article · ITWelt.at
ERP-Integration: warum Monitoring und Retry wichtiger sind als die Schnittstelle selbst
Read article (opens ITWelt.at in a new tab) - For journalists
Quote, interview or expert article?
Slawa writes vendor-neutral expert articles, tailored to the format and audience of your publication.
partner@next-levels.de
Interview & article topics
- ERP integration in mid-sized companies
- Replacing legacy systems
- E-commerce with Shopware 6
- AI agents in the enterprise
- GEO and AI visibility
- BFSG and digital accessibility
- Security in web and shop projects
- Digitalisation of mid-sized companies
Posts by Slawa
7 of 47 posts
Mostly writes about
- 18 posts
Software
Digital transformation for SMBs: legacy modernization, process automation and custom software development — pragmatic approaches with measurable ROI.
All posts - 13 posts
Commerce & Shopware
Hands-on Shopware 6 expertise: migration, performance tuning, multi-country setups, checkout optimization and plugin development — from real 100k+ product projects.
All posts - 7 posts
KI & Automation
AI for e-commerce and SMBs: chatbots, marketing automation, personalization and AI integration — real-world use cases with measurable ROI, no hype.
All posts
Talk to Slawa
30 minutes with the management, no pitch: tell us what is coming up and get an honest assessment of which path is worth it for you.
