Outsourcing&More 44 January-February 2019

www.outsourcingportal.eu

No. 1 (44) | January – February 2019 ISSN 2083-8867 PRICE EUR 6 (INCL. 8% VAT)

WE ARE BUILDING THE FUTURE IN ŁÓDŹ – interview with Hanna Zdanowska, President of the City of Łódź page 26 BUSINESS: Marketing 2019 and why there will be fewer businesses around |page 34

INVESTMENTS: Offices of the future |page 68

CAREER & DEVELOPMENT: Recruitment from scratch |page 88

Editor-in-chief Dymitr Doktór dymitr.doktor@proprogressio.pl Managing Editor Kamila Czyżyk kamila.czyzyk@proprogressio.pl DTP Iwona Nowakowska Advertising reklama@outsourcingandmore.pl Published by PRO PROGRESSIO Editorial address ul. Sobieskiego 104/29 00-764 Warszawa www.proprogressio.pl

P: +48 22 213 02 45 F: +48 22 213 02 49 editor@proprogressio.pl www.outsourcingandmore.pl Print Drukarnia Jantar Legal support Chudzik i Wspólnicy An electronic version of the Magazine see the website www.outsourcingandmore.pl Selected photos come from shutterstock.com website.

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Dear Readers, The year 2019, which began a few weeks ago, will certainly be another year of changes and challenges on the market of modern business services. The BSS sector and interest in outsourcing are growing exponentially in Europe, which translates into the development of local labour markets.

Poland is one of the largest European markets on which it centralizes and from which business processes are supported.

Poland is still in the interest of large international corporations, an example of which is the Equinix investment in Warsaw. Robert Busz – Head of Equinix in Poland describes the project of this company in the SSC Lions interview presented on our pages.

For three years, the January edition of Outsourcing&More has its premiere during The BSS Forum – a conference of the sector of modern business services, which opens a wide range of business events dedicated to the subject of services in Poland and Europe. This year’s The BSS Forum takes place in the city of Łódź and hence our main interview is a conversation with the President of Łódź – Mrs. Hanna Zdanowska.

In the business section of the Magazine, I invite you to read the publications devoted to “Y monsters”, technologies used in digital factories, office space arrangement, but also legal changes announced for 2019 and the recruitment of specialists in the training industry. We also have collected great publications from Lithuania and Romania.

I wish you an interesting reading of all publications in the current issue, and for a daily handful of information from the business services industry, please visit www.outsourcingportal.eu.

Authors: Mariusz Pultyn • Monika Smulewicz • Laisvis Makulis • Robert Busz • Izabela Górecka-Olejniczak • Damian Kedziora • Tom Quigley • Hanna Zdanowska • Tomasz Bereźnicki • Szymon Stadnik • Nina Gonera • Artur Sutor • Noemi Chudzik • Tomasz Bułhak • Bartłomiej Zagrodnik • Loredana Niculae • Michał Furmanek • Agnieszka Pastuła • Aleksandra Kowalczyk • Małgorzata Polzenius

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Dymitr Doktór Editor in Chief

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INDEX

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10 14 16 20 22 26 34 36 42 44 48 50

BUSINESS NEWS

Technology Parks Rediscovered The Technology Parks Forum took place in Kielce on 14th November 2018.

What are main obstacles to robotization and how to overcome them?

It is quite simple to identify main reasons why companies go for robotization.

We raised these Monsters Generation Y has already made a place for itself on the labour market, and the new generation – Generation Z – is slowly stepping onto the professional stage.

The digital factory – the perfect marriage of hardware and software Software connects the world, hardware will act independently. Equipment, machines and even entire factories are becoming smart.

RPA in a cloud streamlining future service deliveries Substituting human workforce with robotic software is seen a vital component of the Ninth Innovation Wave, reorganizing and redefining the perception of best operational practices the modern corporate world is seeking for.

An American IT giant with its Operations Center in Warsaw Interview with Robert Busz – Managing Director of Equinix.

MAIN INTERVIEW We are building the future in Łódź Wiktor Doktór, CEO of Pro Progressio talks with Hanna Zdanowska – President of the City of Łódź.

Marketing 2019 and why there will be fewer businesses around It’s that time again when we all like to look into the year ahead.

Choosing LEAN, Outsourcing or maybe RPA as a source of competitive advantage?

We discussed with Tomasz Bereźnicki (DPC Polska) and Szymon Stadnik (FRISTA).

How to win the war for talents?

In this day and age, digital transformation is everywhere. It is impacting all processes of modern organizations in fundamental ways.

Kitchen – the beating heart of the office Where do employees usually meet? Where do the best ideas germinate, born in informal meetings? The answer is simple – over a cup of coffee, in the kitchen.

An office worthy of talents The tight labour market is changing the way developers think.

What will 2019 bring to entrepreneurs changes to law and what follows?

For years, each new year brought numerous legal changes to entrepreneurs which often significantly influence their operations. 2019 shall be no different.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

52 54 58 62 66 68 72 76 80 82 84 88 92 94

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

INVESTMENT NEWS

Demand for Warsaw offices is higher than supply Warsaw office market sees record-breaking results.

On the right track to economic development The results of implementing the City’s economic strategy allow to draw an optimistic vision for the future.

Poznan improves for residents and investors The priority of Poznan is the quality of life in the city.

Romania: 100 years of development and counting The country is recognized worldwide for being one of the most active IT&C hubs in Europe and for being a very attractive destination for outsourcing. How did that happen?

Offices of the future – new technologies and trends in office space design A dynamic development in digital technologies has revolutionized the way we work.

2018 – a year to remember for Lithuanian Global Business Services Asked to describe 2018 in one word only, that word would be “spectacular.”

Lublin designing the future of the city These days Lublin, similarly to other big cities, faces the challenge of preparing development vision for the years to come.

The Łódź plan for Work Life Balance – a plan for districts and residents in the centre of interest Human resources are the biggest challenge for business development in cities.

HR NEWS Compensation & Benefits Specialist. Wellbeing in the organization – the role of the compensation and benefits specialist Results of the “Four Personalities, One Labour Market” survey show that 67% of workers wish to receive modern benefits.

Recruitment from scratch. How to recruit with a candidate-oriented approach?

Employee experience has become an essential component of HR strategies.

Recruitment of specialists in the training industry Interview with Małgorzata Polzenius, Managing Director, Hutchinson Institute.

Recruitment ads

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BUSINESS

BUSINESS NEWS

JOINED FORCES OF JLL AND REAS JLL has decided to enter the residential market. With the acquisition of REAS, JLL will become the first advisory firm to operate on all segments of the real estate business in Poland. Working within the structures of JLL, REAS will be responsible for developing Living Services in both Poland, and Central & Eastern Europe.

So far, the two segments of the real estate market – commercial and residential – have been functioning in parallel. However, the activity of international developer groups and investment funds on the residential market in Poland has been on the increase for a number of years. Importantly,

investors that have been primarily focused on the commercial real estate market, are now analyzing the potential and opportunities offered by the residential sector. Apartments are becoming fully fledged investment products and more frequently complement commercial real estate portfolios.

As a pioneer in the real estate consultancy market, JLL is accustomed to leading the field into new sectors.

This is the case in the company’s foray into the residential sector and its plan to increase its activity in this market segment worldwide. The knowledge and experience that REAS, as the leader in residential consultancy in Poland, will

bring to JLL, will undoubtedly contribute to the development of these services throughout Central and Eastern Europe.

JLL is the first company on the Polish market to handle all sectors of the real estate business.

The entire REAS team will continue its activities within the structures of JLL in Poland, under the brand name REAS | JLL Residential Advisory. The founders of REAS will take up senior positions in JLL in Poland: Kazimierz Kirejczyk will act as Vice President of the Board at JLL Poland, while Paweł Sztejter will serve as the executive director responsible for managing the REAS team and the JLL Living Services.

ADAPTIVE GROUP AWARDED

BY THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS BUSINESS ASSOCIATIONS IN LODZKIE REGION! On the 14th of December 2018, the most prestigious business associations have organized an award ceremony to reward companies which have a huge impact on the development of the Lodzkie region and the local community. Adaptive Group has received the Rajmund Rembieliński Laurel in the “Young Company” category – for enterprise which has impressing achievements on the Polish/international market and implements innovations.

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Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

FEDERATION WELCOMES SWISS GOVERNMENT’S APPROACH FOR BLOCKCHAIN REGULATION The Swiss Blockchain Federation welcomes the report published today by the Federal Blockchain/ICO Working Group and supports the path being taken by the Federal Council. The report picks up on several of the points raised in the white paper published by the Blockchain Taskforce (the predecessor to the Swiss Blockchain Federation) in early 2018. The Swiss Blockchain Federation is now calling for the report to be rapidly put into action with a binding agenda, so that blockchain companies can enjoy legal certainty in the near future. This is fundamental to further developing Switzerland as a blockchain location.

such as a proposed change in civil law for transferring tokens. The Federal Council’s report also concurs with the ana­­ lysis that it does not seem necessary to change anti-money laundering legislation at present, as the existing rules can also be applied to new business models.

POLISH BRANDS CONTINUE ENTERING THE ROMANIAN MARKET

The Polish sportswear retailer, 50 Style, opened its first store in Romania, in Bucharest’s Iris Shopping Center, Titan area, on a surface of 315 sq m According to experts from Colliers InterThe Swiss Blockchain Federation will national Romania, which advised 50 Style continue to support the regulatory work in leasing retail space, the brand’s entry constructively with the aim of strength- to the local market confirms the attracening and expanding the attractiveness tiveness of the Eastern European region, of Switzerland as a blockchain Location. especially Romania, where consumption has been steadily increasing in recent years. 50 Style is part of the Polish Marketing Investment Group and has ADAPTIVE NEW SERVICE LINE over 150 shops in Poland and Lithuania.

‘GPO AS A SERVICE’ In recent years Switzerland has become one of the world’s leading locations for blockchain companies and business models. These companies need legal certainty. The publication of the report by the Federal Council marks an important step in this direction and provides a detailed survey of the legal challenges that these new business models create.

The report does not call for a separate blockchain law, preferring to amend existing civil and financial market law.

This reflects the objective of setting the framework conditions so that Switzerland can strengthen and extend its leading position in blockchain.

The fact that Switzerland is taking a pragmatic approach is to be welcomed. For Heinz Tännler, President of the Swiss Blockchain Federation, things are clear: Legal implementation now needs to follow on quickly from this report. Switzerland needs this certainty as the basis for further development.

The 10-point program launched recently by the Swiss Blockchain Federation to strengthen blockchain technology in Switzerland also calls for a binding agenda from the regulator. This position paper spells out the social policy, regulatory and public interest issues that need to be settled if Switzerland is to be a successful blockchain location.

Since November 2018, Adaptive Group have started a new service line – GaaS (GPO as a Service). It is the response to market need for Global Process Owner role focused on a comprehensive and robust process management, including its transformation.

As the recent market research performed by Adaptive Solutions Advisory Group shows, the need comes from constant expansion of scope of responsibilities and end-to-end ownership over the processes in Global Business Services organisations.

In addition to 50 Style, the Marketing Investment Group also includes Sizeer, a multi-brand chain store for sportstyle category. On the Romanian market, Sizeer has already opened 5 stores since the beginning of 2018, with Colliers International Romania having advised the leasing transactions in the shopping centers Sun Plaza, Mega Mall, Parklake, Shopping City Sibiu and City Park Mall in Constanta.

Among the expanding Polish brands we see LPP group as well, which has brought five brands in Romania – Reserved, The service is tailored to the needs Sinsay, Mohito, Cropp and House – and of the client, however Adaptive Group which has leased, as advised by Colliers, has also predefined areas of services, e.g.: 22,100 sqm in an industrial project that is currently being developed • process performance management, by the Belgian company WDP in Stefanestii de Jos, Ilfov County, to support • control & compliance, the Polish group’s e-commerce activi• transformation, ties. Other existing brands are Pepco, • process documentation, with 204 stores open nationwide, CCC • standardisation & harmonisation, with over 50 stores and 4F with 4 stores.

• scope assessment.

Several points in the federal report have been taken up from the white paper of the Blockchain Taskforce, out of which the Swiss Blockchain Federation emerged at the end of October 2018,

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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BUSINESS

TECHNOLOGY PARKS REDISCOVERED

The Technology Parks Forum took place in Kielce on 14th November 2018.

It was the last event in The BSS Tour Poland series of conferences held and organised in 2018 by the Pro Progressio Foundation.

The main objective of the Forum was to discuss the current situation in Technology Parks in Poland and their relations with Special Economic Zones as well as to look at the internal working environment with start-up companies.

companies were among the invited of the Management Board of Bydgoguests and speakers in Kielce. szcz Industrial and Technological Park, Marek Cieślak, President of the ManageThe substantive part was opened with ment Board of Bionanopark in Łódź, a presentation by Marcin Włodarczyk and Szymon Mazurkiewicz, Director from Colliers International, who illus- of Kielce Technology Park, talked trated the development of Zones and about the differences in the operation Parks over the last 24 years. Włodarczyk’s of Technology, Science and Industrial speech was the basis for a series Parks. The discussion made it possible of discussion panels, each of which to draw a conclusion that Science Parks concerned important functions that in particular have an infrastructure that Parks perform within the framework can be used to a much greater extent of their operational activities. than is currently the case.

The Forum was opened jointly

by Tadeusz Sayor, Deputy President of Kielce, and Szymon Mazurkiewicz, Director of Kielce Technology Park, who hosted the Forum. Presidents and Directors of a number of Technology Parks from all over Poland, Presidents of Special Economic Zones and repre- The first discussion addressed sentatives of real estate agencies the professionalisation of Parks, during as well as consulting and coworking which Andrzej Półgrabski, President

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The second session concerned support for start-ups and business acceleration in Parks. The speakers clearly defined

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

time periods dedicated to acceleration and incubation stages of companies operating in Parks. In the case of acceleration, the period is up to 3 months, although there were also examples of 6-month periods, whereas incubation does not exceed 3 years. The discussion in this area was summed up by Wojciech Przybylski, who said that the definition of a start-up was distorted by public funds.

A start-up is a company that does not yet know what it will generate money from, but it will earn a lot and quickly.

Forum participants could also learn about various forms of support for start-ups in Parks and about the fact that there are dedicated supervisors in each Park to co­­ operate with entrepreneurs. Depending on the Park, one supervisor takes care of 5 to 10 different companies, providing support in the form of mentoring and

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

consulting, but also helping to refine a result of the work of individual office the sales and development model. operators as well as large networks which, apart from coworking, offer office In the second half of the day, topics space in the form of serviced offices, related to coworking and serviced such as WeWork. offices, which are developing increasingly faster and more dynamically The BSS Tour Kielce: The Technology in Poland, both in Technology Parks, but Parks Forum showed that the activities also in office buildings located outside of Technology Parks are of interest the Parks, appeared in discussions. t o v a r i o u s o rg a n i s a t i o n s, b o t h A discussion dedicated to the working larger and smaller ones. However, environment was particularly interesting, as Pro Progressio research shows, during which Ewelina Solecka (Work- the interest in the Parks themselves has place Consulting Manager, Nowy Styl fallen over the last two years. The same Group) and Karina Trafna (President applies to branch literature on Parks. of the Board, KIDS&Co.) took the floor. The number of Parks has also decreased Radosław Szwugier (Founder, CoSpot) and it can be assumed that in the coming spoke about coworking offices, years we will see further changes saying that there are currently about in the functioning of these organisations.

300 of them in Poland. According to his estimates, this number is likely See you at The BSS Tour conferences to double in the coming year. This is in 2019!

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BUSINESS

WHAT ARE MAIN OBSTACLES TO ROBOTIZATION AND HOW TO

OVERCOME THEM? It is quite simple to identify main reasons why companies go for robotization. I want tackle a more challenging topic – an analysis of main obstacles companies have to overcome to succeed with robotization.

WHY SHOULD I BOTHER? Although robotization can be now regarded as a mainstream tool for enterprise digital transformation it is sometimes difficult to find a reliable source of information on tangible benefits robotization can bring. There are obvious reasons like reduction of the cost of operations, improvement of quality and efficiency and quite many non-obvious that I briefly discuss below.

In short, main reasons that companies should be driven by in making a decision about robotization are: • It is difficult for a company to automate to the required extent with IT, and not all automation is economically justified that way.

• Company is looking for quick wins against labor market challenges (attrition, rising wages, training, etc.).

• A will to release employees from the most tedious and repetitive tasks.

• Increase in efficiency.

• Improvement of quality.

• Taking a first step to try and experiment with AI. I’m sure that reading this article will alleviate the doubts you might have before starting robotization.

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Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

LACK OF KNOWLEDGE OF ASSESSMENT OF ROBOTIC POTENTIAL The general rule of thumb says 20–30% of all office work is in range of robotic technology, but actual potential can be much more than that depending on your specific application environment. There is very short questionnaire that can help you identify processes that are best for robotization:

LACK OF ROBOTIC SKILLS

Here you also have couple of choices. The most obvious one is that you may decide • Process is highly standardized, docu- you don’t need robotic skills at all and let somebody else do the robotization for you, ideally providing robots-as-a-service. This is the best choice when robots are not your mented and stable. core business or your scale of operations does not exceed hundreds of employees.

• Input data are digitized.

• Process requires significant amount On the opposite you can try to establish Center of Robotic Excellence yourself of repetitive manual labor. by acquiring talents on the market or by asking for some consulting on how to estab• Automated system is relatively stable lish and grow such competencies. in terms of adding new functionalities and in near future there are no signifi­ cant architectural changes planned.

• Automated process is human error prone (requires large amount of data input, especially sensitive like POTENTIAL COLLISION WITH OTHER DIGITAL amounts, dates or clients’ IDs).

TRANSFORMATION PROJECTS • Automated process covers few IT As said above robots are now a part systems what requires an employee to be able to multitask and frequently FEAR OF IMPLEMENTING of the mainstream digital transforma“TEMPORARY” SOLUTION THAT switch between the applications. tion tools and should be used as complimentary solution to other automation • Automated process has significant STAYS FOREVER volume fluctuations what makes Because robots work without efforts. The best way to avoid potential adequate staffing challenging changing of underlying IT systems and collision is to simply put robots on your for Customer. somehow cover inefficiencies of current transformation roadmap after properly user interfaces can be perceived assessing their advantages over other If your processes share at least some as “temporary” solution until “real auto- activities. Big transformation projects of those characteristics they are most mation” is being introduced. The truth usually take some time to implement, probably good for robots. is that robots are fully fledged auto- so robots are ideal bridging solution mation solution that in most cases has as I mentioned in previous paragraph.

After such brief assessment you can no alternative. This is because usually Robots are also perfect to fill some gaps go two ways mostly depending on your there are valid reasons that automated in ergonomics of newly implemented organization culture – either find some low-level interfaces haven’t been built solutions, especially when some diffiadvisory help to analyze in detail or systems haven’t been changed cult decisions on scope had to be all your potential upfront or start due to sometimes prohibitive cost. made right before deployment of big small with first process and robotize On the other hand robots by their nature new transformational project. Robots it and then build your experience are extremely lightweight and can be can give you some time to think about in agile and iterative process of contin- a great bridging solution until those target employee experience when uous improvement. “ultimate” solution are being delivered. interacting with newly built systems.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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BUSINESS

DIFFICULTIES OF CHANGE MANAGEMENT One of the most important issues to be addressed before robots are introduced is what to do with employees’ time released by robots. This problem is less pressing nowadays as there is usually much more work to be done in mostly growing companies than employees able to process additional volumes. If that is a case you simply have to reallocate work giving people more interesting, creative and value adding work. When robotization is done in agile way the change is gradual and continuous, so people have enough time to adapt and usually come back with more ideas of what more robots can do.

If your robotization project is going to be implemented in more big-bang way or you are mostly motivated by reduction of your staff you might need to plan employee relocation as one of components of digital transformation of your organization. There is a plenty of advisory help you can find to help you deal with change management, however I would strongly recommend to go for gradual and iterative approach with robotic implementations, because it better aligns with robots’ lightweight nature.

SUBSTANTIAL UPFRONT INVESTMENT

FEAR OF DEFEAT

All new activities bear some risk of Author: Even if robotic infrastructure is usually failure, but it is just stating the obvious. much less costly than typical IT solu- Why I’m convinced this risk is much tions it still requires some servers, either lower with properly introduced robotic on-premise or in cloud, some robotic process automation? licenses and above all skilled team to keep thing running smoothly.

The most important reason is something I mentioned before – robots by their There are some ways to overcome nature are aligned with agile paradigm. this issue – one has been briefly This means they can be implemented discussed above – you can simply find in much shorter times and with much a provider of robotic services and pay less cost and much less stakeholders only for the work robots will do for involved than typical automation activyou. Then your upfront investment is ities. This helps to achieve positive feedclose to zero. back loop which provides that small robotization success leads to another You can also invest a little more and small robotization success and evengo for trial or free versions of robotic tually becomes great transformational platforms with lightweight infrastructure success of all organization. in the cloud good enough to conduct Proof of Concept of robotic process auto- If you are dealing with other issues mation and then try to scale it up. This that hinder starting your robotization approach is quite popular, but I wouldn’t journey, please do not hesitate to share recommend it, as results of small scale those. I’m sure we’ll find the way to overimplementations can be very misleading come them. when complexity increases.

Robots are really your employees’ best Again there is a third way to tackle friends! the problem – especially when your organization has a culture of creating more formal business cases for potential projects. In most cases properly assessed costs are greatly exceeded by the benefits of robotization, so upfront investment pays off in relatively short period of time.

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Mariusz Pultyn, CTO, Digital Teammates

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

CORPORATE INTERIOR DESIGN

+48 501 082 022 the_design_group

www.thedesigngroup.pl

facebook.com/thedesigngrouppl

The Design Group TDG

Generation Y has already made a place for itself on the labour market, and the new generation – Generation Z – is slowly stepping onto the professional stage. However, their emergence on the market is met by constant complaints of employers – working with them is simply impossible, they are so entitled, so impatient, they are good for nothing, when we were their age, we... and so on.

BUSINESS

WE RAISED THESE

MONSTERS

“

”

ARE THEY RIGHT TO DO SO? Generational change has always been present throughout the history of human kind, and the emergence of a new generation on the labour market has evoked strong emotions since time immemorial. I remember my first job like it was yesterday. I wanted to do everything I could, and my colleagues – who were in their 40s – kept saying: “Slow down, don’t get ahead of yourself, you’ll have time for everything...” And I was not born with a smartphone in my hand.

Every generation has its own time.

Every generation wants to change the world...

They grew up under the influence of video games, Harry Potter and talent shows and iEverything – iPhones, iPods, iPads and iTunes. They did not have to fight for “freedom” or spill their blood in wars and revolutions. They take advantage of the benefits of the world. They have everything before they even realise that they want it – we, their parents, saw to it. That is why they want to have and achieve everything immediately.

They don’t want to wait. They are unable to accept the vision of long-term career development through small steps.

WHERE IS THE CHALLENGE?

Hard demographic data shows that For them, new and modern technologies by 2050, the 1980–1995 age group are ordinary and common – they have will account for half of the professionaccompanied them since birth – and they ally active people in the labour market. are accustomed to the rapid flow of infor- The young generation will certainly mation, they never really had to wait change the face of the labour market, for anything. and – above all – the employer-employee relationship and the approach to work The main characteristic feature of this as a means and not an end. generation is change – a state that they like the most, because constant experi­­ They appreciate flexibility and indementation enables them to develop pendence – they don’t want to walk and gives them a source of emotions, “on a leash” held by feudal lord-like which distinguishes them from today’s managers, focused only on their goals, 40–60-year olds, who are often resistant targets and their own bonuses or RCP and hesitant to change. systems. They want to make an impact, they want to collaborate, create, partici­­ They learn quickly, because they are pate and help. They have their expecopen to development and they consider tations regarding business ethics and knowledge to be a basic distinguishing corporate social responsibility. feature on the labour market. They have the ability to quickly find the necessary And this is not going to change because information. They are aware of the fact we say that it should. We must change that the world around them is changing our approach to the world. We should at an astounding pace, which is why work on this together. Generations they treat knowledge itself as a quickly have always had and will always have depreciating asset. their own needs and ambitions, and

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

they have always been perceiving the objectives and goals set before them in different ways. We should learn how to cooperate between generations, how to skilfully exploit the potential of all generations and how to use it to establish a new quality of business.

What seems to be the key to success is mutual respect, creating optimal working conditions and an atmosphere of mutual trust while respecting the needs and preferences of various representatives of the labour market.

WHERE DO WE START? First and foremost – we start with listening, understanding and openness.

We need to let go of the control, give them trust and a sense of influence. Let’s start with flexible time schedules, home office and the possibility of combining work and hobbies. Let’s take care of corporate social responsibility. I’m sure we’ll do well together.

I look at this generation with great hope – they are our children, we raised them. They have already seen enough of our overtime, professional frustrations, the lack of work-life balance. They want to live differently. And they have the right to do so.

Author:

Monika Smulewicz, Managing Director, Grant Thornton

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BUSINESS

THE DIGITAL FACTORY

THE PERFECT MARRIAGE OF HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE The 21st century is the age of digitization. Software connects the world, hardware will act independently. Equipment, machines and even entire factories are becoming smart. In this whitepaper you’ll find out what a digital factory is, which benefits it brings and how you can digitalize your factory.

Imagine this. You own a factory. One of your major customers is in the offshore industry which operates 24/7, and where each delay is costly. If a part breaks on a manufacturing platform, it’s crucial to arrange a quick replacement. That’s exactly why they’re so happy to work with you. If your customer requires a replacement component, they can immediately log into your system via a portal and indicate exactly what they need.

Once the order is final, machines start to manufacture the specific part required by the customer, regardless of the time of day.

This scenario isn’t science fiction. It is technically possible to design your manufacturing process this way these days.

Based on research in the manufacturing sector, Capgemini expects the manufacturing sector to work 27% more efficiently by the end of 2022 thanks to the advent of digital factories.

In the words of Ineke Dezentjé, chairperson of the employers’ organisation FME-CWM and ambassador of Smart Industry – “Today you’re a manufacturing company, tomorrow an IT company.”

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WELCOME TO THE DIGITAL FACTORY

to process digital input and convert it into action. For this, it’s essential that The scenario above is a typical example all information is available from a solid of a digital factory; a fully automated core system at all times, containing all manufacturing environment with data regarding customers, suppliers, a flexible assembly line. Don’t be put inventory, products, etc. off by the word ‘digital’: it still involves a physical building where real machines Finally, the staff – necessary even manufacture real products. The less in a digital factory – are required to shun well known term Cyber Physical Factory offline communication. No island-auwould perhaps be a more apt phrase; tomation or paperwork exists within in the factory, computer systems (cyber) the walls of the digital factory. After and physical processes (physical) are all, this undermines the status of single entirely linked. source of truth of your ERP system. This also applies to all contact with suppliers The digital component in these factories and naturally also customers. is the control of the machines. Humans are scarcely required for this – it’s all THE DIGITAL CUSTOMER IS KING taken care of by software. Everything A digital factor y is not tied to is automated. It starts with logging a 40-hour working week. The entire the manufacturing order and runs manufacturing process becomes indevia the implementation of the manu- pendent of working days, weekfacturing plan to the processing and ends and holidays. As long as there delivery of the end product. is input and material, the factory can manufacture. If an order arrives T h i s r e q u i r e s t h e h a r d w a r e in the middle of the night via the web in a factory – the machines and manufac- store from an oversees customer, nothing turing robots – to ‘think’ independently in the factory prevents an immediate to a certain extent. Or at least to be able start of manufacturing. And when

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

The hardware in a factory – the machines and manufacturing robots – to ‘think’ independently to a certain extent. Or at least to be able to process digital input and convert it into action. For this, it’s essential that all information is available from a solid core system at all times, containing all data regarding customers, suppliers, inventory, products, etc.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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BUSINESS

you arrive in the morning, the ordered products are already coming off the conveyor belt – without you even knowing that the order was placed.

Short delivery times aren’t just a matter of night-time factory operation but also of shorter manufacturing distances. After all, modern technology means that it isn’t necessarily cheaper This is great news for your to manufacture in low income councustomers. They see a significant tries. The digital factory allows Western reduction in manufacturing times, countries to be more competitive which means they don’t have in the manufacturing world. to wait as long for their products.

This allows you to meet their every HOW DO YOU MAKE need, because customers increas- AN ‘ANALOGUE’ ingly expect tailor-made as opposed FACTORY DIGITAL? to mass manufactured products. Will you have missed the boat if you don’t They want to be able to define their have a 100% digital factory by the end own products. The digital factory of the year? Not quite, but procrastinaallows you to be a forerunner with tion and unwillingness to move forward this: you supply tailor-made work aren’t a good idea. Expectations are that for the price and delivery times by the end of 2022, 21% of factories will of mass manufactured products. be ‘smart’. It will become increasingly

harder for ‘analogue’ factories to compete with modern, digital factories. So it’s advisable to aim for the perfect digital factory in the future, and to proceed in that direction step by step. Because the manufacturing environment is unique, there is no off the shelf one size fits all process. There are, however, best practices and shining examples.

Author:

Izabela GóreckaOlejniczak, Senior Business Consultant, Exact

THIS TECHNOLOGY CAN BE FOUND IN A DIGITAL FACTORY:

BIG DATA INTERNET OF THINGS (IOT)

The term big data involves the analysis of (large amounts of ) data. Data analysis supplies the fuel for many other technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning and therefore for every ‘smart’ device.

The Internet of Things means that devices communicate with each other.

To do this, they must be equipped with sensors, a power source and a network connection.

3D PRINTING

ROBOTICS Manufacturing robots are becoming ever smarter. Equipping them with sensors and supplying them with data allows them to learn new things, respond to their environment and switch between tasks. This means that robots are no longer only suitable for mass manufacturing, but can be deployed in a much more flexible way.

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Why would you keep a large stock of parts – or risk delaying your manufacturing because you have to order them – if you have the option to print them when you need them? By using a 3D printer, you can manufacture exactly what you need, when you need it. Fast, flexible and at far lower costs!

OPC UA In a digital factory, machines not only have to be able to communicate with each other, but especially also with the ERP system, from which they receive their input. There is a standardised communication protocol for this: Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture (OPC UA).

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

BUSINESS

RPA IN A CLOUD STREAMLINING FUTURE SERVICE DELIVERIES

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Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) has become a groundbreaking trend across modern service deliveries. Substituting human workforce with robotic software is seen a vital component of the Ninth Innovation Wave, reorganizing and redefining the perception of best operational practices the modern corporate world is seeking for. The text shall discuss its definition, basic facts, and risks.

Automation of services has been driven by technological advancements of the past decade, as a response to the constantly growing customer expectations, so as the cost and compliance pressure. Aiming at replacing human with virtual workforce for executing not only repetitive and manual, but also sophisticated and complicated tasks, a robot software is built to interact with the PC and systems used by the incumbent workers in the same way, but faster and without errors. Such transformations triggered by digital innovations are widely implemented, as they are relatively quick to execute and easy to scale up. The essential cost reductions are reflected in the quick Return of Investment (ROI). The improvement in the quality of delivery and compliance is seen in applied analytics and reporting, such as virtual dashboards.

Majority of the robotic transformations are implemented either by an ‘On-premise’ (assisted) or ‘AaaS’ (automation as a service) contractual model. In the first scenario, the provider offers its consultancy in setting up a customer’s own Centre of Excellence (CoE), where the processes will go through the robotization programme.

In AaaS case, the provider takes full responsibility for building and maintaining the robotic solutions offered to the client, together with arranging technical infrastructure and trainings for its partner’s key stakeholders.

In the past, most of the robotic initiatives were based on the attended solutions, installed locally and launched manually by a human, whereas presently we can observe the massive growth in the number of unattended solutions (triggered and running independently, without human intervention), taking advantage of cloud computing techAs shared by most of the top RPA players, nologies for maintaining the robots the processes that suit the best for on virtual servers. robotization are seen as mature, repetitive, based on digital input, and free from The challenges linked to the robotic human judgement (although the busi- transformation can be seen as similar ness rules on which robots are built can to the common project management be very complex). Such processes should risks that go along service transitions. also be characterized by high-volume, Building the trust and positive culture low exception rate and no changes on a strategic level (to exclude the resistplanned in the systems and applica- ance of taking over current workforce’s tions used to their execution. Therefore, jobs), should be addressed by proper the automation potential can be noticed communicating the delivery model in the areas of Finance, Accounting, and vision behind the robotic change.

HR, Supply Chain, and IT Services. The process documentation that is

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

many times outdated and not standardized, often needs to be re-worked during RPA transition, to ensure the proper input for the development team. Moreover, the proper preparation of each project forming the RPA journey, including the effective knowledge transfer, as well the engagement of IT resources, needs to be taken under focus to assure successful implementation and scalability of the investment.

Summarizing the above, the age of RPA has certainly come and will have strong impact on the business of today and tomorrow. The complexity and effort of its implementation, compensated by quick ROI, stability and numerous improvements brought by the transition are on the top of almost every company on the global services market either already robotizing its processes or considering it for the near future.

Author: Damian Kedziora, Doctor of Industrial Engineering and Management graduated from Lappeenranta University of Techno­ logy, Finland. For the last 6 years, professionally engaged in BPO/SSC transitions and transformations. Currently running RPA implementations in Helsinki as Intelligent Automation Solution Consultant at NORIAN.

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SSC

AN AMERICAN IT GIANT WITH ITS OPERATIONS CENTER IN WARSAW

Word of admission: SSC Lions is a new project run

by Pro Progressio and focused on the communication support provided to Shared Service Centres.

On O ­ utsourcing&More Magazines’ pages we will present business cases and interviews with leaders of Shared Services Centres, industry experts and consultants.

Our interlocutors will provide the answers to the questions related to best business practises, project manage­ ment and employer branding.

In the ninth edition of SSC Lions we are presenting you the interview with Robert Busz – Managing Director of Equinix.

FROM OUR POINT OF VIEW, NETWORK KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE IN POLAND IS AT SUCH A LEVEL THAT WE CAN CONFIDENTLY BUILD GLOBAL COMPETENCE FOR THE ENTIRE COMPANY IN WARSAW.

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Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Outsourcing & More: Equinix has been operating in Poland for seve­­ral years now but the company is constantly developing. So you have decided to choose Warsaw and start your next operational activity here but what functions will be performed by your new Operations Center?

Robert Busz: We have decided to build our Product Development Center in Warsaw. It will be part of a global organization responsible for the development and creation of network products and services, managed and operated by our software.

What is the current scale of Equinix business globally and how does it fit in with the activities of the Warsaw-based Operations Center?

Equinix is the world’s largest data center operator (200+) and global provider of the Equinix Cloud Exchange platform. Equinix is also a significant operator of internet exchange points around the world. The PLIX Internet Exchange Point in Warsaw has already reached over 1TBps of traffic daily.

In a nutshell, Equinix is the world’s largest provider of digital solutions connecting suppliers with customers, employers with employees, and business with each other. We have more than 10,000 business customers who, thanks to our platform, exchange terabits of data and information necessary for their everyday business operations.

We guarantee uninterrupted operation of global internet platforms, e-commerce services, IoT platforms, global manufacturing systems, telecommunication networks, as well as healthcare and diagnostics solutions. Our neutral solutions allow you to build a network in any country, conti-

nent or world based on cloud solutions, private networks and/ or traditional IT solutions. Our platform is ready for the implementation of any architecture in any hybrid, private or public model.

OUR NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT CENTER IN WARSAW WILL BE PRIMARILY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF NETWORK PRODUCTS FOR OUR GLOBAL EQUINIX 2.0 PLATFORM. IT IS NO SECRET THAT OUR POLISH NETWORK ENGINEERS ARE CONSIDERED TO BE THE BEST AND MOST EXPERIENCED IN THE WORLD. Our new Product Development Center in Warsaw will be primarily responsible for the development of network products for our global Equinix 2.0 platform. It is no secret that our Polish network engineers are considered to be the best and most experienced in the world.

ger. From our point of view, network knowledge and experience in Poland is at such a level that we can confidently build global competence for the entire company in Warsaw.

We keep our fingers crossed for your growth. Finally, a question regarding the future. What processes will Equinix be managing from Warsaw and how big will the Equinix team be next year?

We will certainly strengthen the Product Development Center team.

Our Sales Operations and EMEA NOC teams in Warsaw are growing dynami­ cally. We also have ambitious plans to develop our Data Center operations in Warsaw. We believe that by the end of 2019, we will employ well over 150 people.

The new Operations Center also means new recruitment challenges.

Who has the chance to join the Equinix team and what competences and experience do you pay the most attention to?

Both network and programming competences are important at the Pro­ duct Development Center. The most important functions include, for example: Sr. Network Engineer, Software Engineer, Support Engineer, DevOps/ Automation Engineer, Oracle and DB Engineer or Technical Product Mana­ Thank you for the interview.

MAIN INTERVIEW

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Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

WE ARE BUILDING THE FUTURE IN ŁÓDŹ Wiktor Doktór, CEO of Pro Progressio talks with Hanna Zdanowska – President of the City of Łódź.

Wiktor Doktór, CEO of Pro Progressio: We would like to congratulate you on your next tenure as the Mayor of Łódź on behalf of the whole Pro Progressio team. The election results show that the way you manage the City gained massive approval in the eyes of citizens of Łódź. What does constitute the basis for your success in the creation of such a big trust among citizens?

Hanna Zdanowska: Re-election is for me first and foremost a continuation of huge transformation process, which takes into account further redevelopment of the city centre and the improve in quality of life of citizens of Łódź.

Changes follow this because city means

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

its citizens. In the past, citizens of Łódź did not believe in their own strength.

Now, thanks to a process of changes, they began to be proud about their city.

squares, kindergartens and schools, and also provision of proper care level for the elderly. The key matter for me is to ensure good quality for life also to people who deserve it.

I think that the trust that the citizens of Łódź give me arises from the fact that I decided to manage the city in a modern way: to make it a place friendly for living and for economic growth.

Łódź is part of Duopolis. Do you think that joint presentation of econo­­ mic potential of two big cities like Warsaw and Łódź is a good strategy for balanced development of both cities?

I’ve won this year’s elections with Yes. It is an opportunity for a dyprogramme including not only namic development of both cities and the development of the city centre, creation of metropolis, which could but also putting emphasis on transfor- compete with European metropolises, mations in particular districts. It means opportunity to create a strong hub, a provision of appropriate infrastruc- such as Tricity is in the north and Śląsk ture, such as pavements, parks, agglomeration in the south west.

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MAIN INTERVIEW

Co-operation between cities does not preclude healthy rivalry. A good example of healthy competition is competing for projects from the field of services for business (BPO/SSC/IT ).

Biggest Polish cities compete while having at the disposal the same, very limited, basic instruments that may be directly valued – SSE, exemptions from tax on real estate, support of Regional Labour Office. In practice, this rivalry is resolved based on image – and in the area of self-government administration’s efficiency – speed of proceedings and quality of services provided by the investor service offices.

Each city strives to become richer, more modern and more innovative. But co-operation and joint presentation of economic potential of two big cities may lead to full use of capital, infrastructure, staff, cultural and other resources.

The idea is a good one – not to compete with each other, but shape the offer in a such way as to make it different and make both places attractive to visitors.

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Łódź is known for unique architectonic projects, which enrich the city’s image. As an example we may mention Łódź Fabryczna, EC1 and New Centre of Łódź. What is the New Centre of Łódź and what is the idea behind this project?

The New Centre of Łódź is the biggest and multi-directional infrastructure and social-cultural project located in the very city centre, having space area of 100 ha.

developed with new office blocks (world renown developers such as e.g. Skanska, Ghelamco, HB Reavis), thanks to which new, attractive workplaces are created for the citizens of Łódź.

Thanks to a strategy of sustainable development adopted by the city, the area of the New Centre of Łódź has been covered with three local spatial development plans, which envisage a mix of functions. It e.g. allows to attract investors from various industries.

A construction of new business and resi- Aside from new office development dential district, supplemented by a key in the New City of Łódź, residential transport project (new underground investments are on the rise, a network Łódź Fabryczna railway station) aims of modernised and new roads is being to improve the City’s status internation- created, and attractive public spaces ally, promote and renovate historical are planned (e.g. Kobro square with objects within its territory, boost urban underground parking lot consisting economy and create new place, attrac- of 300 parking places). tive for citizens and tourists.

The construction of the New Centre The area recovered due to the introduc- of Łódź started from two key tion of making Dworzec Łódź Fabry- projects – reconstruction of railway czna railway underground becomes stations and renovation of the oldest an investment offer and is systematically heat and power plant in Łódź.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Re-election is for me first and foremost a continuation of huge transformation process, which takes into account further redevelopment of the city centre and the improve in quality of life of citizens of Łódź.

The reconstruction of Łódź Fabryczna railway station from 2011 to 2016 meant liquidation of previously existing aboveground railway station buildings and a few kilometres of tracks dividing the city into two parts, as well as a creation of underground railway stations, constituting multimodal loop linking agglomeration railway transport with car, bus, long-distance, pedestrian and bike ones. An important part of this project, affecting the eastern part of the city, is the construction of crosstown tunnel underground, which will lead to Łódź Kaliska and Łódź Żabieniec railway stations and will enable handling of railway transport to all directions in Poland. Completion of metro construction with two stations in the city centre is planned for 2024. It is assumed that the new Łódź Fabryczna railway station is at present the most modern railway station in Poland and one of the most modern in Europe. It is estimated that after achieving full functionality, the number of people that uses it daily

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

will increase twenty times in comparison to number of passengers before the reconstruction.

Nearby the Łódź Fabryczna railway station, there is first power station in Łódź, EC1, which has been systematically renovated and adapted to cultural, education and entertainment functions since 2010. EC1 is a huge centre, divided into three parts.

The EC1 East fulfils main cultural and artistic functions, and its main attraction is the most modern planetarium in Poland with a 3D cinema. EC1 West is the seat of the Science and Technology Centre. The fact that decides about its uniqueness in comparison to other attractions of this type in other cities is that interactive exhibitions whose leading theme is a process of generating energy are built into historical spaces and post-factory devices, and they were kept during the process of energy and heat plant’s reconstruction.

We are certain that the New Centre of Łódź is currently the most attractive place for investments and business and it will soon became a friendly place for citizens and an interesting one for tourists.

The New Centre of Łódź also has a chance to become a model example of successful spatial renovation for other cities, because thanks to a smooth operation between city authorities, investors and citizens we managed to develop a sensible spatial and business consensus which benefits the whole city’s development. Łódź has become one big construction site in the last ten years.

Domestic and international real estate companies erect thousands of square metres of offices in the city. What does the office offer of Łódź look like and what type of businesses does the city want to attract?

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MAIN INTERVIEW

I think that the trust that the citizens of Łódź give me arises from the fact that I decided to manage the city in a modern way: to make it a place friendly for living and for economic growth.

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Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Łódź is seventh biggest office market in Poland and one of the most dynamically developing ones. Construction activity in Łódź shows the strength and dynamic character of the city’s development.

We currently have 437,800 sq m of modern office floor area at our disposal (class A and B+) and 109,00 sq m are currently being constructed.

Our office buildings perfectly reflect the quality change in the product that is available on the market. Most of new investments fulfil the parameters of A-class standard, which is a response to growing needs of tenants and gives further advantage to companies during the recruitment of new employees. Łódź’s offer does not only cover spaces in newly erected objects, but also in post-industrial ones buildings from 19th century that are characteristic for the city, which were renovated and adapted for office needs.

It is worth emphasizing that we are one of the most attractive office markets as far as lease rent is concerned.

Highest transaction renst are usually by 1–3 EUR/sq m/month lower in comparison to Kraków or Wrocław, which gives Łódź an advantage in the fight for new investors.

Most of office buildings are located in the city centre.

Thanks to new investments and big interest in Łódź’s office market, first “Office HUBs” were erected in Łódź.

New Centre of Łódź and Central Axis of Łódź belong to this group.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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MAIN INTERVIEW

In modern economies, cities compete not only for international investors, but also for citizens ‑ potential employees. We may only attract them by creating good conditions of living and for development.

First office building handed over for use in the New Centre of Łódź was Skanska – Nowa Fabryczna office block.

Also the following giants decided to invest there: Ghelamco and HB Reavis (developer chose Łódź as first regional city where it wants to invest, after Warsaw). Currently under construction: “Brama Miasta” [City’s Gate] office block (Skanska) and multifunctional investment of Ghelamco (developer purchased from the city real property with the floor space area of over 2 ha for a record-breaking amount of PLN 85.2 million). Central Axis of Łódź – currently the biggest office area located along Al. Marszałka Piłsudskiego and in neighborhood of junction between ul. dr Stefana Kopcińskiego and Al. Marszałka Edwarda Śmiegłego Rydza.

The following office buildings are located there: Łódz Business Centre, Red Tower, Symetris Business Park, Forum 76, Hammermed Business Centre and many investments planned and under construction, such: “Imagine” office complex, new investments of ECHO and one of the most famous investments – Monopolis (renovation of former Complex of Plants of Spirit Industry into a multi-functional complex used for office, entertainment and cultural purposes). A very well functioning urban transport in this region means that it is a location more and more often chosen by tenants. The city is open for foreign investors not present at the moment in Poland and those

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who already have offices in our country and consider expansion/relocation, belonging to BPO/SSC/IT/R&D industry; manufacturing companies which want to open a new factory or plan development and search for an attractive location, with good access to employee’s market, including companies that are searching for a place where they may open a shared services’ centre; investors interested in renovation of historical urban areas (revitalisation). Łódź was one of the first Polish cities which have in their development strategy a sector of modern services for business (BPO/SSC) treated as key for the city’s development. What is the scale of BSS industry in Łódź and what is the further potential for development of this sector? Łódź gained the title of one of the leaders among centres dedicated to modern services for business and modern technology centres. Currently approx. 21,000 employees work in BPO/ SSC/IT/R&D sector for 80 companies in Łódź.

Positive forecasts concerning the BSS sector in Łódź are not a wish of local self-government, but also a result of analyses of office space developers. Until 2022, we expect (even as at today) a two times increase in the volume of available space areas of the highest quality, which are usually taken up by companies from this sector in Łódź or from related sectors – making use of similar talent pool.

At the beginning of 2019, Łódź has become “host city” of the third BSS Forum and 6th edition of the Outsourcing Stars event, the motto of which was “Building the Future”. How would you encourage Polish and foreign investors to create their future in Łódź? Łódź is one of the best places in Poland and Europe to develop business as far as the ratio of salaries to quality of life is concerned. When these factors are compared, we may get the most advantageous ratio of quality to price.

Location and qualified & competitive staff are very meaningful for companies in the context of Łódź. The city offers Growth dynamics arise indirectly from excellently educated staff for business: the fact that both recent years and those both managers of high and medium in the nearest future will be full of public level and employees. The unemployed investments – the New Centre of Łódź rate in Łódź currently amounts to approx. is being constructed in the city centre, 5%. Also important is the quality of life whole quarters of 19th century devel- in the city because people making deciopment will be renovated and many sions in companies or their subordinates projects that will prompt improvement will need to relocate to the city. of a very important nowadays work-life balance aspect will be carried out.

In modern economies, cities compete not only for international invesThe indicated actions mean that tors, but also for citizens – potential Łódź will join the group of top employees. We may only attract them Polish cities; for BSS industry they by creating good conditions of living will lead to increase in poten- and for development. Employees are tial of attracting employees from the basic resource for investors and it external locations. From the point is employees who are the key factor of view of the realities concerning deciding about the company’ s developfunctioning of the industry – system- ment on the market. atic inflow of new projects to Poland and a demographic decline accom- Taking into account the ageing populapanying – it is very significant tion in Europe, it is going to be the decibecause development of particular sive factor concerning the trajectory hubs in the long-term perspective of cities’ and countries’ development. is determined by the result of rivalry for employees.

Thank you for the interview.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

BUSINESS

MARKETING 2019 AND WHY THERE WILL BE FEWER BUSINESSES AROUND It’s that time again when we all like to look into the year ahead and determine how best to position ourselves to take advantage of the opportunities – as well as avoid the pitfalls – that 2019 will inevitably bring. I thought, then, that it might be helpful to share my own thoughts as to what is coming over the horizon that will impact market engagement opportunities in the coming months…

1.

The very many current and emerging technological advancements will continue to shape – even dictate – how consumers do business going forward. First Party Data, the ability to leverage AI and machine thinking in order to mine and interpret it, and the myriad of tautomated customer engagement platforms will level the playing field in 2019, providing opportunities for less traditional businesses to capture market share across numerous industry verticals.

But businesses will need to become media outlets in their own right to capture attention and engage with consumers on a more emotional level.

HERE’S 10 INDICATORS AS TO WHY…

Now that digital is embedded into the mainstream, more companies will undergo ‘brand transformations’ as the shift to digital truly takes hold and brands seek to make emotional connections with their customers via less traditional, more automated on-line channels.

2. Advancements in technology has lowered the barrier to (market) entry in virtually every sector now and as a result there will be many more ‘challenger’ brands in 2019 as younger, more agile companies unencumbered by legacy platforms and heritage customers are able to take advantage.

3. Ar tificiaI Intelligence and machine learning will drive greater personalisation and intimacy for consumers (think how Amazon personalises every landing page to suit each individual user’s buying habits…) but Data and privacy will continue to be an issue and those businesses who can leverage the First Party Data they own and champion customer data privacy as part of their brand messaging, could well be asserting themselves as a market differentiator in 2019.

10. Businesses looking to stay relevant in 2019 and will undoubtedly begin to take their marketing more seriously and begin to make increasing investments by building strategic operations around their own marketing function, effectively turning them into digital media agencies – it’s no coincidence that companies like Accenture and Deloitte have been doing exactly this for the last 3 years.

As a result of all of this, you will find CMOs becoming more hybrid in nature; increasingly hardwired into both IT and CX. This means they will get a lot more airtime in the boardroom as the evolving nature, and the criticality that their role has on the bottom line, becomes more apparent to key stakeholders and investors.

Of course, this also means it will become a real issue for those small-to-midsize businesses who don’t have a CMO, Marketing Director or even a marketing function as part of their operations. The need to tap into such resources has never been more critical.

9. More sophisticated marketing tools will mean that email newsletters will make a return, combining links to longer-form content with click-throughs to access (more personali­ ­sed) videos or download e-books.

8.

This means that content marketing will become more formatted and formulaic in presentation and delivery style; So, campaigns broken down into five episodes, part one of a three-part limited series, or ten issues, etc.

7. There will also be a shift towards quality content over quantity content as brands begin to recognise they are fighting to win consumer time and attention. There will be more focus on high-quality branded content, improving creation, volume and messaging, with video being the dominant medium.

6. Marketing itself will become more sophisticated; businesses are already recognising that marketing needs to own the entire customer journey, from targeting the right customers and driving the sale to building loyalty and lifetime servicing, enabled by technology.

5. Voice technology will become increasingly more sophisticated, and the ability to leverage Voice Skills will be transformative over the next 5 years. However, we will start to see the impact of this in 2019 beginning with contact centres, as a combination of AI/machine thinking, Voice technology and automation will remove the need for high volume FTE. 4. 4G and 5G mobile will become more mainstream in 2019. Research to date suggests that 5G is up to 1,000 times faster than 4G (according, at least, to the US Federal Communications Commission). From a practical standpoint, this means marketing teams can provide richer, more robust premium content, and undertake more meaningful, real-time communications with consumers at key touch-points.

Author:

Tom Quigley, Owner & Chief Marketing Officer of QUIGLEYMEDIA

The rising competitiveness of the market, high pressure on margins and the technological race all put a strain on management boards and managers of companies around Europe. The answer to the need of growing profitability can be found in the outsourcing services, implementation of LEAN solutions that optimize processes or the lately fashionable robotic process automation (RPA).

Which path to take and which solution to bet on?

We discussed these dilemmas with Tomasz BereĹşnicki (DPC Polska) and Szymon Stadnik (FRISTA).

BUSINESS

CHOOSING LEAN, OUTSOURCING OR MAYBE RPA AS A SOURCE OF COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE?

Wiktor Doktór, CEO of Pro Progressio: What will be the greatest challenges your clients face in the upcoming New Year?

Szymon Stadnik: In the last couple of years the environment in which companies operate in both Europe and the United States has become more and more VUCA (V-olatility, U-ncertainty, C-omplexity, A-mbiguity). The technological development is speeding up, the course of international politics is unpredictable, and the threats to a steady growth of business are increasing.

In this situation one of the most important answers to the current challenges are strong leadership based on clear vision, good understanding of the surrounding reality, transparency of actions and flexibility.

Tomasz Bereźnicki: Additionally, on top of all this, there are demographic changes, shrinking pool of experienced professionals and the ever growing demand in companies for human resources. Under these conditions we witness a constant battle for talent, especially in innovative fields, like IT.

I would also mention the decrease in commitment and rising expectations towards employers. We see a growing importance of building a strong leadership as well as focusing on the clients and the activities that add value for them. It is also crucial to consider the changing needs of the clients and be able to keep up with them, in consequence learning to study the ‘voice’ of the client and A real need exists to release the poten- transform it into a proposal of value, tial of leaders and companies to focus the results of which are services and on their strategic core activities and products tailor-made to the current initiatives. needs of clients and consumers.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Faced with the challenges of the market, many leaders are wondering what steps to take next and what approach to apply in the changing reality. LEAN, Outsourcing or RPA? Tomasz Bereźnicki: Each of the mentioned solutions has the same goal – to build a competitive advantage by increasing the company’s efficiency.

At the same time, there is no indication that they can only be used together or separately, but it is good to remember that implementation of each brings along different challenges and requirements.

Implementing LEAN offers, apart from optimizing the cost, a very important aspect of changing attitudes and working culture in the whole organization. During the LEAN transformation we focus on building standards of three key elements: leadership, process and continuous improvement.

Standardizing processes create then

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BUSINESS

RPA can be used only in stable and unchanging processes to be effective both in the phase of implementation and maintenance.

In a changing environment, outsourcing of processes with a flexible partner might be a better solution – Szymon Stadnik.

the necessary conditions for automation and robotization.

The standard of leadership is centered on the attitudes and behavior of leaders, allowing them to effectively manage their processes and teams.

Part of this task is providing them with ‘tools’ – skills thanks to which they will be able to better achieve their goals.

The standard of processes is focused on identifying and eliminating waste, of course with the involvement of all employees, to effectively meet the clients’ expectations.

The standard of continuous improvement is the organization’s ability to adapt to the changing conditions offered daily by the market and

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If I understand correctly, the profits of outsourcing of these services to the Eastern Europe are still attractive?

Szymon Stadnik: On the one hand performing the back-office processSzymon Stadnik: Outsourcing es in Poland is much less expensive, of back-office departments releases on the other our job market is still filled the time and resources of leaders that with talented and highly qualified emthey can use to concentrate on the stra- ployees. It is important to add that every tegic agenda. Through RPA, process- year there are over 350 thousand people es previously performed by people graduating from Polish universities. are completed automatically. Thus, RPA gives organizations a similar ben- Are lower salaries the key benefit? efit to outsourcing. but needs bigger Szymon Stadnik: Not necessarily. commitment of management to imple- There are various sources of advantage ment and is a strategic transformation in these ever changing and uncertain itself. Additionally, it does not solve market conditions. Just as important the problem of scarcity and unavailabili- as the salary cost are the competences ty of qualified talent since implementing of employees, their motivation, flexibility automations and RPA requires substan- and tools that we use. tial additional resources. RPA can be used only in stable and unchanging pro- What do you mean? cesses to be effective both in the phase Szymon Stadnik: As a BPO company, of implementation and maintenance. in which half of the team consists of speIn a changing environment, outsourcing cialists in various fields of IT, we propose of processes with a flexible partner might all kinds of automations using the simbe a better solution. plest VBA and RPA technologies, as well as automate processes on our clients’ What can a company specialised ERP systems and platforms such as SAP, in service outsourcing offer companies Magento, GK, etc. from Western Europe who are struggling with constant pressure to lower On the other hand we use multiple tools the margin and the war for talent? from the wide scope offered by LEAN Szymon Stadnik: Frista as an out- Management. We implement them sourcing company offers its clients successfully thanks to, among others, the opportunity to focus on their stra- the support of the consulting company tegic initiatives. We take over the daily managed by Tomasz. challenges of performing back-office processes, starting with finding the right Tomasz Bereźnicki: The LEAN appeople for the job, through ensuring proach proves to be effective in outeveryday motivation and building com- sourcing companies as well. The goal is mitment, to proposing new solutions usually the same, which is optimization that increase the efficiency of our cli- that translates into a higher profitability ents. What helps us with these tasks is of the business. By taking over chosen the broad scope of services and speci- processes of its clients, Frista has to be alities that we represent. Although we highly flexible and the LEAN practice inalready employ 160 people in Poland, creases its ability to react to the changwe are flexible and adapt to the client’s ing environment and new challenges, needs by offering tailor-made BPO ser- thanks to creating a basis for continuous vices in the fields of accounting, HR process improvement. administration and payroll, logistics, IT or customer service for the retail What do you consider the highest consumer. If the accounting process- priority in LEAN implementations? es require the engagement of SAP Tomasz Bereźnicki: It is something specialists, we have them on board that has a big impact both in service and we can quickly find a solution. and production companies, something to use the knowledge and potential of employees in everyday activity.

The key in this matter is to answer the question of how much time our leaders should spend on improvement.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

that Frista has been using successfully – the team’s engagement in the process. It is a result of the transformation, thanks to which all employees can independently seek the sources of muda [in LEAN muda means loss/waste, those activities in the process that do not increase the value of the product or service from the client’s point of view – ed. note]. It is especially important that this change is lasting since examples of waste in processes can be found at all times. It is about creating a situation where no one would like to revert to the old ways and habits.

Of course, there are plenty of possible approaches to LEAN and every organ-

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

ization has to choose the one that not only improves the process but also corresponds directly to its business challenges and brings results that can be appreciated by its customers. The key factor can also be mature leadership, good internal communication, etc.

Tomasz Bereźnicki: I would even say that there is a certain hierarchy or sequence of how the solutions should be implemented. Firstly, LEAN or another methodology that helps to optimize the chosen processes, secondly, outsourcing of services, back-office for instance. Finally, automation can be considered for the fields that have been Is RPA an alternative to your offer?

Szymon Stadnik: RPA can be included in the two previous changan independent solution or a part es. And I will agree with Szymon that of a greater change that we deliver. RPA will not always deliver the expected That is because outsourcing can be results since not all organizations are accompanied by automation of a cho- ready for robotic process automation. sen part of the process. However, it is important to note that RPA will not Szymon Stadnik: Automation can be always prove effective. implemented autonomously, but in most

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I would even say that there is a certain hierarchy or sequence of how the solutions should be implemented.

Firstly, LEAN or another methodology that helps to optimize the chosen processes, secondly, outsourcing of services, backoffice for instance.

Finally, automation can be considered for the fields that have been included in the two previous changes – Tomasz Bereźnicki.

cases it is necessary to use the support of an external partner, at least in the beginning. In Frista we encourage our clients to transfer the chosen back-office processes to our center using the simplest of methods, that is through lift and shift – transfer of the process exactly the way that they are performed in the company before outsourcing.

Only then can the BPO, with the use of LEAN methodology, propose standardization and finally automate and share benefits with the client.

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Are you saying it from the perspective of solutions that are competitive to robotization?

Tomasz Bereźnicki: Quite the opposite. I think that we can both call ourselves enthusiasts of automation.

However, we do so with the disclaimer that it is often ill-considered and leads to unnecessary costs. It becomes then a source of problems, not market advantages. Furthermore, automation is nothing new. In my opinion, RPA is a new name for a phenomenon that we have been dealing with for several decades. Just look back to see how, for example, today’s customer service differs from that from twenty or even several years ago.

feet’ and convince the people to believe in the change – the employees’ resistance is sometimes an important obstacle to a successful implementation of change.

Finally, a controversial question related to the future. Do you expect that the development of technology will render men unnecessary?

Szymon Stadnik: The progress of technological development is constant. Machines are replacing people in more and more fields, but simultaneously new domains and processes are created that require the competences of people.

One of the most important fields that are reserved for the human potential You mentioned the concerns that ac- is creativity, seeking new solutions, company organizations that are facing continuous questioning of reality and its the change. What are they and what improvement. In addition, the machines causes do you think are behind them? can never replace strong leadership and Szymon Stadnik: Every change is as- strategic thinking. sociated with perturbations and those, in turn, with losses. Examples of possiTomasz Bereźnicki: In this aspect ble fears include suspension of services both LEAN and outsourcing release or production or reluctance on the part the potential of specialists and, most of employees. These fears are some- importantly, leaders. Robotization times paralyzing, because the leaders also gives the benefit of released or managers need to take on the re- potential, but its implementation itsponsibility for the effects of change. self requires additional competencThat is why Frista offers a flexible ap- es and IT resources that are currently proach to outsourcing and a range difficult to find. of nearshoring programs. An example of such program is the Test&Learn which Honestly speaking, today this question minimizes the risk by allowing our cli- goes beyond the reach of my imagients to limit the engagement to one nation, meaning that I cannot imagine or two positions for the start. When existence of organizations managed the test proves successful, you can ex- by robots, where all decisions, espetend it to outsource the whole process. cially the strategic ones, are made by robots…

It is a safe, adaptive solution.

Tomasz Bereźnicki: We offer a simi­­ lar approach since LEAN can be limited to a pilotage – an initial implementation that can be applied to a chosen department or part of a process. During this trial you can internally build many different benefits, for example identify the true leaders and ambassadors of change, show the leaders real profits in form of reliable indicators, improve the internal communication, getting it ‘back on its

In my opinion, people will always be needed, but the professions they will take up will be completely different than now. The latest study that has been done in this matter by MEN suggests that in the year 2030 approximately 40% of all working men and women will work in occupations that do not exist today.

Thank you for the interview.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

BUSINESS

HOW TO WIN THE WAR FOR TALENTS? In this day and age, digital transformation is everywhere. It is impacting all processes of modern organizations in fundamental ways.

A global management consulting firm, McKinsey stipulates that “digital transformation is about sweeping change.

It changes everything about how products are designed, manufactured, sold, delivered, and serviced”. But to reap the full benefits, organizations also have to change how they recognize, reward and retain their teams and employees.

This means putting in place digital transformation of human resources processes and how employees work and collaborate. And this transformation is already accelerating. This is driven not only by adoption of social features on intranets or artificial intelligence or deep data mining from people analytics software, but also by fundamental demographic changes.

As 2018 Deloitte Millennial Survey showed, diversity and flexibility are key to their loyalty. They look for flexibility to work beyond the office as they believe that working in a workplace that doesn’t have modern tools is unimaginable. As “Forbes” put it, for Millennials “getting work done means using innovative productivity and project management tools that are accessible wherever and however they want to work, whether on a computer, tablet or mobile phone, at home or at the office”.

Consequently, it is critical for organizational leaders and managers to acknowledge that they need to manage people as carefully as they manage money. Eric Garton, a partner at Bain & Company, in his article in “Harvard Business Review” writes: According to a piece of research “financial capital is relatively abunby Deloitte and quoted by “Forbes” dant and cheap… making the real magazine, “by 2025, roughly 75% cost of borrowing close to zero”. He of the global workforce will be observes that “today’s scarcest resource comprised from generations called is your human capital, as measured Millennials and Z” – employees born after by the time, talent and energy” and 1980 who grew up surrounded by infor- “finding, developing, and retaining this mation age technology. The common talent is hard – so much so that the busithread of these two generations is ness press refers to a “war” for talent”. that they are the most learned genera- Organizations winning this “war” are tions to enter the workforce and there- the ones that successfully innovate fore intellectually smart, curious and around their culture, technology and demanding. They value a work environ- flexibility to compete successfully ment where people feel appreciated and in a marketplace with the advantage can be an integral part of a team. of productive and engaged teams.

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However, such organizational innovation requires a work environment that fosters collaboration, exchange of ideas and a culture that provides the cushion of the permission to fail. And this is very hard to implement successfully. As John Chambers, of Cisco Systems famously put it, “40 percent of today’s businesses will fail in the next ten years; 70 percent will attempt to transform themselves digitally, but only 30 percent will succeed”.

The biggest obstacle to achieving this is lack of real time information that can be instantly used to build supportive culture and have proper rewards system. The cost of it is expressed in inadvertently missed opportunities. However, it can be aided with digital transformation of how leaders and managers reward, integrate and provide feedback and at the same time use actionable data to not only improve the process but also gain the understanding of how to retain their talent.

Therefore, technology can provide an all-in-one solution for employers to reward employees instantly and to understand how they can keep their talent happy, engaged and retained.

There are many empirical studies from companies like AON Hewitt, Gallup or Korn Ferry that over the years helped generalize about what should work, but even when those learnings are applied,

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Those are organizations that understand the importance of human capital as their competitive edge and are already on the path of embracing digital transformation. managers have no idea if desired results will be accomplished. The price paid for this is expressed in terms of missed market opportunities and goals. One of the insights is the lack of right people to make things happen.

Somewhere in the process there is a missing link between what managers are doing and what the outcome would be. In contrast to all other aspects of managing organizations, there are no tools that provide immediate information and implementation capabilities in regards to organizations’ most valuable asset, employee teams.

It is possible to envision how information technology could help create a system that would on one hand give instant reward and feedback capabilities and on the other – information on how that translated to the engagement and, consequently, the retention of employee teams. This would translate to successful achievement of business goals.

There are organizations that understand the importance of human capital as their competitive edge and are already on the path of embracing digital transformation. One way to make the implantation easier is to start the joint development that is supported by the underlying business model that resonates with business leaders, who want to know and understand how well their methods of rewarding and engaging employees work. This approach can help in creating a robust solution, easily implementable that provides three unique employee rewards modules: instant rewards and feedback, team-building and benefits marketplace. Mobile SaaS architecture and AI based data analytics provide business leaders with knowledge and tools to allocate rewards budget where

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

the company has the highest impact on employee engagement and retention.

Since the “war” on talent is a global one and all leaders and managers struggle to link their employee management practices to outcomes, such digital solutions are in position to expand internationally by supporting HR teams is different countries. Scalable SaaS technology with intuitive user interface is easily translatable between markets. Therefore there are also opportunities to offer subscription fee based services on the global scale in the segments of SMB organizations i.e. below 300 employees, which are underserved by technology providers, but are nimbler and willing to innovate with technology to capture market opportunities.

Digital transformation of HR, with a SaaS platform for rewarding and motivating employees can help leaders and managers of companies, from the smallest (even 4-people) and large, whose challenge is effective motivating employees to keep them in the company for longer. Technology allows for optimal use the budget for rewards and benefits. This process is fueled by people analytics by giving companies knowledge of the needs and choices of employees, so that they can better match the motivational offer that affects the level of engagement and retention.

Author:

Tomasz Józefacki, Co-founder and Board President, Nais

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THE BEATING HEART OF THE OFFICE 44

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

70% of interactions between employees take place outside areas intended strictly for meetings. So where do employees usually meet? Where do the best ideas germinate, born in informal meetings? The answer is simple – over a cup of coffee, in the kitchen.

Have you ever worked in an office where the kitchen was too small? Endless queues to the microwave oven and coffee maker, no free space on the kitchen table – this is still everyday reality for employees of some companies. A small, dark room with a single table was expected to cater for the needs of the whole floor, but the harsh reality was different. As a result, some people have lunch at their desk (sending the smell of food around the office), while others choose to eat outside. Unfortunately, the nearest restaurant is 15 minutes away, so their lunch break extends up to an hour.

In a report titled ‘How to create a great office space?’ prepared by the Nowy Styl Group, office workers point out to hunger as an important problem. The kitchen has been identified as one of the five most important elements of an office.

ONCE A SMALL KITCHENETTE, NOW A SPACIOUS CAFETERIA The importance of kitchen in office spaces has evolved a lot. In the past, people did not pay too much attention to social spaces – employees normally did not eat lunch at work, so kitchenettes were located in small, narrow corners of the office.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Today, common spaces have gained importance. The global trend for a healthy lifestyle is coming to offices too. Supplying the body with good nutrients is one of our basic needs.

Since we spend at least eight hours a day in the office, the impact of hunger on performance should not be underestimated. Staying hungry during the day or eating meals in uncomfortable conditions breeds growing discontent and frustration. The changing styles of life and work have made the kitchen one of the most important places in the office. This is where workers meet, talk and exchange information over a cup of coffee.

KITCHEN IS THE HEART OF THE OFFICE They say that the kitchen is the heart of a home. More and more often, you can hear people paraphrase this statement: kitchen is also the heart of every office.

This is where employees come to regenerate, meet people from other departments and establish a closer relationship with one another. Having lunch together not only helps workers integrate and relax, but it can also be an opportunity to come up with new ideas and share knowledge.

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The office kitchen is gaining importance. Projects that we carry out with our clients show how that space has evolved over the past few years. More and more often, social zones take up an increasing percentage of office space. Their function has been changing too – they are no longer used to just heat up a meal, but they are now spaces where workers can meet in an informal setting to discuss a problem or seek for inspiration and advice from colleagues. The kitchen does not need to be only used at lunchtime.

With good space arrangement and modular furniture solutions we can set up the space so as to section off areas for informal meetings or for holding internal or external events.

The informal atmosphere of such areas promotes openness and helps to establish deeper relationships in a team. Communication improves too – a meeting over a cup of coffee is often when we learn important information about the ongoing projects of the company.

Jakub Andrzejewski, Regional Director, Nowy Styl Group

For employees, the kitchen and social areas are of particular importance – they treat them as their own places in the office. We therefore recommend to our customers that their employees should be engaged in the process of designing common spaces. We organize workshops in which customer’s employees can talk about their needs in relation to such spaces in a controlled way, talk about their visions and ideas for the style or main theme of kitchen design. The example of one of our customers in Kraków, an IT company, shows that allowing employees to contribute to the conceptual design of the kitchen makes them more satisfied with the resulting common space and makes them feel coauthors of the concept. In our workshops, they were given a chance to choose the main motif, photo wallpapers and other optional elements. Evaluation studies have shown the kitchen is their favourite place in the office. Favourite, because they have co-created it.

Sebastian Osuch, Sales Director – Regional Cities, Nowy Styl Group

WHAT TO KEEP IN MIND AT THE DESIGN STAGE? Employees of one of the companies for which we have provided our research service had personal, friendly relationships with each other, so having meals together was an important part of the day for them, says Anna Marszałek of the Nowy Styl Group, the author of the report “How to create a great office space”.

Unfortunately, their office kitchen was too small and had no windows,

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so the natural ventilation did not work. So, they would open the door leading to the open space, to ventilate the room. As a result, all the smells and loud conversations spread out to an area where other people were trying to work in concentration or were on the phone with customers. Access to daylight and a view outside the window was very important for employees. This was very evident in a workshop we carried out, where people in two out of three groups designed

a dummy window in the kitchen. In this case, the solution was to change the layout of the walls. The kitchen got a window and more space for a bigger table.

For companies with enough space and resources at hand, canteens are the right solution. In this way, organizations have an indirect impact on the health of their workers, assuming, of course, that meals on the menu are varied and well balanced. This is particularly important

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

for office buildings with no catering facilities available in the neighbourhood.

In this case, workers waste a lot of time to order food or go out to restaurants and cafés every day.

Author:

For smaller organizations, a spacious kitchen where you can heat up or prepare a meal will be satisfactory.

In such a room, the central place should Nina Gonera, be a table at which a lot of people Senior Communication Specialist can have a meal together and talk. Nowy Styl Group

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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AN OFFICE WORTHY OF TALENTS The tight labour market is changing the way developers think. While designing an office building they think not only about who will lease space, but also what they should do to make people want to work there, says Artur Sutor, Partner and Head of Office Department at Cresa Poland.

The problem of recruiting appropriately skilled employees is already besetting more than half of all employers. Labour shortages are evident virtually across all sectors. Employers are therefore doing their best to take care of their current talents and attract new staff. A functional and interestingly laid out office in a prime location is an important factor in this war for talent. In One Poll’s latest surveys commissioned by Mindspace, more than a fourth of respondents rejected job offers due to a poor office design or a lack of amenities.

IMAGE IS EVERYTHING An office is now part of an employer branding strategy. Social media websites feature dozens of office fit-out photos, not only the famous photos of Google, Allegro and Microsoft offices. An insurance company Aviva posted a movie “You Work As You Like!” showing their staff and new office after they moved to the Gdański Business Center.

An office is also an important part of creating the first impression during a job interview. Job candidates are keen to look around the office during their first visit to the firm and ask about amenities available.

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IT’S NOT ONLY ABOUT HAMMOCKS

through specially-designed surveys.

And finally, we monitor their organization Barely a few years ago, tenants looking in action for a few days or longer. Thanks for new offices would talk to advisors to such an in-depth and multi-faceted mainly about office sizes, rents and lease analysis, we know where to look for and length. Today, tenants will come and say: what to propose to tenants. please find me an office where people will want to work. It’s an exceptionally The opinion surveys reveal various hard thing to do. needs, but there’s a need shared by all firms irrespective of size and business Some organisations follow fads profile: we all want to work in a prime and trends when they are about and well-connected location. No wonder to move – that’s a major mistake. then that the vicinity of Warsaw’s If hammocks are in fashion, they will be Daszyńskiego Roundabout is now a vast fixed all over the office; if table football is construction site. Why? Because people all the rage, why not have it? Of course, will want to work there; they will enjoy these are just some examples, but they a quick commute by metro, tram or bus illustrate a certain pattern. A bad pattern. from any part of the city.

Meanwhile, the most important thing is to respond to employees’ real needs and I know many tenants who took the risk to make them enjoy coming to the office and relocated to offices that were even and being there. twice as expensive as their previous locations, and successfully recruited WHAT DO EMPLOYEES high-skilled and experienced specialREALLY WANT? ists shortly afterwards. That’s because To support tenants in relocation, when a firm moves, it becomes a brand we first ask them why they want new company for employees. What’s to move, what they don’t like about more, some job candidates – while their current head office and what still in the middle of the recruitment their current requirements with regard process – will put their decisions on hold to further growth are. Next, we put until the firm they apply to lets them the same questions to employees know about its new location.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

A BONUS FROM THE DEVELOPER A comfortable working environment is on top of the agenda of both tenants and a developer of an office building.

To attract tenants, developers will provide dozens of on-site amenities such as conference centres, healthy restaurants, cafés, a dental clinic, a fitness club or a kindergarten. Some office complexes also feature stores, a bank, a post office, a dry-cleaner, a travel agent and a beauty parlour. Some are self-contained locations where you could stay for months. How do employees benefit from them? First of all, they can take care of their own needs, save a lot of time and feel confident that they won’t be late to pick up a child from the kindergarten or for an appointment at the hairdresser’s, and they will get many other things done as they go along.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

A KITCHEN AT THE HEART OF A MODERN OFFICE BUILDING

out on the competitive labour market.

Next, there are amenities proposed That’s why it is quite inadvisable by tenants themselves. Consulting to go along with fleeting fads when firm Deloitte has come up with you design a new office. The key is an idea of Green Caffè Nero in their office to respond to employees’ actual needs building where its employees can always by providing a customized office. enjoy a good coffee. Other tenants have canteens set up and contribute to lunch costs. A large centrally-located kitchen with a dining and chillout area is another very interesting idea. Savvy employers no longer see this as squandering office Author: space and employees’ time. They are aware that such amenities make their employees feel relaxed, boost employee Artur Sutor, creativity and, consequently, help retain Partner, Head them in the company for longer.

A modern, well-designed office is a big advantage, but you still need to stand

of Department of Tenant Representation, Cresa

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For years, each new year brought numerous legal changes to entrepreneurs which often significantly influence their operations.

2019 shall be no different. Changes are multiple, below we have just highlighted the essential ones, also for the outsourcing industry.

To make things optimistic, let us begin from positive changes.

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WHAT WILL 2019 BRING TO ENTREPRENEURS CHANGES TO LAW AND WHAT FOLLOWS?

Numerous transformations relate to the broadly understood labour law.

The troublesome obligation to maintain cash office to pay salaries in cash has finally been waived. Also, the obligation to store employees’ records has been shortened to 10 years and additionally it can now be held in electronic form only. However, it should be remembered that the shortened period for storing the records only applies to employment contracts signed from 2019. In order to apply the short period to earlier documentation, additional formalities are required (a report to ZUS).

From the 1st of January 2019, a new CIT rate for limited liability companies is introduced. It shall be 9%, provided, however, it only applies to companies with a “small taxpayer” status, i.e. one whose revenue in the previous business year was less than EUR 1.2 M. Also, to benefit from this rate, the taxpayer must not be a member of a tax capital group, and the rate shall not apply to capital gains, such as: selling shares, all rights and obligations or dividend. In those cases, the current 19% rate shall apply. It should also be remembered that for companies created by spin-off, the 9% rate can apply after two-year period.

NEGATIVE CHANGES MAINLY INVOLVE TAXES From the 1st of January 2019, lease settlement regulations alter unfavourably for vehicles used for company

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

and private use. From the beginning of the new year, only 75% of all service expenses shall be tax-deductible which in practice translates to increased tax base. Also, lease instalments will be fully included as tax deductible expenses only up to PLN 150,000.

on the matter have been in force in Poland since 2002 but they have actually been dead. That is supposed to change in 2019, as an option shall be introduced to run parallel criminal proceedings against a natural person and an organisation (including a company).

Also, penalties which can be imposed Some individuals will also pay a soli- on entrepreneurs under a criminal case darity levy, that is an additional personal are increasing – up to PLN 30 M. income tax for those whose annual income exceeds PLN 1M – the tax rate The beginning of 2019 can also bring shall be 4%. more problems for HR departments.

Introduction of a new migration policy From the very beginning of the new in Germany which makes legal work year, an obligation is introduced easier for our neighbours from behind on tax schemes – Mandatory Disclosure the eastern border can result in their Rules. The obligation follows the MDR outflow from Poland. directive regulations. The legislator assumed broad understanding of a tax It has always been beyond any doubts scheme concept which is understood that running a company requires as a facility which: courage, energy and will of fight.

• meets the criterion of the main benefit The changes to be introduced will make and has a general recognition feature, business entities spend more and more money for compliance as in the changing • has a specific recognition feature, • has another specific recognition legal environment an error is easy feature. to be committed. The new regulations apply to both companies which use tax schemes, and Author: promotors, i.e. their creators. Also tax consultants, barristers, solicitors, attorneys at law or bank employees are recognised as promotors.

Apart from the tax changes, 2019 shall bring alternations in penal liability of collective entities. Regulations

Noemi Chudzik, LL.M., attorney at law, “Chudzik i Wspólnicy Radcowie Prawni” sp.p., www.chudzik.pl

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INVESTMENTS

INVESTMENT NEWS MARY KAY POLAND HAS SIGNED LEASE AT GATE ONE BUSINESS PARK IN WARSAW A global supplier of cosmetics Mary Kay Cosmetics Poland has signed a 1,380 sq m office and warehouse lease at Gate One Business Park in Warsaw. The owner of the logistics park is Pershore Sp. z o.o.

The tenant was represented in the transaction by global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield.

Mary Kay is a global supplier of more than 200 high-quality skin care products, colour cosmetics and fragrances.

Founded in Dallas, Texas, the United States, in 1963, the brand has been present in Poland since 2003. Mary Kay products are available in more than 35 countries across five continents.

SPARK C TO BE MANAGED BY COLLIERS Spark is a complex of three office buildings that offers innovative technologies and unconventional space arrangement. Building C, with app. 13 000 sq m of leasable area and 86 parking spaces, is the first of the three. The developer, general contractor and the main tenant of Spark C is Skanska, while the new owner since December 2018 is German company KGAL Investment Management GmbH & Co.

amenities that take into account various kinds of special needs.

Spark C is applying for WELL Building Standard certificate that confirms the quality of office space and its positive effect on working conditions.

Amenities conducive to health and wellbeing applied in the building include a modern building management system (BMS), air-conditioning based on cooling beams, individual temperOwing to innovative Connected ature control in rooms and designated

by Skanska technology, Spark is zones, daylight control, adiabatic the first office building in the CEE humidification and many more. region to be integrated with a mobile application and web platform. There- The Spark complex is located at the interfore, several modern systems func- section of two of Wola’s major thortion in the complex, including oughfares: Okopowa Street and a virtual reception that allows access Solidarnosci Avenue, which guarantees to the building by smartphone, and convenient connection with the city activity-based parking that recognises centre and other Warsaw districts, as well registration plates and assigns parking as with the Warsaw Chopin Airport. spaces appropriately. Moreover, Spark C The closest metro station Rondo Daszynwas adapted to cater for the needs skiego is a few minutes’ walk away. Within of people with disabilities at the design its vicinity, there are many hotels, restaustage. This included removing all rants and easily accessible commercial architectural barriers and introducing and service infrastructure.

Gate One Business Park is a modern A-class warehouse and office facility offering a total of 19,100 sq m, including 15,620 sq m of warehouse space.

The scheme boasts superb functionality and is located approximately 7 km from downtown Warsaw and 6 km from the Frederic Chopin International Airport, close to national road no. 8/the E67 European route (Białystok-Warsaw-Wrocław) and national road no. 7/the E77 European route (Gdansk-Warsaw-Krakow).

Savills Investment Management is the property manager for the complex on behalf of an Asian investor.

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NEW PLAYER ON THE POLISH MARKET – GALCAP EUROPE, FINALIZED ITS FIRST COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE ACQUISITIONS IN POLAND The portfolio of two boutique offices located in Warsaw City Centre South comprise ca. 7,500 sqm of office and retail GLA let to reputable tenants such as Museum of Polish History, Adam Mickewicz Institute, State Mining Authority, SMEs Advocate Office and others as well as renowned fashionable restaurants such as Bazar Kocha and Nolita – one of the most prestigious dining places in Warsaw.

GalCap Europe was founded by Dr. Manfred Wiltschnigg, Marco Kohla and Paul Hallam in 2015. The well-established company has been specializing in investment and asset management in Austria and the CEE region.

Main clients include German pension funds, insurance companies, family offices and Anglo-Saxon private equity funds, for which GalCap Europe is active as local partner in the region.

New player on the Polish market – GalCap Europe, investment and asset manager for Austria and the CEE region, finalized its first commercial real estate acquisitions in Poland. The investor purchased two historic boutique office buildings in Warsaw City Centre – Wilcza 46 and

Mokotowska 33/35 from Amhola.

The buyer and the seller decided not to disclose any purchase price details.

GalCap Europe was advised by Savills, Linklaters, Crido and DIL. The Seller was represented by Colliers International and MDDP.

Amhola is a private equity investment company specializing in international commercial and residential property developments in Poland, Ireland, UK, and Denmark. In Poland, Amhola’s main focus are Warsaw CBD office properties that could be substantially refurbished and upgraded.

THE WARSAW HUB OFFICE COMPLEX RECEIVED ANOTHER AWARD THIS YEAR The Warsaw HUB office complex received another award this year, this time as part of the prestigious International Property Awards competition in “Best Commercial High-rise Development Europe” category. According to an international jury, the Warsaw investment of Ghelamco Poland is the best commercial high-rise building in Europe.

For more than 25 years, International Property Awards has been recognising the most innovative and original commercial and residential buildings in the world. The jury appreciated the innovative solutions applied in the design of The Warsaw HUB, its architecture, safety, location and implementation in accordance with

the principles of green building.

Among the several dozen real estate experts being the judges in the competition are architects and designers of international renown: Rhian Barker, Geoff Cresswell, Sean Hatcher, Brian Lawrence, Christian Morris and Penny Patterson. The Earl of Liverpool is the chairman of the jury.

On 3 th December 2018, during the International Property Awards gala in London, The Warsaw HUB was proclaimed as the best high-rise building in Europe. Earlier, in October, Ghelamco’s flagship investment in Warsaw’s Wola district received two European Property Awards: the Award Winner and the Five Star Award in “Best Commercial High-rise Development Poland” category.

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During the first three quarters of this year, over 630 thousand sq m of office space have already been delivered to tenants, that is 8% more than in 2017.

Warsaw already has

5.43 million sq m of modern space, and currently

around 790 thousand sq m of offices are under construction in the agglomeration.

INVESTMENSTS

DEMAND FOR WARSAW OFFICES IS HIGHER THAN SUPPLY Warsaw office market sees record-breaking results.

This volume satisfies only the annual demand for office space in Warsaw, Warsaw is a European leader in terms which in 2017 exceeded 800 thousand of the economic development, which sq m. is clearly visible on the office market.

In recent years, the city has made During the first three quarters of this an immense leap in terms of the quality year, over 630 thousand sq m. of office of the offered space. The facilities space have already been delivered built in the agglomeration are among to tenants, that is 8 per cent more than the most modern on our continent. in 2017, which was record – breaking In two to three years, the imple- in terms of absorption. Such a large mented investments will provide and constantly growing demand for the city not only with spectacular capital offices means that despite buildings, but will also allow to create the unusual activity of developers, we a new, attractive urban space. can talk about a kind of supply gap The increasing variety of the offer on the capital market today. on the Warsaw office market goes hand in hand with the exception- THE GROWING SKYSCRAPERS ally dynamic growth in supply. ARE TO CHANGE THE BUSINESS Warsaw already has 5.43 million sq m MAP OF WARSAW of modern space, and currently around The unwavering interest in the location 790 thousand sq m of offices are under of the world’s largest players encourconstruction in the agglomeration. ages investors to take action. This

WARSAW OFFICE MARKET SEES RECORD-BREAKING RESULTS

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year, the construction of ten office projects in Warsaw offering in total over 270 thousand sq m of space has been launched.

Among others, the implementation of ArtN complex at Żelazna Street, based on the revitalization of the buildings of the former Norblin factory has begun. At the intersection of the two metro lines, the construction of Central Point office building is also on the way, whereas at Burakowska Street, Forest office campus, with 78 thousand sq m of offices has started. Recently, at Daszyńskiego roundabout, the im­­­ plementation of the 140 meter tower of Generation Park Y has also begun.

The construction of many spectacular venues is carried out in Warsaw, most of which will be completed by 2020.

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INVESTMENTS

After completing them, the business map of Warsaw will change a lot. Mainly, thanks to the huge development of the area near Daszyńskiego roundabout in Wola, where a modern office district is under construction.

GLASS TOWERS AND LOFT OFFICES The office towers which will be erected in the investments initiated in Warsaw, will allow to dethrone the 231-meter Palace of Culture and Science, which remains the highest building in the city. In 2020, the highest office building not only in Warsaw, but also in the European Union, will be the tower currently under construction in the Varso complex near the Central Railway Station, at the intersection of Aleja Jana Pawła II and Chmielna Street. The facility will offer a total of 145 thousand sq m of space.

The second largest office project to be commissioned in the same year will be the Warsaw Hub complex with 75 thousand sq m of space, located at Daszyńskiego roundabout.

Elektrownia Powiśle has already been leased by tenants. After almost a decade of waiting, the construction of the already mentioned ArtN project has begun, whereas Bohema investment, located on the site of the former Pollena factory in Warsaw’s district of Praga has entered the next phase of preparations for the construction.

The commercial part of Koneser, a multifunctional complex that was built on the site of the former Warszawska Wytwórnia Wódek, has also opened in this increasingly popular Warsaw district.

WARSAW’S SŁUŻEWIEC IS IMPROVING ITS QUALITY Służewiec, the largest business zone in Poland, is currently undergoing major changes. Despite its huge potential, in office buildings located in this area, the vacancy rate is twice as high as the average in the city and three times higher than in the center.

which combined with the competitive rental rates, brings the expected result.

LESS AND LESS VACANT SPACE During the 9 months of 2018, Warsaw market gained almost 200 thousand sq m of space. Developers commissioned 20 office buildings, located mostly in the central agglomeration zone. Their degree of commercialization after completion was reaching an average of 70%.

The estimates indicate that in 2019, Warsaw will gain around 270 thousand sq m of space. However, in order to have more choice, the companies looking for large areas in the central part of the capital will have to wait at least until 2020.

The vacanc y rate in Warsaw is currently the lowest in 5 years and on average amounts to around 10 per cent. In the central regions of the city it exceeds only 6 per cent.

In the last 12 months, the vacancy Infrastructure investments carried out rate has dropped by around 3%. in this area are to improve the attrac- The largest number of empty offices On the beginning year, Mennica Legacy tiveness of the district among the inves- in Warsaw are in the area of ​​​​Żwirki Tower investment with ​​over 60 thou- tors. It is mainly about improving road i Wigury Street and in Służewiec, sand sq m will be completed in Wola’s infrastructure and creating new trans- around 17–19%.

City. The office topography of this port connections. part of the city will also include buildSTRONG GROWTH ings such as 195-meter Skyliner At the same time, developers are taking OF THE BUSINESS SERVICES (44 thousand sq m), and further build- the initiative to improve the work SECTOR ings of Generation Park and Spark environment. Not only have they The historical results of the Warsaw investments (70 thousand sq m). consistently changed the seamless office market come from a large G h e l a m co co m p a ny d e p e n d s office function of this area through interest in leasing space from inveson the pace of commerciali- residential, hotel and retail invest- tors form the consulting and banking zation of The Warsaw Hub, for ments, but also introduced amenities sector, modern business services the starting date of the construction to increase the popularity of Służewiec as well as co-working space operators. of Unit Warsaw skyscraper, located after working hours. They implement More and more often, the demand near the building, which together technologically advanced solutions is also generated by public instituwith the technical equipment in the buildings and provide practical tions and units of the administraon the roof will reach the height services in office buildings. In the prem- tive sector, which are now eagerly of 202 meters. Nearby, a 150-meter ises of the complexes there are various choosing commercial real estate for PHN Tower building is also to be built attractions, including outdoor cinemas, their headquarters. at ONZ roundabout. new restaurants and cafes, summer gardens, or places where for organized One of the largest recipients The most interesting Warsaw office mutual training and sports activities. of office space in Warsaw is BPO/ projects are certainly those based SSC sector. There are 215 service on the revitalization of old indus- This is to stop the outflow of tenants centers operating in the city, with trial buildings. The almost finished to the city’s growing business center, 55 thousand employees. According

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to ABSL data, from the beginning of 2017, 22 new centers were created in Warsaw, and employment increased by 22%, that is by 10 thousand people.

According to forecasts, 240 centers will operate in the capital by the end of 2020, and the employment will increase to 65 thousand people.

AN INCREASING OFFER OF CO-WORKING SPACE The latest, distinc tive trend on the Warsaw market is the intense development of co-working space operators, whose activity is also visible in the demand structure. Only in the first three quarters of 2018, the companies from this sector leased almost 90 thousand sq m of office space in Warsaw, generating about 14% demand for capital offices. In the city center, one-fourth of space was handed over to the co-working operators.

Co-working concepts enrich the offer of the Warsaw office market, complementing the offers related to the traditional lease. It is connected with a new, flexible work model that forces changes and accelerates the evolution of the office segment. Warsaw market opens up to start-ups and young entrepreneurs whose needs are different from corporations and companies with extensive structures.

In recent years, the co-working

market in Poland has been growing by 30–40% annually, and in the last year has doubled its offer.

The vacancy rate in Warsaw is currently

the lowest in 5 years and on average amounts to around 10%. In the central regions of the city it exceeds

only 6%.

In recent years, the co-working market in Poland has been growing by 30–40% annually, and in the last year has doubled its offer. Companies offering flexible office space already have in their resources over 220 thousand sq m of space, of which two-thirds is located in Warsaw. Author:

Bartłomiej Zagrodnik, CEO, Walter Herz

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INVESTMENTS

ON THE RIGHT TRACK TO

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT High human potential, an attractive investment offer and friendly environment for living and running a business – due to these advantages Bydgoszcz has been in constant, dynamic development for years. The results of implementing the City’s economic strategy allow to draw an optimistic vision for the future.

BYDGOSZCZ FOCUSES ON OUTSOURCING Currently, there are over 40 BPO, SSC, IT, and R&D centres operating in Bydgoszcz and forecasts indicate that by 2020 the number will grow to 50. The dynamic growth of employment in BPO/SSC in the last 2 years has brought the number of employees in the sector to over 10,000, more than 80% of which is generated

by IT services, creating a strong local specialisation. The financial and accounting centres as well as contact centres are also developing dynamically. In addition to IT services, it is in the F&A industry that the City sees great potential for further development of the local BPO/SSC sector, especially as the financial and accounting specialisations concentrate the largest number of students and graduates in the region.

Therefore, as part of the “Bydgoszcz open to outsourcing” campaign, the City will continue to work on ensuring proper conditions for the development of existing investors and attracting new investment projects to the City.

In the context of regional cities, the reinvestments of companies already present on the domestic market will be very important for the BPO/ SSC sector in Poland in the coming years. This is an opportunity that Bydgoszcz intends to use well, that is why it opens its doors with a ready investment proposal, covering access to office infrastructure, specialists and academic centres, while providing work-life balance which is important for both entrepreneurs and employees.

The demand for warehouse and logistics services is growing in the City.

These services are gaining in importance due to the favourable location of Bydgoszcz and convenient road, rail and air connections with economic centres in the country and abroad.

The further development of Bydgoszcz as a logistic centre is also influenced by the prospect of the construction of S5 and S10 expressways that will connect the coast with Silesia and Warsaw with Szczecin. This is enough reason for the City’s activities to focus on creating a dedicated investment offer and attracting projects from the TFL industry in the near future.

BYDGOSZCZ IS BUILDING THE STAFF OF THE FUTURE TODAY

An extremely important factor for the further economic development of the City is human capital.

Bydgoszcz is also a thriving indus- As the largest academic centre trial and logistics centre. The strong in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivoand still growing production sector deship, Bydgoszcz actively supports employs almost half of people working the cooperation between universities in the City. On the canvas of the indus- and business. Strong IT staff, techtrial past, today, modern production nical facilities and esteemed univerand technology develop in the City, and sities – these are the highlights that the products of local companies reach the City uses to attract new players customers from all over the world. on the market.

MODERN PRODUCTION The BPO/SSC sector is changing AND LOGISTICS the local economy and is moving towards more and more complex processes, creating systemic and pioneering solutions as well as R&D. Global companies providing services from Bydgoszcz not only support unique projects on a global scale, but also create prospects for further development for the entire sector.

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INVESTMENTS

Nearly 30,000 students study currently in Bydgoszcz, of which over 2,500 are studying in fields related to the dynamically developing IT industry. Bydgoszcz is constantly developing this potential, thanks to which the City is referred to as a “forge of IT staff”. Already at the secondary school level, the City focused on education with a technical profile, which is often an additional advantage for investors, especially in the IT industry. In addition, Bydgoszcz students benefit from attractive programs of patronage classes or education programmes, created in cooperation with companies investing in the City – these are courses geared to practical skills desired by local employers.

ATTRACTIVE AREAS FOR FURTHER INVESTMENTS The activities of the Bydgoszcz Regional Development Agency (BARR) – a company established 5 years ago by the City authorities to comprehensively handle investment projects in the City, support local entrepreneurship and the economic promo-

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tion of Bydgoszcz – are the means of attracting new investments that stimulate the local economy. As part of projects realised with the help of the Agency, investors have already created more than 4,300 jobs in the service, production and warehouse industries, and about 2,500 in trade. New investments realised with the active support from BARR can be seen in the City with the naked eye.

Within a few years after establishing the Agancy, the investors cooperating with BARR handed over more than 220,000 sq m of modern warehouse space and nearly 100,000 sq m of commercial space to use. Office area also increased by nearly 35,000 sq m.

The BPO/SSC sector, dynamically developing in Bydgoszcz, is generating an increasing demand for modern office spaces. Currently realised and planned development investments mean that the office real estate market in the City has a lot to offer to potential tenants. The amount of available office space in Bydgoszcz is already almost 100,000 sq m, while projects under construction cover another 23,000 sq m, with over 66,000 sq m being planned for construction. Developers also see the investment potential in modern warehouse spaces. In the last two years, the warehouse area dynamically increased, from 188,000 sq m to 345,000 sq m. Meanwhile, more than 210,000 sq m of modern, highstandard warehouse parks are under construction and planning.

In its investment offer, the City has a total of approx. 150 hectares of land prepared for various investments. These are areas located within the City limits, a short distance from the international airport and providing convenient access to national roads and rail transport.

THE POWER OF EFFECTIVE COOPERATION As the strongest economic centre in the Voivodeship, Bydgoszcz is also the leader in activities for the development of the entire region.

At the end of 2016, at the initiative of the Mayor of Bydgoszcz and representatives of 18 neighbouring cities and communes as well as two poviats, the Bydgoszcz Metropolis Association was established. It is the result of a natural need to strengthen relations between local governments.

The aim of the Association is the search of solutions to improve the quality of life of the residents and to promote and build the region’s economic and tourist potential, based on voluntary cooperation and mutual support from members of the Bydgoszcz Metropolis.

One of the last effects of this extended cooperation is the project “Supporting the internationalisation of SMEs and

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Invested in the city

Name of the investor: Livingstone International Country of origin: Canada Number of workplaces: 96 Sector: Logistics, Brokerage, Consulting Company’s residence in the city: Biznes Park Occupied place: 950 sq m

the region’s economic promotion in the area of ​​​​the Bydgoszcz Metropolis Association”, which is a joint venture between BARR and the Bydgoszcz Metropolis Association. As part of the project, which will be realised until 2023, entrepreneurs from the area covered by ​​​​the Association will be able to use the pro-export support instruments (including financial assistance).

Livingston International has a Global Trade Management solution that provides a truly global footprint, offering clients tailored services spanning all aspects of international trade operations.

We help businesses assess their existing supply chain and trade compliance operations

On the other hand, in cooperation with the largest cities of the province, Bydgoszcz is implementing another several-year project promoting the economic potential of the KuyavianPomeranian Voivodeship with a goal to increase the region’s recognition on the map of Poland and Europe as an attractive place for new investments.

to adhere to industry best practices, optimize efficiency and ensure import and export transactions flow smoothly. We make strategic use of process documentation, performance metrics and detailed reporting to allow for better business decision making.

We have been operating in Poland since 2002 via our local office in Bydgoszcz, from which we deliver services to our European

Recent years have been marked by dynamic development and building a good economic image of Bydgoszcz.

New investments in the City, the high potential of human capital recognised by investors, and numerous awards for Bydgoszcz in various business rankings prove that the effort undertaken brings the desired effects and is worth continuing. – Attracting investors was and remains the main goal we set ourselves. As a city, we try to create the best conditions for entrepreneurs, striving for investments that positively affect the lives of residents – emphasises the Mayor of Bydgoszcz, Rafał Bruski.

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customers. We are a dynamic and continually growing company that invests in people and technology and offers a supportive and interesting work environment.

Unii Lubelskiej 4C St. 85-059 Bydgoszcz Phone: +48 52 585 88 23 barr@barr.pl www.barr.pl

Waldemar Jasiński, Senior Director, Trade Operations Europe Livingston International 61

INVESTMENTS

POZNAN IMPROVES FOR RESIDENTS AND INVESTORS

Photo: J. Sokołowski for Garvest

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New investment in the city

The priority of Poznan is the quality of life in the city. Mayor Jacek Jaśkowiak aims to continue the course chosen during the previous term and announces a record budget for investments. The city is to become even more smart, offering attractive living conditions for all residents.

As a result, the center will be revita­­ lized – the most representative Święty Marcin street is already regaining its former splendor. It is to become a vibrant, important part of the city.

Traffic will be limited, it will become a wide promenade with a tram track.

And that means that residents and tourists will be able to spend more time there and enjoy what the city has to offer. An important element in revitalized Poznan is greenery, and there will be a lot of it on Święty Marcin Street.

The city center could not be vivid without students. Therefore, by the end of 2020 in one of the skyscrapers ‘Alfa’ at Święty Marcin street new dormitory will be created. There will be 140 apartments in the building. This private investment perfectly suits the strategy of reviving this street in the center of Poznan.

Country of origin: Finland Number of workplaces: 130 Sector: IT Security Company’s residence in the city: Rataje 164 Occupied place: 1,000 sq m (planned 1,200 sq m)

in a three-star standard. Poznan hotel base growth is the result of the development of tourism and air traffic in Poznan.

ATTRACTING INVESTORS Poznan has always been associated with diligence, which is why investors who choose Poznan here are successful and dynamically develop.

The best example is Volkswagen Poznan, which decided on another investment in our region, the construction of hall in Antoninek. Good conditions for development in the capital of Wielkopolska were also noticed by the U.S. company Franklin Templeton Investments, which increases employment and since that decided to purchase a prestigious property in the city center, in the Nowy Rynek (Skanska) complex.

The city’s priority in the coming years is to attract new companies generating attractive jobs for its residents.

In the coming years, we are going to make even more efforts to create good conditions for investing in Poznan.

We encourage companies that want to develop in Central and Eastern Europe to contact our Investor Relations Department – says Bartosz Guss, the new Deputy Mayor of the City of Poznan, responsible, among others, for investors issues.

Another Alfa building on Święty Marcin Street will be renovated. This is great news, which supports the process of street revival and proofs that the City’s activities in this area stimulate private investments – says Mariusz Wiśniewski, Deputy Mayor of the City of Poznan. – The idea of locating a private dormitory in the Alfa building is excellent, because it will give a new function to this facility and attract young people to the city center.

AIR QUALITY FOR POZNAN The fight against smog is currently Earlier, in 2018, the Altus hotel being carried out throughout Poland. was opened in another skyscraper The city of Poznan also conducts of the Alf complex, offering 110 rooms intensified activities to improve the air

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Name of the investor: F-Secure

F-Secure has begun the transformation from a traditional antivirus manufacturer into a provider of comprehensive cyber security solutions in 2015. Since then, it has expanded its competences, both by employing new specialists, as well as acquisitions of companies and technologies. Currently, F-Secure offers a comprehensive portfolio of solutions – from protection of endpoints, through vulnerability management to services related to detecting and responding to incidents in IT infrastructure.

The growth is a consequence of F-Secure implementing a new strategy focusing on business services, mainly targeted at medium-sized enterprises. The R&D department in Poznań is creating advanced tools and services that allow analyzing, preventing and combating cyber threats.

Within three years, the number of employees of the Poznań office has increased fourfold.

Next step is to develop a team responsible for supporting clients using our solutions.

Leszek Tasiemski, VP Cyber Security Products R&D, F-Secure 63

INVESTMENTS

for Poznan” application and also find out more about the fight against smog and report violations of air cleanliness in the dedicated “Czysty Poznan” portal.

INVESTMENTS IN CULTURE

A rich cultural offer for all residents – this is one of the goals of the Mayor of Poznan, Jacek Jaśkowiak. In the following years, projects will be continued allowing easy access to culture – including theater SHARED TRANSPORT IN THE CITY performances, concerts in the courtThe city bike in Poznan enjoys great yard of the City Hall #NaWolnym. Open popularity. Every year, more records and free cultural events in the spring of the number of loans are beaten. and summer season are systematiDue to such dynamic develop- cally held in the favorite places of rest ment, it was decided to modernize of Poznanians: near the Warta River and the bicycle rental system and intro- Maltańskie, Rusałka or Strzeszynek lakes. duce the so-called fourth generation bicycles. In 2019, residents and tourists Poznan will have even more to offer will still have 1200 third generation in this aspect of life. A tender has bikes at 109 stations, plus 435 bicycles just started to design a new premof the fourth generation. 97 zones will be ises of the Musical Theater, which designated (including the zone including will be built until 2023. This is the strict center), where you can rent and not the end of urban investment leave the latest type of bike. in culture. The maintenance and adaptation of representative interiors The limitation of car traffic is indicated of the western part of the former as one of the most important goals imperial castle in Poznan will start for in Poznan. Apart from bicycle invest- over PLN 4 million from the municipal ments in Poznan, electromobility is budget. In 2019, the city will also alloalso promoted, and more and more elec- cate over PLN 2 million for the moderntric scooters and hybrid cars, which can ization of the Raczyński Library building be rented for minutes or longer, appear as well as the preservation and digition city streets. From December 2018, resi- zation of valuable library collections.

The city’s priority in the coming years is to attract new companies creating attractive jobs for its residents. quality, both developing the public transport system, and aiming at eliminating further heat sources that are using solid fuels. An educational and information campaign is also being carried out at creating “good conduct” because we all influence the quality of our environment.

dents of Poznan can use electric scooters for rent. On the outskirts of the city, park & ​​ride car parks are created enabling residents of surrounding municipalities to easily use public transport.

Branches of the library will also be renovated. It is related to the promise of the Mayor that the inhabitants of every part of Poznan will have easy access to the cultural offer.

Urban transport is one of the city’s top priorities. It is already at a very high level. In the rush hour, trams and buses The efforts have already bring the ex- run every 10 minutes, and rolling stock pected ecological effects. is one of the most modern in Poland.

The next purchase of the City is being Author: The city does not stop there, and implemented. The additional 50 modern continues to improve transport, elim- Moderus Gamma trams will replace inate further sources of emissions the most used vehicles. caused by solid fuel, control of household furnaces and boiler rooms, as well Major projects related to public trans- Investor Relations Department as broadly understood educational and port are also aimed at reducing emis- City of Poznań Za Bramką 1 Street, 61-842 Poznan sions. The most important project informational activities.

P.: +48 61 878 54 28 is the construction of a tram route inwestor@um.poznan.pl The inhabitants of Poznan can check to Naramowice district and the Nowa www.poznan.pl the air quality through the “Atmosfera Naramowicka transport hub.

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INVESTMENTS

ROMANIA: 100 YEARS OF DEVELOPMENT AND COUNTING

When people think of Romania, many things can cross their minds. From history to well-developed industries, Romania attracted attention on many occasions. One hundred years from its foundation, the country is recognized worldwide for being one of the most active IT&C hubs in Europe and for being a very attractive destination for outsourcing. How did that happen?

Shortly said, Romania stood out from the crowd thanks to the significant benefits it offered to international companies that came here looking for help. Even more, the internet connection is skyrocketing here (Romania’s internet speeds are the fastest in Europe and the sixth fastest in the world), and that’s another reason for investing or outsourcing in Romania. But let’s take a closer look at how Romania succeeded in this industry on its way to national development.

SOME NUMBERS TO RELY ON On many occasions, studies showed the massive potential that Romania has in this industry. In 2011 around 58,000 people were working in this industry. Now the number has almost doubled, we have more than 110,000 IT&C professionals. In five years (between 2011 and 2016) the number of IT&C companies in Romania increased from 9,823 to 14,339, and the number of startups almost doubled – there were 1,806 in 2011 and 3,795 in 2016. You can probably imagine that today the numbers are higher. Being one of the fastest growing markets in Central and Eastern Europe, Romanian IT markets is forecasted to grow at 3.1% over 2017–2021 to a value of $2,47 billion in 2021. Cybersecurity represents a significant part of the industry. According to the National Strategy on Digital Agenda for Romania 2020,

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Romania will invest around $2.64 billion to implement a strategic vision of the IT&C. That will happen mainly to increase efficiency and reduce the overall costs in the following areas: e-Government, Interoperability, Security Cybernetics, Cloud Computing, and Social Media.

These initiatives are impressive, but the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) can have a significant impact on the further development of the Romanian Cybersecurity market and in a good way.

It is also predicted that data processors will buy a substantial amount of cybersecurity consulting services to meet the requirements related to protecting personal information.

We can easily see where Romania is heading to. Last year the Bucharest IT Center of Deutsche Bank Global Technology, predicted that Romanian IT&C sector would reach 12% of GDP in 2025, compared to 6% at this time. The industry has reached the same GDP as agriculture, the most influential sector for many years, but with fewer people than the IT&C industry.

By the end of 2025, the number of IT&C professionals is expected to be between 230,000 and 250,000, given the fact that each year Romania has 7,000–8,000 graduates. However, the market demand is higher than the number of graduates, but Universities are not the only institutions that provide

IT courses. Many companies started to develop internal programs, and that’s why I believe the number of IT&C professionals will be higher than expected.

ROMANIAN IT&C INDUSTRY: A SUCCESSFUL STORY There’s no doubt that Romania has vital importance on the European and global IT&C market. This is the result of a strong reputation built over many years of sustainable work in the companies all around Romania. The list of the attraction points can be very long, but here I’ll only highlight those who matter the most.

Firstly, Romania has an impressive pool of talents. From simple programmers to experienced project managers, the Romanian IT&C professionals are able to fulfill even the most demanding projects and can create and implement complex IT infrastructures. As mentioned above, there are more than 100,000 people employed in thousands of companies dedicated to building applications, working in outsourcing or near sourcing institutions, and providing quality IT services for third parties across the globe.

Moreover, Romania has the support of a lot of big names (popular international companies and brands), that opened offices in the past decade. They provide

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

first hand IT services to their global clients and partners no matter where they are located. This practice has been supported by the skilled IT people, who have the ability and the education to speak and deliver services in foreign languages. We are not only talking about everyday English but also other foreign languages such as French, Spanish or German. That is definitely a strong point of the Romanian IT&C market.

Not least, a significant factor that helped Romania over the past years to expand in the IT&C industry at the level we see today is the fiscal environment. The industry has benefited some significant tax reductions and, in some case, tax-free for the employees.

Even if the laws have changed and foreign business managers might believe that Romania is not suitable anymore for regional expansion, the financial and fiscal benefits are still significant. After a decade of policies that encouraged companies to expand in Romania, we can see the increasing number of young people wanting to build a successful IT career in the country.

Of course, the list can continue with many more factors that help Romania on the top of the list when considering outsourcing services. But that’s not the point. What I want to highlight is that Romania’s potential is almost unlimited, and the passion for well-done projects is what gave us this favorable reputation.

THE FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT FOR ROMANIA The Romanian IT&C industry has massively evolved over the last two decades, making the sector be an essential point of the national brand. We’ve been producing thousands of specialists to support the increasing demand for IT services.

Many years have passed since the arrival of the first international corporation. At that time, it was only another technical support center; now we can’t even count them anymore. The successful story of Romanian IT&C market is not over yet; other pages are about to be written with passion, perseverance and hard work.

Author:

By the end of 2025, the number of IT&C professionals is expected to be between 230,000 and 250,000, given the fact that

In five years (between 2011 and 2016) the number

each year Romania has 7,000-8,000 graduates.

of IT&C companies in Romania increased from 9,823 to 14,339.

Loredana Niculae, CEO NNC Services Romania

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INVESTMENTS

OFFICES F OF THE T FUTURE

NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND TRENDS IN OFFICE SPACE DESIGN Open space with rows of numerous, identical desks piled up with documents and files, large PCs, dropped ceiling, dull fitted carpet and grey walls, tiny kitchen equipped with a kettle… a reminiscence familiar to those with long office experience. This is what a standard office looked like not so long ago. Thankfully, this is a bygone era.

A dynamic development in digital technologies has revolutionized the way we work.

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One of the primary challenges ahead of employers is to meet new trends in work style. Advancement of digital technologies has significantly increased staff mobility. More and more of them can perform their duties anywhere outside the office as long as there is access to high-speed Internet and mobile devices, assuring ongoing communication with their superiors.

There’s a simple comparison to exem- market. More than 80% of candidates In this case, so called hot desks arrangeplify the rate of change – the computing declare they will not sign a contract ment is a useful option for office space power of an ordinary tablet used until they see the office they will work design. There are no desks assigned to browse Internet pages is greater than in. Proper workplace boosts job pres- to a particular person, he or she takes that of a supercomputer in the 80’s. tige and promotes comfort of work. the one available at a given moment.

Mobility, flexibility, Internet of Things, Many aspects are taken into considera- However, for an employee to work effecVirtual Reality – these are the buzzwords tion – location, access to public transport, tively, such a workstation needs to meet shaping today ’s office spaces. standard of the building, arrangement several criteria.

How do they influence the modern office and fitting-out of office spaces. The choice spaces design? of office space has a determining influence – Desks are equipped with all necessary on the future of the company and their hook-ups such as laptop and mobile There are numerous reasons why employees. Hence, it is important to seek phone chargers and have access to wirecompanies invest in office spaces, support from professional real-estate less printers. Employees may connect their with the pivotal one being compe- advisers when considering a relocation computer simultaneously to numerous tition for the top-notch employees process – explains Maciej Ozdoba, Asso- screens, what facilitates project meetings on the market. – Employers realize ciate Director in Nuvalu, Polish leading and boosts work efficacy. All data is stored that office is a key ingredient in estab- company providing advisory services in the cloud, making it accessible right lishing their company’s brand on the job on the commercial real estate market. away from any desk an employee takes.

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INVESTMENTS

Use of natural materials such as stone and wood, which makes a cozy, ‘feel at home’ ambience, is another trend in workplace design. Designers tend to incorporate furnishings made from recycled materials (e.g. fitted carpet) or arrange plants and greenery in the office.

Sound-isolated phone booths are perfect option for making undistracted telephone conversations with clients. For team work, office conference rooms are fitted with demountable modular partitions, easily adjustable to the needs of a project and carried meetings. Mobile hardware for presentations such as screens, projectors and virtual reality tools, means they are freely moveable from place to place.

These modern offices are equipped with complex infrastructure to run teleconferences – a common practice in the reality of mobile work and better fitted solution for communication than traditional meeting. All these measures are taken with an aim of saving employees’ time, maximising their efficiency and comfort – says Monika Szawernowska, who manages Concept Space, a Warsaw-based design studio specialising in office spaces.

Rapid development of mobile communication technology and information sharing processes poses new challenges for IT departments, such as ensuring data protection.

The role of IT departments is growing, and this trend will ratchet up. Their task is also to provide IT solutions in line with the new trends in workstyle and with office space arrangements.

INTELLIGENT AND COSTCUTTING OFFICES Smart office is a set of solutions applied in modern offices to optimize power consumption and resources management. This is particularly important now that electricity costs are rising and its consumption in office building remains high. Insulation of such buildings is yet an insufficient measure.

Therefore, there are systems based on artificial intelligence, which observe and memorize usage patterns, and then provide tailored settings of heating, air-conditioning or lights. Specifically, data is collected by appliances

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which then transmit information via Wi-Fi or through radio frequency, and a special algorithm optimizes power consumption, contributing to the reduction of costs and raising comfort of work.

utensils and appliances at hand. Companies encourage socialization of staff, using common areas for this purpose.

Office may be a venue for a PlayStation tournament or sessions of live cooking accompanied by a renowned chef.

SATISFYING THE MILLENNIALS It is estimated that by the year 2020 millennials will account for 45% of all employees in the companies.

Having this in mind, office spaces should be designed and fitted out to match this group, encompassing their habits and expectations. This is the first generation to whom the use of digital devices is inherent, thus they demand high functionality and reliability of such devices.

Companies and property administrators strive to meet these requirements by introducing new technological solutions. It is becoming more common for modern offices to enable their employees to book a conference room, unlock the door, check availability of parking spaces, browse the canteen menu, change the room temperature or even alter the colour and intensity of light by the means of a simple application. These interactive applications provided to all tenants of a building also play a socializing role, as they inform about various events, presentations or joint initiatives, promoting activities within the building after working hours.

They enhance networking of various types of businesses, provide opportunities for cross-selling, support tenants’ businesses.

Use of natural materials such as stone and wood, which makes a cozy, ‘feel at home’ ambience, is another trend in workplace design. Designers tend to incorporate furnishings made from recycled materials (e.g. fitted carpet) or arrange plants and greenery in the office.

The Millennial generation pays particular attention to design and style. In response, companies are more willing to invest in both good and optimal design of their office spaces.

This mainly relates to common areas, with an increasing trend to provide workplaces with sophisticated chillout rooms, relaxation zones, playrooms or fully equipped kitchens with all

Author:

However, designers and investors’ focus on attractiveness, positive atmosphere and aesthetics of office interior should not overshadow the priority behind office design which is its functionality.

– It’s worth to remember that office is mainly a workplace. That’s why not only do we need to cater for new technologies and sophisticated design, but also, and most importantly, comfortable working conditions. Chairs and seating of ergonomic features, height adjustable desks, proper configuration of workstations facilitating collaboration and communication between staff, easy access to office equipment, these are the key elements determining comfort of work, productivity as well as employer and employees’ satisfaction – highlights Monika Szawernowska. 

Tomasz Bułhak, Biuro prasowe, Nuvalu

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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The first investment of 2018 came to Kaunas.

NKT – a multi-billion Danish cable manufacturer – decided on opening a shared services centre in the heart of Lithuania.

Kaunas welcomed Dutch market leader in enterprise content systems Hyarchis and well-established IT market player Centric.

Booking.com opened their first customer care centre in the Baltics in Vilnius.

In 2018, the GBS community in Vilnius was joined by Yara, one of the largest Norwegian industrial companies.

Among the notable newcomers was Bazaarvoice, a leading US marketing technology company that chose Lithuania, Vilnius, over Northern Ireland and Portugal.

December brought a new major global player to the spotlight – Moody’s – and HCL Technologies – a new Business Process Outsourcing player to Lithuania’s GBS industry.

INVESTMENTS

2018 – A YEAR TO REMEMBER FOR LITHUANIAN GLOBAL BUSINESS SERVICES

If I were asked to describe 2018 in one word only, that word would be “spectacular.” The Global Business Services (GBS) sector in Lithuania has been growing not just in terms of new companies and headcount, but also functions, and this qualitative leap is as exciting as the quantitative one.

70 Lithuania-based business services centres. While all good news is equally pleasing, new investments definitely stand out.

as GeoPhy, the city welcomed Dutch market leader in enterprise content systems Hyarchis and well-established IT market player Centric.

The first investment of the year came to Kaunas – Lithuania’s second largest city and an emerging GBS hub in itself. NKT – a multi-billion Danish cable manufacturer decided on opening a shared services centre in the heart of Lithuania. Their journey so far has been more than remarkable – the company not only managed to reach its initial growth target earlier NEWCOMERS – TOO MANY than planned but was so impressed TO LIST BUT WE CAN STILL TRY by the local talents that it decided If you look at our newsfeed for the year, to establish an Internet of Things team. you will probably not find a single The more functions, the merrier, right? month without some major announcement – be it an entirely new name Speaking about Kaunas, this year showed on the market, a ribbon-cutting cere- an intriguing synergy between this tech mony for a new office or a global award hub and companies from the Nethergiven to one of the more than lands. Already home to such innovators

Vilnius has also seen a significant rise in action. While traditionally most of the centres based in the capital were providing services to companies in the Finance industry, the sector is getting more and more diverse and mature. In 2018, the GBS community in Vilnius was joined by Yara, one of the largest Norwegian industrial companies. It established a supply chain focused centre that will be managing every single order and every single shipment in Europe. It pleases me to know that such level of trust was vested in Lithuanian specialists.

It shows the flexibility of the market that can offer specialists and competencies in a wide range of domains – not just in traditionally strong fields like IT and Finance, but also Internet of Things (IoT), Transport Management, Digital Marketing and many more. The developments we have witnessed last year make my heart sing, and I’m very grateful to Outsourcing&More for providing me a platform to share this yearly review with so many industry specialists.

So, without further ado, here is our year, one of the best so far.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Booking.com opened their first customer care centre in the Baltics, the decision having much to do with

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BUSINESS

2018 was also a good year for Lithuanian GBS community to build stronger ties with international peers, while becoming even more tight-knit in the process.

the multi-lingual aspect of the Lithuanian talent pool. And this is fact, not opinion.

In Lithuania, the average number of languages spoken per person is 2.7 and 97.3% of the population speaks at least one foreign language. According to Lithuania’s Business Services Report 2018, presented by Invest Lithuania this autumn, a third of Lithuania-based centres operate in 6 languages or more.

Among the notable newcomers was Bazaarvoice, a leading US marketing technology company that chose Lithuania over Northern Ireland and Portugal.

It took them less than a year to grow their Vilnius division responsible for technical support to 70 people, and we’re all excited to see what 2019 brings for this Big Data-driven company.

The complexity of operations that companies provide from Lithuania is increasing both when it comes to veterans of the sectors (Danske Bank, Western Union, Nasdaq) and newcomers.

One of the prime examples of this is Catalyst – a UK-based global financial consulting company that came to Lithu­ ania in May. Vilnius also became a new home to two companies that have never had a division abroad before – Primo Interactive and Arctic Adventures. Primo Interactive is a UK web development and marketing agency and Arctic Adventures is an Icelandic tour operator with plans to go global in the nearest future. Both of them chose Lithuania for a whole range of reasons, talent being the top one, of course.

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December brought a new major global player to the spotlight – Moody’s. Moody’s will most likely bring the complexity of function to yet unseen levels. This investment is as important to the country’s GBS sector as Barclays’ investment a decade earlier. The scope of this project covers multiple important positions that will support the company’s ratings and research businesses and operations in areas such as finance, HR operations, information security, and IT. I am confident that it will open a whole new era for the industry here.

December has also brought a new Business Process Outsourcing player to Lithuania’s GBS industry. HCL Technologies will be taking over Barclays BGOL centre – that same historic and iconic centre that has catalyzed the development of the entire industry. While it is sad to see Barclays go, I believe that HCL Technologies will bring new practices in the promising field of BPO.

FIRST TIMES – GOOD TIMES 2018 was also a good year for Lithuanian GBS community to build stronger ties with international peers, while becoming even more tight-knit in the process. For the first time, Vilnius hosted the Autumn Edition of the biannual European Shared Services and Outsourcing Week.

The conference provided the opportunity not just to learn about the latest trends in the industry, but also to visit two hallmark centres – those of Danske Bank and Western Union.

The conference was very well-received among the guests and the hosts.

I sincerely hope that this will be the first of many events of this calibre to come to Lithuania in the coming years.

Another “first” actually comes this year, although the decision has been made in 2018. Connectivity has always been a major component in foreign direct investment attraction. And one of the drawbacks we have been facing My sincere apologies if I have missed was the lack of business flights someone – as you have seen, there is to London. I am glad to say this is not so much going on! an issue anymore, as starting this spring we will have direct business flights GROWTH IN ALL DIRECTIONS to London City Airport on a daily basis.

Seeing new companies discover Lithu­ ania is a huge pleasure, only equal to one To sum up, this year once again solidiI feel when thinking about how compa- fied the notion that the Lithuanian GBS nies with already established opera- centre is strong, flexible, mature and tions are expanding. This year was no diverse, with plenty of room to grow for exception, with Danske Bank growing both newcomers and incumbents. Going to almost 3,000 employees, SEB hitting from strength to strength, I say with the 1,000 employee mark, Kaunas- confidence that – as a country – we are based FESTO (one of the first shared ready to make this environment even services centres in Lithuania!) moving better. If you have any suggestions, we to a brand new office, stainless steel at Invest Lithuania are always ready market leader Outokumpu expanding to lend an ear. ranks of finance specialists.

And it is not just about impressive numbers. The main trend we have seen over the years is that companies that might have started with rather basic Author: functions do not wait too long before introducing complex ones. Take any centre at random that has been here for more than a year, and you’ll see Customer Support people working alongside Data Scientists, Machine Learning specialists, Developers, System Engineers and many others.

Laisvis Makulis, Head of Business Services Team, Invest Lithuania

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

INVESTMENTS

LUBLIN

DESIGNING THE FUTURE OF THE CITY At the end of 2020 expires current Lublin Development Strategy, the most important management document, embracing the most important visions concerning the future of the city. These days Lublin, similarly to other big cities, faces the challenge of preparing development vision for the years to come. However times are exceptional – predicting the future, let alone more realistic long-term planning, has never been subject to a greater degree of uncertainty.

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TIME OF DISRUPTIVE INNOVATIONS

followed by challenges reflecting technological and infrastructural changes, Commentators, science popularisers as well as the evolution of mentality. as well as city activists and local govern- Proper identification of these challenges ment authorities have been concerned and their adaptation is both an opporfor some time about the future of cities, tunity and a threat to the cities. A key especially how it will be influenced issue is whether it is worth taking part by changing at lightning speed mobile in the race in which the main assessment technology, internet of things, large criterion is the level of smartness and cloud computing operations, and finally the generation of Smart City developthe development of artificial intelli- ment that a particular city finds itself in. gence. Whether they want it or not, both towns and cities are entering the age The most common manner of operaof Disruptive Innovations. In all likeli- tion among cities aiming at increasing hood, it will result in the fourth techno- their smartness is taking advantage logical revolution, coming along with of new technologies and IT soluprofound changes in the Smart City tions to the greatest extent possible concept. As a part of this revolution, while enhancing the infrastructure. cities having residents’ support will have The purpose of such actions is to improve to rapidly adopt new technologies and the methods for managing various open up to activities consistent with city systems to increase the comfort solutions that have not been created yet. and the quality of life of the residents.

Smartness understood in such a way is Currently, Lublin – the city in which treated as a development impulse if not residents are the major partner in deci- a civilizational paradigm whose core is sion-making processes – fits in Smart City a precisely measured system supported 3.0 generation. The process of increasing by the most modern technology availcity smartness is boosting, which is able. Being fascinated by modernity,

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

we rely heavily on the systems based on cloud computing as their primary source of information. We believe that technology itself will make a city a better place, and automation will do the work for residents. In Lublin, it is thought that having the city packed with sensors and electronics does not automatically make it smart as a result increasing the quality of life of residents.

Smart solutions should not necessarily be bold but first and foremost wise and ergonomic. They should take into account real social needs and engage and educate residents while designing and implementing these solutions. It means the abandonment of ready-made templates of project solutions for a typical user. The base for such thinking is an assumption that urban intellect appears only after the analysis of residents’ needs, adaptability of technology and its real social utility. A key to this process is engaging residents, which makes Lublin transparent, open both to criticism as well as to any forms of cooperation.

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The highest affirmation of residents’ will is using in the process of creating the citizen discussion panel, the most advanced tool of deliberative democracy.

Therefore, apart from creating partici­­ patory platforms making it possible to express opinions concerning issues that are vital for the city, a priority will be to enlarge decision areas in which the residents will be engaged. In such a case their role will not be limited to social advisors, but they will be rather decision-makers taking responsibility for the consequences of their choices. Smart city understood this way is a place for co-management by residents fully empowered in the decision-making process.

PARTICIPATORY STRATEGY At the end of 2020 expires current Lublin Development Strategy, the most important management document, embracing the most important visions concerning the future of the city. These days Lublin faces the challenge of preparing development vision for the years to come.

Such visions should be legitimised by awareness, understanding and social acceptance of the most important

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city document. To achieve it, possibly the broadest group of stakeholders – residents and city users – should be engaged in the process of its preparation. Empowering residents in decision-making processes, assigning them a role of real co-creators of city development vision and as a result giving them a status of its co-authors is the highest form of deliberative democracy.

Creating a strategy is a complex and multi-stage process, affecting various functional areas that determine the very existence and quality of life of different social groups in a changing environment.

Therefore, social participation constitutes a conceptual axis of the project of the new strategy. Creating the project of a document using diverse participatory methods is a reflection on Lublin’s current condition in different areas, allowing to develop the joint vision of the future of the city. Our main principles in a social dialogue are equal access to knowledge and engaging

each interested person. The right choice of participatory methods and techniques will enable us to involve all interested entities in the process of building the strategy regardless of time, transport, competence or physical limits. We will ensure that participation in the process is easy and widely accessible.

As a result of intensive marketing efforts we have launched a public participation process involving wide numbers of Lublin’s residents, being generations’ experience, similarly to the application for “European Capital of Culture”.

Building Lublin Strategy 2030 in a participatory way is another step in engaging Lublin’s residents in the socially-oriented management process. This process is being continued in current Lublin Development Strategy 2013-2020, inspiring residents to identify their needs and taking actions. Some of the most efficient executive tools were Participatory Budget and Green Budget, providing city authorities with a clear signal about

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

directions of activities desired by the residents. Organised in 2018 Citizen Discussion Panel became a mandatory mechanism in Lublin serving to solve issues necessary for the local community according to with the rule of partnership and openness.

An initiative testing sustainability of participatory techniques in the process of planning city’s future was a project conducted in 2017 – Lublin Foresight 2050. In the framework of this ambitious project, the local community in cooperation with experts elaborated variant forecasts concerning distant future, identifying trends, opportunities and threats related to social and technological progress. These options will be one of the tools supporting the creation of the vision of future in the new strategy. Effects of actions consistently implemented in recent years prove the effectiveness of participation as a tool managing imagination.

Its source is a local community, whereas administration believing in social potential has a role of the facilitator.

UNIQUE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS

Participatory techniques will be chosen depending on their effectiveness, and their accordance with thematic lines considered a priority. Possible methods include, e.g. future game city, public hearings, mobile consultation centres in districts, future workshops, consultation cafés, internet consultations, a citizen discussion panel and others.

During a consultation stage thematic work groups composed of city officers, residents and experts in a particular field recruited on a commercial basis will work on the conceptualisation of visions emerging from the data collected. An input of the groups into the strategy will be crucial, and the whole process is based on the principles of partnership and openness.

It should be emphasised that this project is not limited to discussing the final version of the strategy but provisions continuity of these processes on each stage of strategy building, which positively affects the transparency of the process and may be inspirational for other cities.

The highest affirmation of residents’ will is using in the process of creating the citizen discussion panel, the most advanced tool of deliberative democracy. It is because recommendations worked out by the panellists and accepted by a panel group will be binding for authorities. As far as we know, a citizen discussion panel has never been used neither in Poland nor Europe in the process of creating city strategy. This makes a process planned in Lublin unique and setting an example for other cities that treat their residents subjectively. Such is expressed by deep engagement of residents in the decision-making process, which results in sharing with them some power and responsibility for the city.

As a part of the project, city strategy is being created in the way of unique consensus. It will take into consideration all smart horizontal actions that on the one hand are desired by residents and on the other reflect real needs of the city following from technological development. Strategy, as a future vision of the city, will be worked out on each stage based on a rule of partnership by residents with the support of experts from different thematic fields (such as culture, education, mobility, economy). To our knowledge, so far none Polish local government has implemented such an extensive and advanced participatory mechanism in the process of preparing a long-term city development strategy. Author: A rule is that city strategies are created in an expert model in which social consultations are a formality. We want to base our actions on participatory solutions that so far has not been used Michał Furmanek, on such a large scale. These actions are Strategy and Investor Relations Department, treated as a fundamental tool to build The City of Lublin the strategy through the dialogue Phone: +48 81 466 25 09 with residents that are given a role e-mail: michal.furmanek of co-authors not addressees of strategy. @invest-in-lublin.com

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

New investment in the city

Name of the investor: Predica Country of origin: Poland Number of workplaces: 40 Sector: IT, consulting

Predica, a Polish company specializing in Microsoft technologies (particularly in Azure platform solutions) since 2009.

Works with companies both in Poland and around the world. The organization is focused on global expansion which began with the opening of four new branches in the United States and the Middle East over the course of the last 1.5 years. The company is currently planning to also expand its presence in Poland. Predica is looking to recruit over 40 employees to its newly opened office in Lublin, offering competitive salary, development opportunities in the field of the latest technologies and work within an international environment in cooperation with industry experts.

We chose Lublin because of the close cooperation between the academic community and various companies that happens here. We know the potential of this city – we already have a few employees from Lublin! In addition, the city provides IT companies with support in organizational matters (such as finding an office space), launching initiatives or establishing contacts within the academic environment. It is in no small part thanks to this support that we could open another branch here.

Ilona Kasiak, Head of Recruitment, Predica

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THE ŁÓDŹ PLAN FOR WORK-LIFE BALANCE

A PLAN FOR DISTRICTS AND RESIDENTS IN THE CENTRE OF INTEREST

INVESTMENTS

Human resources are the biggest challenge for business development in cities. The creativity of entrepreneurs, the surroundings in the form of available investment areas and office space create an environment in which the local community can undertake and implement various professional obligations.

Work, however, is not everything. What remains in the broad spectrum of interest of residents is the city as ‘tissue’, where housing conditions, local public transport, access to cultural, sports and recreation infrastructure are as important as a new skyscraper in the city centre.

The creation, development and maintenance of an attractive urban environment targeted at the inhabitants of a given agglomeration has a positive impact on population growth and thus on access to human resources which supply the local labour market.

In the last decade, the authorities of most Polish cities have been strongly focused on the development of the business environment, selling investment areas and agreeing with developers on the development of offices and the industrial infrastructure of their agglomerations. It has been no different in Łódź, which has changed its business face over the past ten years. Renovation of buildings in the central part of the city, upgrading and commissioning of the Łódź Fabryczna railway station, creation of three office districts, improvement of internal and access roads are just some examples which have had a positive impact on the city’s logistics and created tens of thousands of new jobs in the city.

In the next five years, Łódź will undergo a very intensive period of changes in which the residents will be the focus of attention. These changes will include renovation of parks and squares, additional pedestrian crossings, comprehensive street improvements as well as the construction of new cycling infrastructure and additional parking spaces.

The program called ‘Plan for Districts’ has entered its implementation phase, the result of which is to improve the quality of life for the inhabitants of the Łódź’s housing estates.

11 kilometres of upgraded tracks, 31 reconstructed intersections and 21 tram and bus stops, which will be reached by 30 modern air-conditioned trams. In addition to the modernisation of the track infrastructure, the programme also covers 15 kilometres of new pavements and 7 kilometres of new cycle paths.

Łódź is an example of a city that connects the business sphere and the one focused on the inhabitants in an orderly way, implementing and developing the idea of work – life balance. In order to achieve this goal, it is necessary to modernise, upgrade and build an urban infrastructure which, on the one hand, will positively affect public transport, ensuring efficient access to workplaces and, on the other hand, will secure the needs of residents in terms of spending free time Residents of the city can expect in the city. changes in the surroundings of urban spaces focused on sport and recreation. According to the ‘Plan for Author: Districts’, at least 4 new outdoor gyms, These changes were also in line with 2 skateparks, 7 sports fields, 11 graduathe idea of Duopolis i.e. presenting tion towers, 31 playgrounds will be built Warsaw and Łódź as the largest business and the investments will also include five centres in Central and Eastern Europe. projects, with swimming pools playing Thanks to the new investment areas a major role. and tens of thousands of square metres of modern office space, the percentage In 2019, which has just begun, Łódź of people travelling to work between will be focusing on the revitalisation Investor Service and International Warsaw and Łódź has increased. of the city centre and on programmes Cooperation Bureau aimed at the thermal insulation Piotrkowska 104a St. The development of the business of schools and kindergartens, expan90-926 Lodz part of the city must go hand-in-hand sion of the EC1, community centres Phone: +48 42 638 59 39 with the development of the social and museums as well as the ‘Tram for Fax: +48 42 638 59 40 e-mail: boi@uml.lodz.pl part in order to be able to continue. Łódź’ programme. The latter includes

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

HR NEWS SAVILLS HAS SET UP A DEDICATED INDUSTRIAL INVESTMENT TEAM Global real estate advisory firm Savills has set up a dedicated Industrial Investment team. It has hired three new professionals, including John Palmer as head of the team.

John Palmer has more than 20 years of real estate experience and during only the last three years has advised on more than EUR 1 billion worth of investment transactions. As Head of Industrial Investment at Savills, John will focus on development of services for investors interested in acquisition or disposal of assets within the industrial and logistics market. Apart from pure transaction support, the team will offer advisory and underwriting services, as in this sector in particular there is a high proportion of forward funding transactions. Previously, he worked for BNP Paribas Real Estate as Head of Valuation and later as Director of Capital Markets, Industrial Investments, Central and Eastern Europe. Before that, he held the position of CEE Director of Industrial Investment at CBRE. He is a Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (FRICS) and a member of the SIOR (Society of Industrial Office Realtors).

In addition to John Palmer, the Industrial Investment team will include Daniel

Oponowicz and Krzysztof Skrodzki, who have also joined Savills.

Daniel Oponowicz, as Associate Director in the Investment Department, will advise on acquisitions and disposals of commercial real estate, specialising in warehouse and industrial real estate. Prior to joining Savills, he held the position of Associate Director at BNP Paribas Real Estate and at Cushman & Wakefield, having previously worked for DTZ and Echo Investment. He is a graduate of Warsaw University and a licenced real estate manager.

Head of Investment and will be responsible for investment projects across all market sectors with a special focus on development of office and retail investment services. The new team will work with other Savills business lines, including in particular the Industrial Agency.

The industrial sector has been a growing target for investors. As stated in Think outside the Big Box report published

by Savills in October last year, this sector accounted for a record EUR 41 billion of capital deployed in real estate in 2017 across Europe. Poland, last Krzysztof Skrodzki will join the Invest- year witnessed another year of steady ment Department as a Consultant growth in volume of transacted industo support the Industrial Investment trial properties. As at the end of June team. He will be involved primarily 2018, the volume of logistical transacin asset valuation and investment tions hit EUR 337.8 million, which was feasibility appraisals. Krzysztof gained the best result ever recorded by this professional experience at BNP Paribas sector in Poland in the first six months Real Estate, JLL and Idea Bank S.A. He of the year. is a graduate of the Warsaw School of Economics and a licensed prop- TORBEN MUNCH STEPS DOWN AS ITIVITI CEO erty valuer.

Itiviti, the leading global provider The Industrial Investment team will be of multi-asset trading technology part of the Investment Department and financial infrastructure, today headed by Tomasz Buras, who is announced that Torben Munch, Chief also the Managing Director of Savills Executive Officer, has decided to retire Poland. Marek Paczuski is the Deputy and will step down from his position at the end of the year. Torben recently led the successful acquisition of ULLINK and integration of the Itiviti and ULLINK businesses. Richard Bentley, Itiviti’s Chief Product Officer, has been appointed Interim CEO, effective January 1, 2019.

The Board of Directors will initiate a search process for a permanent CEO immediately.

The Board of Directors has appointed Richard Bentley, Itiviti’s Chief Product Officer, as Interim CEO, effective January 1, 2019. Richard joined ULLINK in 2014 to run Product Strategy and, post-merger, led the development of Itiviti’s unified corporate strategy.

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CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS SPECIALIST

WELLBEING IN THE ORGANIZATION – THE ROLE OF THE COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS SPECIALIST There is no doubt that the rapidly changing job market forces companies to adapt to the new environment by changing their hiring policies and finding ways to engage employees. Results of the “Four Personalities, One Labour Market” survey show that 67% of workers wish to receive modern benefits. That is why the importance of compensation & benefits specialists is growing. Their main responsibilities include searching for innovative HR tools and designing highly effective compensation & benefits solutions.

The scope of responsibilities in the role tends to be very diverse and varies between organizations and industries. Compensation and benefits specialists create remuneration and benefits policies, motivational systems, health & well-being programs, take part in employee development and work towards building an engaging working environment. The end goal is to make their employer stand out among the competition.

Rigid systems are being abandoned in favour of more flexible solutions.

An individual approach to employees is being adopted. Motivational systems are modified to keep up with changes to company strategy, the market and employee expectations. The same applies to benefits. Benefits packages are broadened and diversified to fit the needs and expectations of all employees. A strategic approach to and regular reviews of benefits are becoming the rule. Caring for IT IS THE EMPLOYEE THAT employee health has also become COUNTS a good practice. The above trend is The role of compensation & benefits only starting to take root in Poland, specialists has evolved in recent years, but there already are organizations especially in organizations where HR which have implemented all of those employees are seen as strategic partners. solutions.

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ROLE OVERVIEW The role of compensation & benefits specialist has traditionally been associated with the following responsibilities: managing benefits and benefits providers, calculating the compensation budget, preparing survey questionnaires and performing statistical analyses relating to compensations, calculating bonuses (including sales bonuses) and working with IT systems that handle job performance management processes and compensation reviews.

Who does the remuneration and benefits specialist report to? There is no single answer to that question. In most cases they will report to HR Managers or, in very large organizations, Compensation and Benefits Managers.

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REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

taking part in conferences and trainings One of the compensation and bene- as well as meetings and discussions with fits expert’s key tasks is coordinating professionals who are responsible for and performing multi-level analyses devising compensation strategies for of compensation systems as well other companies. as proposing solutions that correspond with company and market policies. DIVERSIFYING TO MEET The above is meant to ensure high EXPECTATIONS motivation among employees. To be The day-to-day tasks of compensasuccessful at those tasks, compensa- tion and benefits specialists involve tion & benefits specialists are required designing the most efficient and modern to have broad knowledge of standards, compensation and benefits solutions a thorough understanding of the busi- to improve employee engagement, ness and familiarity with the company retention and talent growth. If that is for which they are designing compen- to happen, the range of benefits offered sation and benefits policies. We must has to be periodically updated to provide not forget the importance of keeping unique value. Employee expectations are track of the competition and market changing with each coming year. That is trends. Thus, surveys, benchmarks and why the company’s range of benefits internal analyses are important, but so is should go beyond financial incentives

ESSENTIAL COMPETENCES EXPECTED FROM COMP&BEN SPECIALISTS • • • • • • •

• • •

Monitoring compensation and benefits trends, devising recommendations of individual and processual changes; Participating in creating and optimizing compensation and bonus systems; Overseeing benefits systems, performing calculations, cooperating with external companies in line with the compensation and benefits policy; Familiarity with benefits tools and platforms, negotiating with benefits providers; Knowledge of labour, social insurance and tax laws; Preparing analyses on regulating compensations, modifying benefits systems and labour costs; Creating essential internal regulations and procedures and planning communications to ensure that all members of the organization are aware of the regulations and procedures; Researching employee needs and keeping abreast of new employee motivation methods; Preparing work time reports and calculating overtime; Supporting HR projects with knowledge and organizational skills, automating HR and compensation processes.

and be diverse enough to appeal to individual needs. The offered benefits should not only satisfy the needs of the organization’s employees but also attract new talent. Benefits packages also include elements that improve the style and quality of work, foster career development, improve the health and personal lives of employees. Compensation and benefits specialists often use employee engagement surveys to assess how benefits and compensations are perceived by employees.

Any changes to benefits and compensations should be appropriately communicated, which is another responsibility of compensation and benefits specialists. Furthermore, they are also often required to prepare and conduct training programs including training managers on compensation management. Other key responsibilities include preparing reports and analyses for the board.

Compensation and benefits specialists also handle the very important task of monitoring legal changes that affect employer expenses. Many organizations also require them to take active part in writing job descriptions and performing job evaluations using Hay Group and Mercer methods.

HOW MUCH DO BENEFITS AND COMPENSATION SPECIALISTS EARN? Depending on industry, region and company size/capital, compensation and benefits specialists earn between PLN 5,500 and 8,000 (gross). Salaries increase along with qualifications and, in the case of multinational organizations, foreign language skills.

Author:

Agnieszka Pastuła, Team Manager HR & Legal, Antal

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While many companies know that training courses help their employees grow, they do not realise that they also create strong bonds between them.

MBE

SOFT SKILLS TRAINING

SPECIALIZED LANGUAGE TRAINING

COACHING - INDIVIDUAL, GROUP AND TEAM COACHING

LANGUAGE AUDITING

MBE MASTER OF BUSINESS ENGLISH

EXECUTIVE TRAINING COURSES

BE

CAMP

BUSINESS ENGLISH CAMP

TRAINING FOR SSC/BPO/ITO

In case of questions, contact us: office@hutchinson.org.pl WWW.HUTCHINSON.ORG.PL

CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

RECRUITMENT FROM SCRATCH HOW TO RECRUIT WITH A CANDIDATE-ORIENTED APPROACH? Employee experience has become an essential component of HR strategies. By providing exemplary working conditions and increasing employees’ engagement, a company creates a friendly workplace and improves the satisfaction of those currently employed. Today, engaging in a dialogue with employees and building a business brand cannot be limited only to the steps taken inside the organization.

The pre-employment phase often determines the success of future cooperation between employees and their company. It may also strengthen the positive image of the employer on the outside. The recruitment process is also the first step in building a relationship with potential employees that shapes their future experiences.

As the report Employee experience in Polish companies suggests, “The moment when the potential candidate first hears about the brand, recruitment process, interview, first day, week, and month of their work are important stages of employees’ life cycle, and the impressions formed at those points define their view on the company.”1

recruitment. This approach aims to build satisfying candidate experience of those applying for a given position.

It is not a completely new concept.

But the fact that more and more companies now use it emphasizes the importance of switching to different standards. A passive recruitment model, focused solely on the employer’s needs is replaced with the one that recognizes the value of maintaining a good relationship with the candidate.

The change to a candidate-driven method of hiring is a result of the current job market situation. The search for talents will remain one of the greatest HR challenges in the next five years. When the unemployment rate is at 5.7%2 and the industry experiences “a fight for FROM A PASSIVE RECRUITMENT talents,” job seekers play a key role. Filling TO THE CANDIDATE EXPERIENCE an open position is challenged not One of the most recent trends in talent only by finding a right candidate management is candidate-centric who meets the position’s criteria but Employee experience in Polish companies, Aon Poland, 2018.

1

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2

Data of the Central Statistical Office (GUS).

also who fits the employer’s profile.

The growing costs of recruitment processes and a struggle for retaining qualified staff are also significant.

In highly specialized industries finding the right candidate can be especially difficult and time-consuming. An ideal employee should not only fulfill the technical requirements but also be a good match to the company’s culture. Candidates who have the desired skills may then selectively choose from companies available on the market.

HOW TO TAKE CARE OF THE CANDIDATE DURING THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS? Adjusting organization’s recruitment model to the candidate-first approach does not require making revolutionary changes. Steps undertaken in this process do not have to lead to a complete redefinition of the current strategy. Instead, they should be incremental and consistent.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

CAREER & DEVELOPMENT The primary focus should lay in the attempt to understand the candidate journey – the path that person applying for a position follows.

It may be a good idea to look at the entire recruitment process from the perspective of someone who is just starting to apply for a job. This exercise should take into account every stage of the process. Starting with the job advertisement, going through the communication with a recruiter and the interview, and ending with the adaptation program, it is worth to analyze all touch-points on the candidate’s way. It helps to identify and optimize the recruitment process so that it is as simple and transparent as possible. Additionally, all elements that discourage candidates from applying for a job may be more easily eliminated.

focus should be put on distinguishing the organization from its competitors.

Defining company’s values and mission, which potential employees could identify with, coming up with a clear career path and scope of responsibilities, or creating an attractive image of the employer in the social media are just some of the examples.

that could have been otherwise prevented. Additionally, in many cases, candidates applying to the organization are also its clients. Bad impressions formed during the recruitment process may be translated directly into their loss.

One of the main benefits of candidate-centric recruitment is its ability The foundation of the candidate-cen- to build a successful brand image. tric recruitment process lays in treating Employees who were happy with every applicant with respect and their recruitment process will be more attention. According to the Candi- willing to recommend their workplace date Experience 2017 study, as many to others. as 62%3 of respondents claim that companies do not care for the candi- A positive candidate experience dates who apply for a job. The lack also streamlines the onboarding of communication and feedback are process. New hires, who felt supported cited as the main causes of the unsat- by their future employer throughout isfactory experience. When candidates the entire recruitment are better are assured they will get a response prepared for their new role.

According to the Candidate Experience 2017 study, as many as 62% of respondents claim that companies do not care for the candidates who apply for a job.

Other ideas that transform the recruitment model include reviewing the company’s career site with the aim of making it more intuitive and understandable for people outside the company. Similarly, the entire application process should be simplified so that it does not discourage potential candidates from sending their CVs. Candidate-oriented recruitment also calls for a detailed analysis of non-financial factors that encourage job seekers to apply for a given position. Its results should lead to adjusting the offer to current market expectations. When describing additional benefits offered by the organization, it is important no to use vague statements such as “great atmosphere” or “dynamic development” that can be interpreted variously by different people. Instead, they should be specified to include concrete examples like languages lessons or access to the office library.

Another solution is to ask new hires who just ended their recruitment process for feedback.

The success of each business is the result of the effort people from the organization put in their work.

Happy employees are the best adverWHY PRIORITIZING tisement for the employer. To attract THE CANDIDATE IS A CRUCIAL and retain exceptional talents PART OF THE RECRUITMENT in demanding market conditions, STRATEGY? it is necessary to carefully analyze Dynamic development of technologies elements encouraging candidates and social media channels allows for to apply for offered positions. Keeping an immediate spread of information. in mind the fact that the company is Candidates also like to share their composed of employees, it is worth opinions online. As many as 72% paying attention to them even before of respondents declare they have they join the organization. described their bad experiences online or directly to others.4 If they Do you want to know more about feel ignored or mistreated, it seems the effective recruitment process likely they will advise others against and efficient onboarding? Visit applying to the given company. www.skilohr.com.  It leads not only to the loss of potential candidates but above all negates the efforts to attract the best talents to the organization. Building employ- Author: er’s brand is then contrasted with the burden of negative experiences of people from outside the company regardless of the decision but do not receive one, they feel particularly discouraged.

Candidate Experience 2017, eRecruiter and Great Digital report, 2017.

3

Activities related directly to employer branding also strengthen the positive candidate’s experience. Their main

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The State of the Candidate Experience, CarrerArc, 2017.

4

Aleksandra Kowalczyk, Marketing Specialist, Enxoo Sp. z o.o.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

RECRUITMENT OF SPECIALISTS IN THE TRAINING INDUSTRY Interview with Małgorzata Polzenius, Managing Director, Hutchinson Institute.

Kamila Czyżyk, Pro Progressio: Hutchinson Institute offers a number of training courses, not only related to business, but also in the area of BPO/ SSC/ITO, soft skills and executive.

How many specialists are currently employed in your organisation? Are you presently recruiting and, if so, for which positions?

Małgorzata Polzenius, Hutchinson Institute: Yes. We do specialise in providing our clients with modern solutions in terms of development processes which, by adapting to current market needs, are the answer to the greatest challenges our clients face today. In order to be able to effectively design and implement training throughout Poland, we are constantly and very actively expanding our team of experts. Thanks to this, we have managed to build a fantastic team consisting of nearly 80 language coaches and 20 business coaches specialising in various thematic areas. We are currently recruiting for the position of Business Development Partner.

You are responsible for recruiting staff at Hutchinson Institute. In the current market situation, is the search for specialists a big challenge? What is your strategy for attracting candidates?

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Surely we had to change our tactics and places of searching for collaborators.

Three or four years ago it was enough to place an advertisement on one of job search websites and our mailbox was immediately filled with a lot of applications.

This is no longer the case now. To search for candidates we use, first of all, social networking sites, where – as a company – we try to be as active as possible. We are looking for thematic groups and placing our advertisements there to reach people connected with and interested in a given area. The advertisements themselves have also changed. Instead of extensive and exhaustive descriptions, an eye-catching slogan or distinctive graphics are more important. Of course, we do not forget about Employer Branding, because word-of-mouth marketing is still a very effective weapon.

we want to create a work environment where employees feel comfortable and safe, where they are co-creators of projects and various initiatives, but also beneficiaries of successes. These seem to be the main and most important aspects of our work.

What was your career path? Has the HR industry always been your first choice?

For me, as a humanist, soft competences have always played an important role, and, as a philologist, I have been somehow interested in teaching, supporting and developing other people since the beginning. The decision to work for a training company turned out to be a natural choice, which I do not regret to this day. On a daily basis, we work closely with HR departments, talk about the needs of people and employSo what can a potential candidate ees, how to motivate them, how to inexpect when considering joining crease their involvement and personal Hutchinson Institute? effectiveness, as well as how to influence First of all, interesting projects, chal- their communication and positive relalenges and broadening of one’s own tions within the team. I am most pleased, horizons. Apart from that, a family and however, that the awareness of business friendly atmosphere and people full in Poland in the context of the role of HR of energy, passion and positive attitude has changed dramatically over the last to life. In a world where a lot of negative few years. The Human Resources departinformation reaches us from everywhere, ment is no longer perceived as the de-

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

Photo: Paweł Łacheta

I know that good transformation is possible regardless of age or personality, but in order to go through it successfully it is necessary to have actual interactions with people as well as a trainer with charisma and experience who knows how to make trainees the best versions of themselves.

partment where salaries and holidays are calculated and the one dealing with redundancies. Today, HR specialists are primarily strategic advisers to management boards with extensive expertise in psychology and sociology, who work for the benefit of the entire organisation.

A holistic approach to management processes is also helpful.

What is the biggest challenge in recruiting employees for you at the moment?

Thinking about this question, what automatically comes to my mind is reaching the right candidates. However, looking at the opportunities offered by today’s technology, the Internet and social media, this is not such a big challenge any more. What seems to be more difficult is the verification wheth-

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

er the content given in the application or profile is consistent with the actual image of the candidate. That is why the next stage of recruitment is crucial, during which our task is to get to know a potential co-worker not only in terms of his or her professional qualifications, but also in terms of personality traits, values, professional goals of the candidate and how he or she will fit our team.

Moreover, the development of technology and the influx of modern trends force us to change the perception of a worker as a full-time employee only. In our industry, B2B cooperation is a common practice; however, we observe that this trend is becoming increasingly more popular also in companies that until now had only full-time employees.

Finally, a question about the future. What do you think training of the future will look like? Does the development of technology have a strong impact on this area?

We live in the times of such dynamic technological development that we are probably not even able to imagine the solutions that we will be using every day in a few years’ time. Certainly, technology will greatly support all training processes, which will significantly solve many current problems, including logistic challenges. We can already find online training courses in virtually any field.

However, training effectiveness is determined mainly by a change in attitudes and behaviours of participants, which sometimes comes with time, but can also become visible the next day after the training. And this is what makes us happy the most. I know that good transformation is possible regardless of age or personality, but in order to go through it successfully it is necessary to have actual interactions with people as well as a trainer with charisma and experience who knows how to make trainees the best versions of themselves.

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RECRUITMENT ADS If you’re interested in this role please send your CV to: paulina.mlodzianka@qibit.it

SENIOR SECURITY SPECIALIST WARSAW (Salary: 130 PLN net/h + VAT (261,040 PLN net/year)

Responsibilities at the position: • Preparation – in the scope agreed with the Project Manager and in cooperation with other members of the project team – implementation plans for tools, systems and security solutions, • Participation in the implementation of these tools, systems and solutions in accordance with the plan, • Substantive team support as part of ongoing Cyber ​​Security projects, as well as possible support in the ongoing servicing of existing tools.

Requirements: • Experience in a position related to IT security – minimum 3 years, • Experience in implementing and maintaining tools / systems in the area of ​​security (eg DLP, SIEM, Password Management, Network Segmentation, Proxy solutions), • Knowledge of issues related to network security, security of Windows environments, Unix, • Ability to work in a limited time schedule, with several projects simultaneously / simultaneously, • Fluency in English.

Used technologies: • IBM Qradar, SPLUNK, AWS, AMP, ATA, Akamai, IBM Resilient, Symantec DLP, Forcepoint, Blue Coat (or other types of Proxy), Cyber ​​Ark.

Our client offers: • • • •

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B2B contract, Long-term cooperation, Big development opportunities, Interesting projects.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

If you’re interested in this role please send your CV to:

agnieszkakulikowska@pageexecutive.com

GBS CENTER HEAD EMEA WARSAW (Salary: 35,000–50,000 PLN gross / month) Our client is a multinational corporation with presence across the globe – a leader in their market segment. We are currently seeking to recruit a Global Business Services Center Head EMEA who will manage the new shared services center structure to be established in Warsaw. The chosen candidate will help set up the structure and manage the daily functioning of the center – with numerous functions to be moved to Poland including finance operations, marketing & digital, IT, procurement, and others.

Responsibilities at the position: • Lead the growth of the center and manage it as the Global Business Services Site Leader, • Embed a culture based on trust and create a dynamic and professional team to provide the highest quality service to the company’s employees in EMEA, • Take direct responsibility for managing all the functions supporting the delivery teams within the center, • Manage at least one of the delivery functions in the center directly, • Act as Site Leader for all delivery functions by enabling the smooth build up, transitions and daily functioning of the center. This includes joint responsibility for deliver KPIs shared with Global Process Owners abroad, • Actively engage in the recruitment process of key managers within the center, • Act as central contact point for stakeholders abroad, • Represent the center on the market in Poland.

Requirements: • Educated to university degree level, • Minimum of 10 years managerial experience including a minimum of 5 years in an international shared services center / GBS environment, • Experience in leading teams of several hundred, • Proven ability to work within a cross regional, functional, multicultural and virtual context within a matrix organization • Strong stakeholder management skills, • Experience in managing a mid-sized to large delivery teams within an existing center or experience in managing a whole stand-alone shared services center, • Experience in building a center from scratch will be a strong asset • Drive for results, emotional intelligence, trusted influence, conceptual thinking and process thinking are essential, • Change management, coaching & mentoring, communication, negotiation, and problem solving skills are also key leadership skills necessary for the role, • Fluency in English and Polish are a must.

Outsourcing&More | January–February 2019

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