Outsourcing&More 47 July-August 2019

Created by Pro Progressio

www.outsourcingportal.eu

No. 4 (47) | July–August 2019 ISSN 2083-8867 PRICE EUR 6 (INCL. 8% VAT)

THE HISTORY IS MADE BY PEOPLE Coworking – interview with Piotr Boulangé, Manager of WeWork Labs |page 28 BUSINESS:

BUSINESS:

BUSINESS:

Home office. How to safely regulate working from home? |page 22

Humans in CX

What defines good customer service? |page 18

|page 36

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INTRODUCTION

Editor-in-chief Dymitr Doktór dymitr.doktor@proprogressio.pl Managing editor Katarzyna Czylok-Dąbrowska katarzyna.czylok@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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@DymitrDoktor

Dear Readers, Here it is – the fourth edition of Outsourcing&More in 2019, with a lot of content from Poland, the CEE region and for the first time from Egypt.

Half a year is over. It was a very dynamic period in the sector of modern business services, and after the first active quarter, the second quarter also maintained a dynamic growth of business. Important industry events were going through Europe, and we had the opportunity to participate in some of them. On the following pages we have posted post-event stories from Outsourcing & Shared Service Germany Forum, BSS Tour Gdańsk – Nordic Business Talks and Top Woman in Real Estate Gala.

In the July-August edition, we decided to focus slightly more on the subject of coworking. Our interview is a conversation with Piotr Boulangé – the head of WeWork Labs, who shared with us the knowledge of the phenomenon of joint work and the support of coworking organizations, which these entities provide to start-ups. A large number of publications related to coworking are created every year. In the Outsourcing Bibliography, which we run at OutsourcingPortal.eu web pages, we have already registered 427 publications dedicated to coworking.

Starting from the current issue, we are strengthening the legal section of Outsourcing&More. The permanent column with practical legal knowledge is moderated

by Baker & McKenzie.

Enjoy reading Outsourcing&More Magazine!

Dymitr Doktór Editor in Chief

Authors: Dorota Chudzik • Michał Przybysz • Marcin Łukasik • Michal Lisawa, LL.M. • Katarzyna Oleksik • Alexandra Schmidt • Piotr Boulangé • Tom Quigley • Michał Skierski • Wojciech Kraśniewski • Stephan Fricke • Laisvis Makulis • Iryna Zubenko • Andrew Wrobel • Loredana Niculae • Anna Mielczarek • Kinga Pokorska • Martyna Olesińska

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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INDEX

90,000 English

5,400 French

3,000

German

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6 8 10 12 14 18 22 24 28 34 36 40 42 44

BUSINESS NEWS Nordic Business Talks On May 22, 2019, the second conference of the BSS Tour Poland 2019 series was held at the Almond Hotel in Gdańsk.

SEE ITS Summit 2019 On the 17th of May 2019 Plovdiv hosted the 1st Southeast European Innovation, Technology and Sourcing Summit.

Berlin talks on outsourcing and the market of shared service centres On June the 4th, 2019, the representatives of the outsourcing sector and shared service centres met once again at the Quadriga Forum in Berlin.

Revolutionary changes – tax withholding at source The article presents changes in tax withholding at source which shall enormously impact settlements of transactions with foreign entities.

What defines good customer service?

For sure that you know the feeling when you leave a store or hang up on a support line with a smile on your face.

Home office. How to safely regulate working from home?

Depending on the circumstances, working from home can be done in the form of formal teleworking or so-called “home office”, which is not regulated by the provisions of law.

HSBC’s three-year plan to deliver business transformation Interview with Alexandra Schmidt, the Centre Director of HSBC Service Delivery (Polska) sp. z o.o.

MAIN INTERVIEW

The history is made by people Coworking – interview with Piotr Boulangé, Manager of WeWork Labs.

Stop marketing, start mattering Why Brand Activism can help you stand out from the crowd.

Humans in CX Which Kind Of Customer Interactions Should Not Be Automated?

INVESTMENTS NEWS Office real estate market is still in shape Polish companies are growing, expanding their areas of activity, and global companies are eager to choose Poland as their direction of expansion.

Egypt… Opportunities for mid-market and large organizations in ICT and BSS When choosing the location for shared services or the sourcing of IT and business process services, it is far from a trifling task.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

48 50 52 54 58 64 66 70 74 78 82 86 88 90 92 Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

GBS in Lithuania: complex, diverse – and still on the rise Lithuania’s Global Business Services sector is one of the CEE region’s biggest success stories.

IT Arena 2019: The Humanity of Technology In September, Ukraine’s cultural capital and emerging tech hub hosts one of the biggest and certainly the most anticipated event in Eastern Europe – IT Arena 2019.

Only by combining forces can emerging Europe truly move forward If we do not find a comprehensive and joint answer on how to deal with this, we will struggle.

Boosting the employer brand through coworking spaces The truth is that the new generations are looking for specific benefits in a company, which is not as simple as it sounds to provide.

ZODIAK – a place where the economic development of Warsaw is vividly discussed The ZODIAK Warsaw Pavilion of Architecture has become a unique and modern meeting venue on Warsaw’s map.

In Łódź the youth can do more The programme is constantly being developed and is definitely worth highlighting again.

Business has a voice in Kielce On the support of entrepreneurship in the capital of the Świętokrzyskie Province.

Printing & packaging industry in Lublin on the rise Last month we celebrated the grand opening of Elpes’s modern manufacturing plant.

Where work and life are in a healthy balance About work-life balance in Bydgoszcz.

Discover Poznań culturally In Poznań, cultural initiatives are widespread, and the City’s goal is to make them available for every inhabitant.

Professionals from Częstochowa In Częstochowa, the Better Job Now Program was made in response to the needs of residents and entrepreneurs.

What’s interesting in Rzeszów?

The year 2018 in Rzeszów has been marked by increased development investments.

HR NEWS RPA Developer – a guide through Intelligent Automation journey Business Process Automation and Robotic Process Automation undeniably have become part of our reality.

WNS uncovers its HR side Interview with Martyna Olesińska, Senior Group Manager – HR at WNS Global Services.

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BUSINESS NEWS "EATING IN OFFICE BUILDINGS" REPORT FROM COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL Mokotow and Centrum – the old and the new office districts.

What do Warsaw’s office employees want? Usually they point to foodtrucks with large offer of international cuisine, canteens with access to daylight, morning coffee and cakes, a better variety of soups and somewhere where they can eat ecological vegetables.

Food service is becoming an important element of the modern working environment that integrates with its surroundings. It also creates a positive image of offices, seen as places that are accessible and friendly to local communities.

In the report "Eating in office buildings" experts from Colliers International have analysed how the group of over half million Warsaw’s employees, who spend half of their day at work, deals with food.

Warsaw is the biggest office market in the country, with several hundred office buildings with a total area of 5.5 million sq m. It is estimated that over half a million employees work in these buildings. For their private use, most buildings offer commercial units, located primarily on ground floors, with a total surface of 350,000 sq m in 1300 premises. Food service represents 35% of an entire building’s commercial offer. In total, in Warsaw’s office buildings over 540 different types of catering outlets operate. One fifth are cafes, while the remainder are made up of canteens, bistros, restaurants, pubs and snack bars.

their own homemade meals to work (73.5%). At the same time, over half of employees like visiting bistros and restaurants (56.5%) and work canteens (50%), although only 16.5% of respondents do this every day, while 40% do so a few times a week.

We like eating meals in a calm atmosphere – the biggest group of respondents (68%) needs about 30 minutes for their lunch. What is interesting, women spend more time on lunch than men. We are not keen on spending too much money on food when we are at work – usually between 11 and 30 PLN (75% of respondents selected this price range). While choosing where to eat, employees from office buildings are mostly guided by an affordable price (70%), distance from the office (68.8%) and quality of the food (70%).

Warsaw’s offices offer a good diversity of food, both European and international. Because of its universality, Polish cuisine dominates – constituting 60% of the entire offer. Asian and Italian dishes are also clearly popular. Customers are also open to the new culinary experiences –Balkan, Spanish, Middle East, Mexican, Japanese and Caribbean restaurants are available in offices. Office workers are encouraged to try new dishes and a healthy lifestyle by vegetarian and vegan bars and restaurants, which did not exist in the market a decade ago.

A new trend in terms of food service is connected with coworking, where space plays a crucial role in the networking and integration process of all members of these organisations. What is more, inspiration goes beyond coworking and is connected with well-being in the workplace in general.

Another new trend in the Polish market are cafes and canteens for companies’ private use, located within a company’s office and not accessible to external While analysing each from the office zone, customers. They serve as meeting and Colliers’ experts noted that the richest integration venues for employees and food service offer is available in Centrum their guests. Thanks to lunch vouchers (Warsaw’s City Centre), COB (Central Busi- and different kinds of employees ness Area) and in the Mokotow district. discounts, they are an element of social The highest number of cafes serving packages. At a time when companies are Research conducted by experts from employees, tourists and city residents are competing for the best specialists, it is Colliers shows that employees working in these areas. When it comes to canteens, an interesting trend that build the image in Warsaw’s offices still prefer bringing the largest number are located within of a company and identification with it.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

5G MOBILE SERVICE IN ROMANIA Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) and RCS&RDS (DIGI) have launched Romania’s first 5G commercial service in the busiest parts of Bucharest, where 5G can really make a difference by providing increased speeds for mobile broadband to businesses and consumers.

Valentin Popoviciu, Vice President DIGI| RCS & RDS, says: In 2018, Digi | RCS & RDS took the first step towards 5G, testing the functionality of this technology on a prototype platform. Today, we are experimenting the capabilities of DIGI Mobil 5G Smart network, with the commissioning of the first station in our network, in one of the busiest areas of the capital.

As usual, our promise is that we will serve our customers with reliable and affordable mobile data services, including 5G, in selected areas in Bucharest and other big cities of Romania already in 2019.

DIGI | RCS&RDS is deploying Ericsson’s 3GPP standards-based 5G New Radio (NR) hardware and software. Built on top of DIGI’s 4G network, the enhanced mobile broadband capabilities enable customers to connect to both 4G and 5G simultaneously to get the best possible experience even in the most crowded Arun Bansal, President and Head of areas, depending on the compatibility Europe and Latin America at Ericsson, of the terminal with 5G technology.

says: We are delighted to partner with DIGI as it switches on commercial 5G in Romania, joining other commercial 5G networks around the world that are powered by Ericsson. It is a crucial time for 5G in Europe and Ericsson is focused on making sure the continent is ready to reap the benefits that increased network capacity and ultra-low latency will bring.

Romania plans to start spectrum auction for additional spectrum needed for 5G wireless networks in the fourth quarter of 2019. DIGI can already start offering initial 5G services through its already available commercial spectrum within the 3.6 – 3.8 GHz band.

Starting on June 27th, customers can make pre-orders on digiromania.ro to purchase terminals compatible with 5G, VoLTE and VoWiFi technology.

This first phase of DIGI’s 5G rollout is a Non-standalone (NSA) deployment focused on using the combined power of 4G and 5G. In the coming weeks, DIGI and Ericsson will activate more 5G radios and base stations in the capital of Bucharest and the city of Cluj-Napoca.

SAVILLS HAS ADDED A SPACE SEARCH ENGINE TO ITS WAREHOUSE AND INDUSTRIAL WEBSITE AND UPDATED ITS MAP OF POLAND’S CORE LOGISTICS REGIONS From now on, Savills website warehousemarket.pl will contain detailed and current listings of approximately 260 industrial properties across Poland.

It also features a new edition of the Warehouse and Industrial Map of Poland for all companies facing a choice of warehouse and production facilities. Both tools are available completely free of charge and in Polish and English language versions.

More than 16.2 million sq m of modern warehouse space to choose from and the challenges of the tight labour market, cost optimisation and shorter delivery times are just some factors that make the choice

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

of the right location for a warehouse and manufacturing plant quite demanding.

It is our role to share our expertise and support our clients in the process. Our search engine and map are useful tools in a preliminary analy­sis to take the first step towards a new warehouse – says Kamil Szymański, Head of the Industrial Agency at Savills.

Savills Industrial Agency provides professional assistance in search for new locations, lease renegotiations, preparation for BTS (build-to-suit) project development, land acquisition and sale, and logistics services in warehousing.

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BUSINESS

NORDIC BUSINESS TALKS On May 22, 2019, the second conference of the BSS Tour Poland 2019 series was held at the Almond Hotel in Gdańsk. This time the organiser, the Pro Progressio Foundation, organised an event called ‘Nordic Business Talks’. The purpose of the meeting was to learn the Scandinavian business model by analysing case studies and relations that Nordic companies build with their local and international partners.

Selecting Gdańsk for the conference venue was not a coincidence as the city is a leader in acquiring investments with Scandinavian capital and is a place where the Nordic companies feel at home.

The guests of the conference were greeted on behalf of the city by Alan Aleksandrowicz – the Deputy President who is responsible for economic policy in Gdańsk. Aleksandrowicz, in his speech, emphasised the fact that city is open to supporting Scandinavian investors both in the area of production as well as services. The introduction, initiated by the Vice President, was continued by Marcin Grzegory – Deputy Director at Invest in Pomerania and who is responsible for servicing new and existing investments in the Pomeranian region, including the Tri-City. Grzegory presented Pomerania as “the Nordic connection” and – referring to the famous series ‘Game of Thrones’ – proclaimed the region the “king of the north”. There is no exaggeration in this term as the number of Scandinavian investments in the Tri-City region as well as the whole of Pomerania is impressive. It is here that the companies such as Nordea, Scania, Kemira, Arla, DNV GL, Danfoss, Metsa, the NFM Group and others have their production plants or service and operational offices.

The introduction from Aleksandrowicz and Grzegory was followed by many

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interesting performances which, this time, comprised of a series of 30-minute speeches. The organisers managed to include presentations, case studies discussions and one mini discussion panel into the agenda of the event. Each speech was focused on a different business and thematic area.

Participants at the event had the op­­portunity to learn about the history of establishing and developing the shared services centre of Arla GSS and the model of a Scandinavian partnership in the construction of the SSC structures of DNV GL. Anna Jagucka from Arla and Ewa Żabińska-Socha from DNV GL held a dynamic discussion regarding a number of challenges, benefits and trends that are associated with the development of the structures of global operational centres as well as elements of Scandinavian organisational culture and the various stages of competence development among staff. The part devoted to case studies was supplemented and developed by Mikołaj Ługowski from Nordea, who pointed out how the global bank appears in its international presence, stressing that geographical location should not create borders. All three speeches raised great interest and the knowledge they passed on was the subject of many backstage conversations.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

An important element of the Nordic Business Talks conference was the valuable business presentations. In this part Marcin Piątkowski, Leasing Director from Torus, presented the idea how Nordic investors approach the matter of choosing and adapting offices for their own needs.

Torus is a developer of, among others, the Alchemia office complex, which is mainly rented by Scandinavian companies. Costs, distance from the home location, the availability of talent, a competitive environment, employer branding, the office’s geographical location as well as the standard of office space were just some of the elements discussed

by Piątkowski.

between the working environment and the place of living. Sendrowicz also indicated several figures targeted at Nordic business in Poland. This data shows that, in Poland, more than 2,000 companies are currently operating and employ over 170,000 employees.

The conference was complemented by a discussion panel led by Błażej Kucharski from Colliers International.

The guests of Kucharski were Kornelia Łukaszewska from Skanska and Marcin Naczke from Vastint. Skanska and Vastint belong to a group of the largest Scandinavian developers of office space in Poland.

They carry out their office investments in many cities and their office projects Listening to the following speeches, are modern, ecological and multi-functhe conference’s participants were tional spaces that have been popular with able to learn more about the develop- tenants for years. The panel discussion ment of operational centres in the near- was to illustrate, on the one hand, the real shoring model. This subject was analysed estate market in Poland but, on the other,

by Michał Bielawski, CFO at Adaptive to present how Scandinavian real Solutions and Advisory Group who, based estate companies perceive the matter on his own experience, presented succes- of building an office environment. sive stages in the establishment, development and optimisation of GBS operating The entire ‘Nordic Business Talks’ confe­ centres. This conversation was also related rence was conducted in English and to a speech from Bartosz Długokęcki was already the second conference held from Sherlock Waste, who pointed out by Pro Progressio in 2019. As usual, it how to engage employees in the joint gathered over a hundred engaged improvement of the company through participants who, apart from knowltechnology and the impact of technology edge and networking, were able to use on supporting leadership. Długokęcki, the meeting zones and the common like Żabińska-Socha, paid attention work zone. These zones are a permato the organisational culture but placed nent element during the BSS Tour and more emphasis on the culture of innova- are very popular. tion in practice.

The event was organised with the support The speech from the head of Sherlock of the Scandinavian-Polish Chamber Waste was not the only one focused of Commerce, which celebrates its on technology. This subject was also fifteenth anniversary this year. The stradiscussed by Damian Kędziora from tegic partner of the event in Gdańsk Norian and deals with the companies and was Invest in Pomerania, with Torus and global implementations of RPA (Robotic Kinnarps also among the spponsors.

Process Automation). Kędziora discussed The group of sponsors was not accidental. the possibilities of using hybrid solutions Torus is a leading developer in Gdańsk offered by the Norwegian company and whose significant target group are Norian and pointed out the areas of coop- tenants from Scandinavia, while Kinnarps eration between human and robot. is a leader among Scandinavian companies dealing in the arrangement of office The icing on the cake was the appearance space. Solutions offered by Kinnarps of Bartosz Sendrowicz from Pracownia permit the optimal use of office space for EB, who within 30 minutes presented people representing different age groups several films promoting the employer and a different scope of work – and this i.e. supporting employer branding activi­ is one of the elements characteristic ties. All films referred to Scandinavian of Nordic companies. companies and showed how important it is to preserve a balance between private Take a look at the Nordic Business Talks and professional life, between physi­- photo gallery available at http://www. cal activity and work in the office and bsstour.com/gdansk2019/gallery.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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INVESTMENTS

SEE ITS

SUMMIT 2019 After five successful annual outsourcing conferences organized by the Bulgarian Outsourcing Association, on the 17th of May 2019 Plovdiv hosted the 1st Southeast European Innovation, Technology and Sourcing Summit.

The event was organized in partnership with the Bulgarian Association of Software Companies and the City of Plovdiv – one of the most attractive outsourcing destinations in Bulgaria, ranked as the fastest developing city after the capital. This year Plovdiv is also a European Capital of Culture.

The forum aimed to boost the development of the SEE ITS ecosystem and position the region as a leading outsourcing destination on the world

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– We work in close collaboration with the education system, the business and the local authorities and together we created and ecosystem, which is dynamically growing. Our way of thinking about the competition is now global and we The key topics in the agenda included measure out competitiveness as our region Innovation, Technology and Sourcing against the rest of the world. Our region is in SEE; the Future of Technology & becoming stronger and stronger in terms Services; Talent, Education and Tech- of developing an economy of knowledge nology Shifts; Bulgaria and SEE: Value and innovations – said Mr. Ivaylo Slavov, investment destinations.

Chairman of the Managing Board of BOA. map. A high-profile meeting for senior decision-makers – a platform for discussion of the latest trends and opportunities in the sector that looks to discover the latest, forward-looking strategies.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

Over 300 business leaders and representatives of central and local authorities discussed together the future of the industry and the sustainable business models in the Region. The forum gathered company’s representatives from the tech and outsourcing sector from Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Albania, Romania, Kosovo, Serbia, Montenegro, Ukraine, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Business Systems and Solutions HR, Public Affairs & Communications at Coca-Cola HBC Group.

The tech Oscars were the culmination of the first regional forum for South-Eastern Europe.

During a dedicate Awards Ceremony & Gala Dinner were honored the efforts of top regional performers, investors – The future is in attracting industrial and local governments, for leading production facilities, but important is best practices and business excellence, the transition from dependent on quan- as well as for creating favorable business titative workforce industries to industries environment for the growth of the SEE based on knowledge. Bulgarian is not ITS ecosystem. only a leader and main hub in the region, but also a supporter in development The city of Plovdiv was awarded with of growth platforms within the other a special recognition for Excellence in ITS countries – stated Mr. Georgi Brash­ ecosystem development. narov, member of the Managing Board of BASSCOM. – Plovdiv is a city which purposefully and consistently supports the development More than 30 international speakers took of the sector. Our long-term partnership part in the panel discussions, led by highly with the Bulgarian Outsourcing Association respected moderators in the face of and BASSKOM motivates us to turn Plovdiv Wiktor Doktor, CEO in Pro Progressio into a business oriented city with focus (Poland); Elias Van Herwaarden, EMEA on education and improving the quality Service Leader at Deloitte’s Centre of life – commented Mr. Ivan Totev, Mayor of Excellence; Daniela Mihovska, Director of Plovdiv.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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BUSINESS

BERLIN TALKS ON OUTSOURCING AND THE MARKET OF SHARED SERVICE CENTRES On June the 4th, 2019, the representatives of the outsourcing sector and shared service centres met once again at the Quadriga Forum in Berlin.

The meeting, which until now was known as the ITO & BPO Germany Forum, was this time was held under the new name of Outsourcing & Shared Service Germany Forum. The organiser of the event, like every year, was a German Outsourcing Association whose leader, Stephan Fricke, led not one but two days of the confe­ rence. The first day mainly focused on the lectures of invited guests representing business practitioners, industry associations as well as law and advisory firms.

Organisations conducting their business activities from Poland were prominent during this year’s edition, including the BPO centres of Frista and Duni EE as well as the supplier of IT solutions, J-Labs. Representatives of the Szczecin

Metropolitan Development Agency [ARMS sp. z o.o.] were also amongst the guests of the event as they promoted their city as a place to invest in nearshoring shared service centres.

The German Outsourcing Association is represented in Poland by the Pro Progressio Foundation, whose presi­ dent, Wiktor Doktór, in this year’s edition of the forum, led the third thematic block devoted to practical operational activities and case studies. In this part of the event, Krister Gullström (Duni EFF), Szymon Stadnik (Frista), Oliver Viereck (Sky TV Germany), Nikolay Todorov (Accedia), Jörg Kuhnelt (Q_Perior) and Heiko Meyer (The Hackett Group) shared their experience on the subject.

Photos: Deutscher Outsourcing Verband.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

In addition to the day-long exchange of knowledge, the organisers provided the participants of the forum with networking sessions both during the day and in the evening. The evening meeting focused on the strengthening of informal relations between outsourcing companies from the DACH region, Poland, Ukraine, Estonia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and even Egypt.

The following morning, participants had the chance to take part in workshops aimed at developing knowledge about marketing, communication and sales addressed to German companies interested in services in the outsourcing model.

The Egyptian Information Technology Industry Development Agency and the Bulgarian Outsourcing Association were key partners of the Berlin conference and, beyond Pro Progressio, the event was supported by a number of industry agencies and associations, including the German Trade & Invest Agency, the Hungarian Outsourcing Association, Process Automation Verband DACH and Emerging Europe.

We have to wait another year for the next forum but, in the meantime, may see the photos from this year’s edition of Outsourcing & Shared Service Germany Forum.

Photos: Deutscher Outsourcing Verband.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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BUSINESS

REVOLUTIONARY CHANGES – TAX WITHHOLDING AT SOURCE This article presents changes in tax withholding at source which shall enormously impact settlements of transactions with foreign entities.

Polish entities which pay monies to foreign investors, due to e.g. dividend, or to foreign partners for services provided, need to get ready for the revolutionary change of the rules and tax administration attitude.

FULL VERSION OF THIS ARTICLE IS AVAILABLE ONLY IN PAPER EDITION OF OUTSOURCING&MORE MAGAZINE OR ON THE PRO PROGRESSIO WEBSITE.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

The most important new issue is the complete change of the system to use preferred rates and exemptions.

Commencing on 1st July 2019, the withholding agent will not be able to directly use exemptions or preferred rates under international treaties.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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Authors:

Dorota Chudzik, Tax Advisor in the Law Firm "Chudzik i Wspólnicy Radcowie Prawni" sp.p., www.chudzik.pl

Michał Przybysz, Legal Trainee in the Law Firm "Chudzik i Wspólnicy Radcowie Prawni" sp.p., www.chudzik.pl

BUSINESS

WHAT DEFINES GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE? I am sure that you know the feeling when you leave a store or hang up on a support line with a smile on your face. Moreover, you will go back there at the earliest convenience. I would love this feeling to be more persistent.

For some time now, I have been looking for an opportunity to vent my frustration arising from the mediocre or poor customer service that I come across on a daily basis. Huge marketing budgets are spent on Facebook, SEO and marketing. They are ultimately ruined by a sad face or a sad voice of brand’s representative. I agree, that this is only a piece of the PR jigsaw puzzle but the one of crucial importance.

Am I slightly oversensitive by spending 14 years in customer service field?

Maybe. But it makes me think about key aspects the definition of a good customer service.

as JR Watkins Medical Company Complex, although it required a thorough restructuring after perturbations related with dwindling direct sales model in the ‘70s.

Another key moment in the history of customer service came in the ‘60s and ‘70s with the introduction of automatic telephone exchanges (PABXs)and IVR or Interactive Voices Responses. The telephone customer service was born.

It is the telephone customer service that leads us to the first problem addressed in this article – cultural differences. It is becoming an increasingly vital issue with the growing number of Polish companies that expand their offer outside Europe and reach for Asian markets for instance.

By the end of ‘80s American companies initiated a trend of outsourcing to India and Philippines, attracted by huge cost cutting benefits and elevated sales margins. Soon, UK corporations followed. It quickly backfired because customers were accustomed to a different service approach. Another issue was the variety of different accents and pronunciation that hampered customer-agent communication.

All customer related issues are as old as the commerce itself. However, for the first time the notion of customer service teams was addressed during the times of industrial revolution, which started in the 18th century. In 1776 Adam Smith published “Wealth of Nations”.

The book was the first attempt to create a structured concept of the economy and additionally defined the term of market competition. In 1868 Watkins Liniment – a manufacturer of remedies and other household products – introduced money-back guaranteed model. Inter- Let’s move to our local Polish backestingly, the company exists to this day yard. Customer service in Poland was

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skewed by a nearly half a century of communism, when shop clerks had nearly authoritarian power over their local communities. The problem was not solely Polish. It was common for all countries behind the Iron Curtain.

Currently the differences have dwindled, but I still my first trip to London in 2003. When strolling the streets of the city I came across Harrod’s. I had to step in. At that time, I was accustomed to the indifference or even negligence of shop clerks in Poland. Here, I plunged into a waterfall of courtesy. And almost drowned in it. I was not used to constant attention and persistent asking, whether I would like to try something on or if I required any advice. After 10 minutes I was afraid to even glance at any merchandise, because in less than 15 seconds somebody from the staff would be right next to me. I wanted to get out.

I was overwhelmed and fascinated at the same time. Particularly when Ifi­­­nally decided to buy some perfume.

The French section had an assistant speaking with a strong French accent, while Italian brands were serviced by a lady with a beautifully melodic Italian intonation. What a splendid attention to detail.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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BUSINESS

At this point we have reached one of most important, if not the most important aspect of customer service.

Matching the message with want to convey the recipient – in this case, the customer. I differentiate between two levels: global, namely all issues that are particular to the market we are in.

American enthusiasm with its “awesomeness” and “greatness” a will be taken with a pinch of salt in our part of Europe.

Again, totally different in Asia. While preparing offers for the French or US markets, I focus on sections addressing company values and company culture.

In Poland, price still plays the crucial role.

In contrast, in the UK one of my offers was rejected because the price was too low.

Here at least a few of the readers will most likely say: “Not true. I have different experience with these markets”. The they are all right. This is the second and more difficult level of customer service.

Matching your approach individual pre­ferences of each customer. Everyone expects different treatment, different language – some like to be adored by the staff, while others are rather left alone and their preferred form of contact with the clerk is the one at the till. Even better if it is a self-service one. This is why I said that it is one of the most difficult skills in customer service. It requires a bit of acting on the part of the employee to correspond with customer’s register, intonation and even speaking pace.

Another example from the British Isles: Oxford Street – I enter one of the stores, where I am greeted by a nice, albeit not too intrusive clerk. After a few sentences I explain that I came from Poland, to which he replies that his wife is Polish, and he frequently travels to my country. We start a short discussion about the quality of fabrics is in Poland the the UK, which I find hard to contradict. After a while he adds a discount and I leave the store with a new suit under my arm. Did he really have a Polish wife? I do not know. It is not important. He was able to create a nice environment, convinced me to himself and by this, to the product.

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Two mainstays of such approach are training and experience. Both require investment in employees and here we reach the clue of the problem. Without training our employees will not have a satisfactory grounding in theory, while inadequate financial compensation will not let them to gain sufficient experience, simply, because they will look for a more suitable employer.

Another aspect greatly valued by customers, is employees’ competence.

The highest percentage of respondents select the ability to solve their case in one call, as the most important customer satisfaction factor, even more important than waiting time in a queue.

Service Level Agreement (SLA) is currently the most important parameter required in outsourcing contracts. First Contact Resolution (FCR) is an extremely rare occurrence.

I have touched just a tip the customer service iceberg. Since the early ‘90s Polish companies have made a tremendous progress in customer service quality.

Most of the respectable organizations measure SLA, call duration and preform customer satisfaction scores. The issues which I addressed in this article are the icing on the cake, but in the increasingly competitive market, it is this icing that will let is stand out in the crowd. Author:

Marcin Łukasik, Commercial Director CEE at Unicall and Partner at Raccoon Search Sp. z o. o.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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BUSINESS

HOME OFFICE

HOW TO SAFELY REGULATE WORKING FROM HOME? Depending on the circumstances, working from home can be done in the form of formal teleworking or so-called “home office”, which is not regulated by the provisions of law. Employers often try to avoid teleworking, claiming that too many formalities must be completed.

However, its introduction has recently become much simpler.

The opportunity to work from home, permanently or partially, is already a standard for many employers in Poland.

Employees value it because it allows them to combine work with their private lives (e.g. looking after a child), and also to save the time and expenses involved in going to the office every day. In turn, employers can save money by reducing their office space. They also have the opportunity to employ specialists living far away from the company’s registered office. However, the crucial argument seems to be meeting the expectations of employees in a competitive labour market.

than via e-mail. Such remote work is not regulated by the provisions of law, which means it allows more flexibility for companies. In practice, employers sometimes establish internal regulations on remote work or introduce appropriate provisions to the work regulations. However, depending on the circumstances, these solutions may involve the risk of being challenged by the State Labour Inspectorate or the employees themselves.

In any case, employers must bear in mind the fact that they cannot discriminate against people who work from home in favour of employees working REMOTE WORK ACCORDING in the office. In addition, the proviTO THE REGULATIONS sions on teleworking expressly indiWork outside the company can be cate that teleworkers should be able done as formal teleworking, as set out to stay in the company and make use in the labour code. It is defined as work of the employer’s social activities. performed regularly outside the workplace, using electronic means of commu- NEW TELEWORKING nication, through which the employee REGULATIONS provides the results of his/her work. So far, employers have usually tried Therefore, the introduction of teleworking to avoid formal teleworking. This is is obligatory if the employee works because the procedure for its impleremotely on a regular basis and provides mentation was quite complicated his/her superiors with the effects of his/ and time-consuming. First of all, it her work via e-mail. was necessary to enter into a detailed agreement with the trade unions operHowever, other forms of remote work ating at the employer. If there were no (so-called home office) are acceptable unions at the company, it was necessary if such work is done occasionally or its to conduct an election of employees’ results are transferred in a way other representatives and then decide

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the teleworking regulations with them.

The teleworking agreement or regulations must specify the detailed rules regarding equipment for work, its servicing, insu­ rance, etc. The above procedures were mandatory, even if only a few employees were to be involved in teleworking.

In June 2018, significant changes were made to the law. Employers can now use teleworking without having to make a special agreement or issue regulations.

The only requirement is an employee’s application submitted in paper or electronic form and an annex to the employment agreement. The detailed terms and conditions of teleworking should be regulated directly in the agreement with the employee. This applies in particular to the way the work is performed, the transmission of its results, work tools, rules of confidentiality and compliance with health and safety rules, as well as the reporting of working time or absence.

WORKING TIME However, these amendments to the law did not solve other common problems of employers related to the use of remote work. According to companies, the effective assessment of working hours and the efficiency of the employee is a significant challenge. Teleworking regulations make it possible to assess

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

In June 2018, significant changes were made to the law.

Employers can now use teleworking without having to make a special agreement or issue regulations.

the teleworker’s working time. To this end, companies use different methods.

Some are based on the employee’s voluntary reporting of his/her working hours. Other methods involve monitoring his/her activity by recording the time when he/she is logged into the system, calculating the number of movements of the mouse or the number of characters entered on the keyboard. However, these types of tools must be used with caution, so as not to violate the provisions on personal data protection and the privacy of employees.

ENSURING SECURITY AND CONFIDENTIALITY

also for people performing tasks outside the company’s premises. Therefore, the employer has the right to check the teleworker at his/her place of work.

If work is done at home, the consent of the subordinate to an inspection is required each time. The detailed rules of the inspection should be regulated in the agreement with the employee.

In addition, the employee should be provided with regular training and all information on health and safety rules and risk factors in order to reduce the risk of possible legal liability. It is also important to follow procedures to ensure that the equipment used for work meets all health and safety requirements.

Companies are also concerned about the greater risk of breaches of health and safety rules and the leak of confidential information in the employee’s home. In accordance with the regulations, the employer is required to ensure safe and healthy working conditions

In order to protect data, companies should introduce appropriate technical and legal mechanisms. They can determine specific privacy rules, such as the rules of using the Internet and external storage media. This may also

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

apply to the rules of ensuring the physi­cal security of equipment and securing the equipment with a password. In addition, it is advisable to provide detailed instructions and regular training to employees in this regard. Authors:

Michal Lisawa, LL.M., Counsel, Baker McKenzie Krzyzowski i Wspolnicy sp.k.

Katarzyna Oleksik, Associate, Baker McKenzie Krzyzowski i Wspolnicy sp.k.

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HSBC’S THREE-YEAR PLAN TO DELIVER BUSINESS TRANSFORMATION

SSC

Word of admission: SSC Lions is a project run by Pro Progressio and focused on the communication support provided to Shared Service Centres.

On ­Outsourcing&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 management and employer branding.

This time we are presenting you the interview with Alexandra (Alex) Schmidt, the Centre Director of HSBC Service Delivery (Polska) sp. z o.o.

SSC LIONS

Pro Progressio: How long has HSBC been in Poland? How long has HSBC had its own Shared Service Centre here?

Alexandra (Alex) Schmidt, Centre Director of HSBC Service Delivery (Polska) Sp. z o.o.: We’ve been operating in Poland since 1990, first as an investment company, then as a bank following the acquisition of a local bank.

In 2007 we set up a back-office function that has developed into one of our Global Service Centres (GSC) and now operates as HSBC Service Delivery (Polska) Sp. z o.o.

Could you tell us more about HSBC’s Shared Service Centre presence globally? Why was Poland chosen as a location for one of its centres?

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

FULL VERSION OF THIS INTERVIEW IS AVAILABLE ONLY IN PAPER EDITION OFÂ OUTSOURCING&MORE MAGAZINE OR ON THE PRO PROGRESSIO WEBSITE.

MAIN INTERVIEW

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

THE HISTORY IS MADE

BY PEOPLE Coworking – interview with Piotr Boulangé, Manager of WeWork Labs.

Wiktor Doktór, Pro Progressio: Piotr, whenever I think about coworking in Poland, I must admit that it is your name that comes to mind. I remember that many years ago we talked about what coworking was and what it was like in the world, and you were acquiring knowledge on this subject and co-created one such office in Warsaw.

Why did you actually get interested in this matter?

Piotr Boulangé ( WeWork Labs Manager): That idea came up naturally. When looking for an office for one of the projects, I decided that I would not need it five days a week but only one. I started looking for an alternative to renting an office and, this way, I found my first coworking office. As the project developed, I found that I actually needed the office a little more often than I assumed and thought I would rent an office for that purpose, and because I would

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

not use it all the time, I would allocate the available space for coworking... and that’s how it began.

It’s been some time since our first coworking conversations. How has cowork­­­­ing changed in the world over the years and how has it changed in Poland?

I think the most important thing worth noting in this industry is that we are talking about the world in general and Poland doesn’t stand out from what is happening in the industry, so there is no difference. However, what has changed is the quantity and size of these types of open spaces. Some time ago, most coworking offices (according to my research, 66%) were no larger than 200 sq m and had no more than 20 desks. Today, most of the space devoted to coworking is opened by large brands that are more and more often international such as WeWork, for example.

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FULL VERSION OF THIS INTERVIEW IS AVAILABLE ONLY IN PAPER EDITION OFÂ OUTSOURCING&MORE MAGAZINE OR ON THE PRO PROGRESSIO WEBSITE.

FULL VERSION OF THIS INTERVIEW IS AVAILABLE ONLY IN PAPER EDITION OFÂ OUTSOURCING&MORE MAGAZINE OR ON THE PRO PROGRESSIO WEBSITE.

BUSINESS

STOP MARKETING, START MATTERING Why Brand Activism can help you stand out from the crowd.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

Recently I attended an exclusive analysts presentation for a well-known global provider of contact services. As part of the presentation pack we were given a simple bracelet made of string, a metal clasp and some beads. The accompanying card explained that the bracelet was made from plastics and other marine debris recovered from the ocean floor. It highlighted that 15 of 22 species of seabirds are facing extinction caused by harmful marine waste and included a call to action to support seabird and marine protection.

without having to engage directly with that organisation. This means that brands are having to find alternative ways to proactively get their audience’s attention, engage with them so as to make them a part of their community and, over time, convert them into customers.

The businesses that are winning are typically those who are leveraging a higher purpose over their core service or product offering in order to stand out from the crowd. Great brands not only have heart and soul, they are also more The company’s Marketing Director said than just the product or service they that instead of giving away the usual provide – and they stand up for what USB sticks, stress balls and laptop- they believe in. camera covers the company wanted to highlight a noble cause and do some- • For example, Unilever’s brand thing more meaningful. Their global Dove sells beauty products but it’s higher purpose is about celebrating presence meant they had a platform and an audience reach that could help the authentic beauty of women, and make a difference and so they partnered it has numerous initiatives that seeks with a cause they felt passionate about. to shatter beauty stereotypes and redefine the popular view of what As you can imagine this was very well ‘beautiful’ actually is. They actively received – even by the hardest, most engage with their community to send cynical analyst present – and the topic them photos of authentically beaubecame the main talking point for tiful women, complete with blemishes and ‘imperfections’. some 15–20 minutes. What’s more, it almost instantly warmed the mood of the whole room before the presenta- • Proctor and Gamble’s Pampers tions even began. website is much more than just a shop window for babies’ nappies, it Now I know the Marketing Director is a portal that offers well-researched advice and education for mums-to-be very well and so I know the intent behind the give-away was sincere, but from early pregnancy stages right it also served as a great example of why through to pre-school, and even an increasing number of organisations provides support for families living are choosing to evangelise a higher with the post-natal depression. purpose over product.

• Apple prides itself on being environGlobalisation and the acceleration mentally focused and evangelises of advancements in technology has its efforts in continuously working meant that most products and services to reduce its environmental footprint, these days are increasingly commodciting that all of their facilities worlditised; there are very few businesses wide from offices and retail stores around with truly unique products and to data centres are now powered entirely by clean energy. services and those that have will invariably find themselves copied to some degree within six months of being Closer to home, I know of a medium visible in the market. sized business that has ploughed its profits into owning and operating What’s more, the power, reach and a small water purification plant, a cause adoption of the internet these days which has helped eradicate disease means that prospects and customers within its own rural community. I also can usually successfully search for, know of a mid-size tech business that download and assimilate most types has created its own evening school of product specifications, service to teach underprivileged teenagers descriptions, key features documents coding so as to improve their employand customer reviews remotely and ability opportunities. These businesses

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

provide what could be described as typically commoditised services but they are winning new clients because their higher purpose is resonating with the market at large.

The fact is the ‘rules’ of the relationship between people, product (or services) and the planet have been re-written.

In the crowded and mature marketplaces where the majority of us work, most businesses now want to find partners that not only provide the service or product they need, but they are also most likely to lean towards those that strive to ‘do good’, be it by making a positive societal, environmental, medical, scientific or cultural impact.

That said, there is a fine line between educating an audience and preaching to them. Brands should never ‘tell’ consumers what they need to do because that’s the worst form of engagement; a ‘telling’ strategy can close down a conversation before it has properly started and it can even be divisive.

By contrast, your brand activism should be about raising awareness of a subject or initiative, being absolutely clear about your viewpoint through providing education and information on the topic and inviting people to the conversation; building a community around something meaningful at the same time.

Communicating a purpose that is aligned with a positive impact while selling a product or service will always be well received, so long as it has integrity and is done so authentically. If you operate a business that is struggling to differentiate itself from the competition then you could do well by making the time to understand what you are passionate about as an organisation, how that impacts your community, society-at-large or even the world – and starting a conversation about it.

Author:

Tom Quigley, Owner & Chief Marketing Officer, QUIGLEYMEDIA

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BUSINESS

HUMANS

IN CX Which Kind Of Customer Interactions Should Not Be Automated?

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

Some customer interactions will always have to be performed by people.

This is according to Steven Van Belleghem’s classic book ‘When Digital Becomes Human’.

Brands will use automation to increase customer engagement, to support employees and help them find relevant information quickly, and to reduce the friction of transactions – look at how easy it is to order a taxi or pizza today compared to a decade ago.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

digital service is far more complex than accepting that customers must use one or the other. HBR even noted that when an American bank introduced app-based banking customers undertook many more transactions using the app, but The idea was challenged by many this resulted in many more in-person in the customer experience (CX) commu- visits to bank branches too. Brands nity who believed that we would very cannot plan for a binary strategy where quickly see an end to the need for personal service is entirely automated humans to work in customer service roles. because customers define how they After all, we read stories in the business want to interact and sometimes they press almost every day that robots and want to speak to a real person.

Artificial Intelligence are now becoming so advanced that many people can expect The research identifies three important their job to be automated in the next few reasons why we should expect human years. Why should customer service be service to remain important: any different?

• Service is emotional and technology is not; HBR cites an example where one Amazon still ranks the book on several of the insurance company once offered bestseller lists today, so Steven’s argument digital condolences to customers has become even more relevant with calling to settle a death-related insurtime. Steven’s vision projects that both ance claim. In very emotional situadigital and human interactions are importions like divorce, accidents, or even tant, but one cannot replace the other. the death of a loved one, can you In fact, what brands need to understand imagine how unnerving it is for is exactly how best to improve a longa customer to deal with a robot? term relationship with their customer and • People still turn to people for where digital engagement might work advice; humans are now very skilled best and where human engagement can at using digital channels for informareinforce their commitment to offering tion –“To Google” has become a verb great support and experience. to search for information online and yet if the information is ambiguous The idea of brands creating a customer or overwhelming then people still engagement strategy that is customprefer turning to another person for er-led makes sense. For instance, what advice. When Netflix recommends is driving the customer to reach out a movie we know it is an algoto a brand and how best can the brand rithm, not a person, but we accept respond? The answer is “depends”. this advice. However if a customer is In some cases the best response will be searching for a hotel in Tokyo that automated because this offers an immeaccepts pets and over 200 possibilidiate 24/7 response. In others, a more ties are returned in a search then it’s personal service will be superior. The skill normal to ask a travel professional is in defining which customer problem or other travelers for advice. We value requires which type of service because the judgment of others. a mistaken choice – or preventing • Sometimes automation means less the customer from switching – can lead effort for a brand, but more for to a very poor customer experience. a customer; even the most sophisticated new technologies can – and Companies often compete on effiprobably will fail. Anyone who’s used ciency and price, but today, brands need an automated phone service rarely to focus on relevance, value, empathy has anything good to say about it, and authenticity in their customer but they are still around confusing engagement strategy, rather than and frustrating clients. This is why one of the biggest european telecom just assuming that a great price will company are now promising that bring in the sales. Research published human agents, trained in a variety in the Harvard Business Review last of specialties, will replace phone menus year demonstrated that the relationship between personal service and and bots.

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BUSINESS

It is clear that automation will be more important in the next few years.

Cu s to m e r s a re b e co m i n g u s e d to interacting with digital assistants such as Google Home, Amazon Echo, and Apple’s Siri. These tools are getting better and many contact centers will deploy intelligent chat assistants to help customers quickly and automatically.

Transparency advocates Label Insight reported how 94% of consumers are likely to be loyal to a brand that offers complete transparency.

Brands will use automation to increase customer engagement, to support employees and help them find relevant information quickly, and to reduce the friction of transactions – look at how easy it is to order a taxi or pizza today compared to a decade ago. But human interactions will remain important for customer service delivered by contact centers, in retail stores, and in other types of customer engagement.

What reasons do people give for their emotional brand connections?

The aforementioned survey conducted

by Customer Thermometer stated the following: 65% of customers felt a connection because a brand made them feel like it cares, 55% of customers felt like a brand has allowed them to make a positive difference in the world, 45% of customers felt like a brand understands them, and 42% felt like a brand is run by like-minded people. The top Whenever you need to have an emotional five emotions for brand connection? connection to your customer, a human Interest, trust, optimism, admiration, will always be far superior to software and acceptance. or a robot. Asking the automated system to express a false emotion – like the life Engaging your customers through insurance example I mentioned – is inau- an emotional connection can instill brand thentic. It feels bogus, like the company loyalty as a result of a great and memodoesn’t care about my emotional needs rable customer experience. Taking into as a customer that needs help. consideration how customers would feel and knowing the importance of inspiring You know in your heart that you have positive emotions in customers help the best product out there in the market, a great deal as you shape your brand. but still, therein lies a bit of a problem: As interactions experts, we know how the numbers continue to show missed a meaningful connection can lead sales targets, and even more troubling to a lifelong partnership between you – a consistent lack of repeat purchases. and your customers. After all we, brands and clients want and need the same.

Locating the root cause of this plateau has Satisfaction. been a challenge for most companies, and seeking more (creative) ways to differentiate in their respective competitive indus- Authors: tries has become a must. Others succeed, while a few fail, and sometimes the root that hinders the possibility of customer loyalty simply is a brand or company Michał Skierski, failing to validate customer emotions.

Marketing & Sales Emotions play an integral role in creating a solid customer experience. Even the smallest decision made by your customer can be the direct result of a felt emotion, whether it’s driving them away or bringing them closer to your brand.

Creating a connection that is a result of trust, care, empathy, and transparency is vital in establishing brand loyalty among consumers. Transparency

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advocates Label Insight reported how 94% of consumers are likely to be loyal to a brand that offers complete transparency. Survey conductors Customer Thermometer showed how 65% of consumers in the United States felt being cared for as a result of having an emotional connection with a brand or company, inspiring brand affinity and loyalty.

Support Manager, Teleperformance Polska

Wojciech Kraśniewski, Sales Director, Teleperformance Polska

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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LUBLIN | 4-6 September 2019

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INVESTMENTS NEWS GDYNIA COMES TO PROMINENCE AS AN OFFICE DESTINATION IN TRICITY Tricity’s office stock increased by more than 6% year-on-year to 790,000 sq m at the end of the first quarter of 2019.

The region’s vacancy rate fell by 2.3 pp compared with the end of March last year to the current 5.4%, its lowest in the last five years, according to “Occupier Economics: Office Market in Tricity in Q1 2019”, a report published by real estate advisory firm Cresa.

– Tricity is Poland’s leading market in terms of effectiveness in attracting new office tenants. Developer interest is increasingly shifting towards Gdynia, clearly benefiting tenants who have a wider choice of suitable locations within the whole metropolitan area. The market is seeing an increased demand for office space coming from the TFL sector (transport, forwarding and

logistics), which is recording a double-digit growth in turnover following the expansion of the seaport industry – says Michał Rafałowicz, Head for the Pomeranian Region, Cresa Poland.

Office take-up amounted to 9,100 sq m in the first quarter of 2019, representing just 11% of the annual fiveyear average. New leases accounted for 70% of the leasing volume, while renegotiations and expansions made up 25% and 5%, respectively. The three largest transactions included 3,000 sq m leased by BBK at BCB Business Park II, a 2,600 sq m lease renegotiation and expansion at Alchemia III Argon (confidential tenant) and 1,500 sq m leased

by JUUL Labs Services in the same office building.

CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD WAS APPOINTED PROPERTY MANAGER OF HORIZON PLAZA IN WARSAW Global real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield was appointed property manager of Horizon Plaza in Warsaw.

In addition, Cushman & Wakefield delivers project commercialization services for the owner of the building.

Horizon Plaza is located at 39A Domaniewska Street in Warsaw’s Mokotów district. It offers more than 38,000 sq m of high-quality

Two office projects were completed: Heweliusza 18 (10,000 sq m, Apollo-Rida) and Hiro (5,000 sq m, Hossa). Another 50,000 sq m is expected to come onto the market by the end of this year. Office absorption amounted to 19,000 sq m in the first three months of the year, up by 23% on the quarterly average for the years 2012–2018.

Class A office space and flexible arrangement options in addition to retail space.

The building has received the BREAM – Tricity is attracting new office projects, certificate with a Very Good rating. which is reflected in market data. More than 100,000 sq m of new office space is – Despite Wola’s rapid growth, Mokotów expected to be completed in the next four remains an attractive business location. quarters alone – says Bolesław Kołodziej­ Upon completion, all the redevelopments czyk, PhD, Head of Research & Advisory, underway are expected to consider- Cresa Poland. ably improve its transport infrastructure.

Horizon Plaza is located in the very heart Asking rents range between EUR 13.00 of the district, which is an additional asset –17.00/sq m/month in Tricity’s most of the building – said Grzegorz Dyląg, recent Class A office projects with older Head of Asset Services, Business Space, Class A office buildings commanding Cushman & Wakefield.

EUR 11.00–13.00/sq m/month.

The owner of Horizon Plaza is a real estate fund managed by Union Investment.

The Group manages a portfolio of 20 commercial properties at 11 locations in Poland representing a value of some 2 billion Euro.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

WARSAW’S SŁUŻEWIEC HAS BEEN GOING THROUGH A METAMORPHOSIS Warsaw’s Służewiec, one of Poland’s largest business districts, has been going through a metamorphosis for some time. Real estate advisory firm Savills has looked at current and planned changes in this area, including vacancy rates at older and newer office buildings, a wave of refurbishments sweeping through half of buildings aged at least ten, infrastructure improvements, as well as hotel and residential developments.

The state of transport infrastructure has always been a major concern in Służewiec.

2019 appears to be a ground-breaking year in this respect and raises hopes for tangible transport improvements.

The long-awaited redevelopment of Marynarska Street was completed in May and provided three traffic lanes in both directions and a flyover to ease the traffic congestion in Domaniewska Street. There are also plans to build a road linking Suwak and Cybernetyki streets, and a new tramline running to the Wilanowska metro station.

Służewiec has been largely associated with office buildings for many years.

According to Savills data, its total office stock currently amounts to more than 1.1 million sq m. Since 2005, nearly 2 million sq m has been transacted in Służewiec, accounting for more than 23% of the overall leasing volume recorded in Warsaw. Rental rates range between EUR 13.00-14.75/sq m/month, while Class B office buildings command rents starting from EUR 8/sq m/month.

Office development activity in Służewiec has been fluctuating with peaks recorded in 2008, 2009, 2013 and 2015. At present, there is only one office building under construction: the head office of DSV. To fight off competition from other office locations in Warsaw, property owners in Służewiec have begun to invest in upgrades to adapt their office buildings to tenants’ changing requirements. 44% of Służewiec’s office stock was developed at least ten years ago; of that total, 61%, or nearly 300,000 sq m, has been or will be refurbished or modified in the near future.

Several examples may be found, including

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

part of the Empark complex that will be redeveloped as a housing estate, Tulipan House, whose landlord is planning to build an innovative lobby with ample cycling facilities, as well as Signum Work Station, Innova Work Station and Marynarska Point 2.

According to Savills experts, a revival of interest in Służewiec is likely to be fuelled by the rise of flexible offices – one of the strongest recent trends on the office market. They provide an opportunity to rent small office units for short periods and are an ideal tool to find out how much this part of Warsaw has changed. There are currently six leading providers of coworking and serviced offices in Służewiec offering approximately 21,000 sq m of space in

11 locations. The concept of co-sharing has spread beyond the office sector to other areas with the Veturillo rental bike system (10 stations), car-sharing and most recently e-scooters becoming popular.

Despite its large office stock, Służewiec has been a blank spot on the hotel map of Warsaw. Its first hotel (Hampton

by Hilton Mokotów) was opened in 2018.

There are already three in this area today.

According to the data of Hotel Professionals, hotels located in Służewiec offer a total of 517 rooms. The four planned new projects will take this tally to approximately 1,600 rooms. New hotels which form an integral part of any business infrastructure provide not only accommodation, but also catering and conference facilities for office tenants in Służewiec.

MORSKI PARK HANDLOWY SIGNED UP ANOTHER TENANT – We are pleased to welcome Zoo Karina at Morski Park Handlowy – a well-recognised leading local retailer, who is very active in the northern part of Poland. New brands were recently added to the tenant-mix of the retail complex following its extension, which were met with a very positive Zoo Karina will open in late July or response from customers – says Marta early August once the fit-out works Mikołajczyk-Pyrć, Head of Retail Property have been finalized. The store will be Management, Savills. located in the new building completed earlier this year, following the exten- Morski Park Handlowy is located on Przysion of Morski Park Handlowy. The new widzka Street in Gdansk. The extension building is already home to Bel-Pol and of the complex increased its total floorfour different stores of the Komfort space to over 41,000 sq m. Its tenants Group – Floors, Kitchens, Bathrooms include among others DIY store OBI, and Nexterio.

Carrefour hypermarket, McDonald's and Jula. Other facilities at the retail park Zoo Karina is a family company estab- comprise of Designer Outlet Gdansk and lished by Karina Wojtyłko. It opened its furniture store Agata. The owner of Morski first store in Gdynia in 1996. The retailer Park Handlowy is GRP. Savills is the propnow has a network of more than 20 loca- erty manager and retail space leasing tions, mostly in the Pomeranian region. agent on the scheme.

Zoo Karina, a pet shop, has leased nearly 625 sq m of retail space at the complex.

Real estate advisory firm Savills acts as a property manager and an exclusive leasing agent on the park.

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INVESTMENTS

OFFICE REAL ESTATE MARKET IS STILL IN SHAPE

The good standing of the Polish economy, which is one of the most stable in Europe and the continuously growing GDP translate into a great situation on the real estate sector - especially office. Polish companies are growing, expanding their areas of activity, and global companies are eager to choose Poland as their direction of expansion. Thanks to this, a demand for space suited to their needs and nature of activity grows.

Due to the low unemployment and increasing expectations of employees, future tenants pay more and more attention to quality and extra services that a new office can provide them. Therefore, in the first place they will negotiate with experienced developers who are not afraid of bold projects that require unconventional approach.

office space. And although the capital city still plays a dominant role on this market – total resources of modern office space amounted to 5.45 million sq m, and another 750,000 sq m was under construction – it is hard not to notice the growing role of regional cities.

They are transforming into outsourcing centres of business processes, shared service centres, and more and more – We can see that both Polish and inter- often into research and scientific centres. national investors are optimistic about According to forecasts of the Associathe future of the Polish office market. This tion of Business Service Leaders ABSL, is supported by, among others the sale shared service centres, of which there of Gatehouse Offices, the first office building are over 1,200 in Poland, will employ in our multifunctional project Browary 340,000 employees until 2020.

Warszawskie for EUR 76.5 million shortly after its putting into use, or the prelimi- – We closely observe changing trends nary sales agreement for the completed on the market, but most of all we third stage of the O3 Business Campus listen to the needs of our clients office complex in Kraków. This is proof that who create this market – says Rafał our office buildings are high on the list Mazurczak. – Changing society, easy of places worth being interested in, that access to technology, people’s way motivates for further work. To maintain of life, their approach to work, space this position, we need to be attentive and and themselves significantly affect our actively listen to what tenants expect and sector. People want to transfer what their younger and younger employees they experience every day at home, – says Rafał Mazurczak, a board member on the street, during meetings with at Echo Investment responsible for friends and on shopping to office their the office sector. spaces. Offices are to provide much more value than just space to perform busiWARSAW VERSUS REGIONAL ness duties. They are to integrate, stimu­ CITIES late to action, support building lasting At the end of 2018, Warsaw and regional relations, inspire creativity, give space cities offered 10.4 million sq m of modern to relax, help in achieving goals, and be

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comfortable, modern, ecological, ergonomic. The list of requirements is really long. An important factor that we must take into account in the development process is locality. Markets in Warsaw, Wrocław, Kraków and Łódź are characterised by completely different things.

Our role is to create a project that will be adapted to all conditions we know.

And we’ve been trying to do it for over 20 years – he adds.

MULTIFUNCTIONAL WARSAW Moje Miejsce and Browary Warszawskie are multifunctional projects of Echo Investment, which were the first to develop the strategy of creating destination places that will attract people.

– In both projects, we combine experience of Echo Investment in three sectors of the real estate market. For office tenants, this means entering their space into an area where the nearest vicinity is an interestingly arranged city square, a quiet cafe, a 24-hour fitness at your fingertips or a convenient shop.

Together with the space suited to their needs, they receive even more facilities than before – Rafał Mazurczak explains.

– But destination projects are not only in Warsaw. In June, we laid the cornerstone at the Fuzja project in Łódź, and we are also preparing a project in Kraków – he adds.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

LET’S MEET IN ŁÓDŹ OR WROCŁAW In Łódź, in addition to the aforementioned project called Fuzja, Echo Investment has started construction works this year at the first stage of the REACT office complex, with an area of nearly 15,000 sq m. The entire office complex will have nearly 50,000 sq m, and the first employees will start working in new offices in the second half of 2020.

The growing presence of Echo Investment in Wrocław deserves attention. It is one of the fastest growing office markets in Poland, which in 2018 exceeded 1 million sqm. It is also a key location for the BPO/SSC sector.

– Also this year, we have started the con­­ struction of the first stage of the West 4 Business Hub office complex. West Gate and West Link began our history in this part of the city, at Na Ostatnim Groszu Street. Today, they are the headquarters of reputable companies and have new, long-term owners. Developing another 80,000 sq m of functional office space in this part of the city is just ahead us.

This year, we will also launch the next office project at Powstańców Śląskich Street. These huge projects will even more clearly describe us on the business map of Wrocław – says Rafał Mazurczak.

The Villa Offices, The Malthouse Offices, Villa Schiele in Browary Warszawskie.

ECHO INVESTMENT IS STRONG AT OFFICES Because the interest of potential tenants is very high, the developer is preparing to start projects in Kraków and Gdańsk this year. The total area of office buildings started in 2019 will amount to approximately 100,000 sq m.

The office market advantages investors, that is why in such projects as Face2Face Business Campus in Katowice or further office buildings in Browary Warszawskie, the developer can see the potential of a very high lease level before construction is completed.

REACT in Łódz.

Author:

West 4 Business Hub in Wrocław.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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INVESTMENTS

EGYPT…

OPPORTUNITIES FOR MID-MARKET AND LARGE ORGANIZATIONS IN ICT AND BSS When choosing the location for shared services or the sourcing of IT and business process services, it is far from a trifling task. The decision of the destination plays a major role in the success and progress of a shared service organization or buyer–provider business relation.

Looking at the map of established IT and business delivery services locations, Egypt offers a unique blend of qualities, that has made the country on par with Eastern European countries such as Poland and Romania.

An important feature setting Egypt apart from other nearshore destinations in Europe and the rest of the globe, is the scalability potential of service centers on a large scale, similar to the Philippines and India. This provides huge opportunities for business that are seeking to expand their GBS/SSC or outsourcing operations, especially for European businesses, which would benefit from the proximity and similar time zone that would allow for their productivity and ease of work.

FROM RAPID GROWTH TO MATURITY The Egyptian government has opened up the economy and the IT/Business service industry in the early 2000’s, and since then, it has seen exponential growth, which helped the country be positioned as a preferred and reliable hub for service delivery, not just for European markets but also for the US, Middle East, and Africa.

The Egyptian ICT sector is currently the fastest growing sector and largest contributor to GDP growth. IDC projects that by 2020, the outsourcing industry’s workforce will reach 240,000 FTEs with the sector’s exports reaching $4.7 Billion up from $3.26 Billion in 2017. See Graphic 1.

Graphic 1. Outsourcing Industry Workforce. Source: IDC

240,000 2020

212,000 2019

189,000 2018

169,000 2017 44

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

According to Frost & Sullivan, Egypt’s BPO market is undergoing a shift in its services portfolio as providers move from multilingual contact center services to high-value niche services, such as product development and R&D.

IT-related degrees, prepared to provide advanced processes and knowledge services to more than 100 countries.

This scale, positions Egypt among prominent delivery destinations such as Poland and the Philippines.

TALENT POOL

Availability of language skills is among key criteria when selecting a delivery location. Business centers in Egypt are successfully serving their clients in more than 20 languages.

While English, French and German are the most prominent languages in Egypt – in addition to the Native Arabic language – availability of other languages is still significant, especially compared with other destinations in CEE and the growing demand and costs. See Graphic 2.

Talent pool is a corner stone in Egypt’s very unique position among the global BSS destinations. It is this aspect that provides the prospect for IT/BSS centers in Bratislava, Bucharest, Budapest and other SSC locations in Europe to scale further. Over 500,000 people graduate annually from more than 50 universities and 100 institutes. Among which, 220,000 graduates have business process services related degrees and about 50,000 graduates have

Graphic 2. Annual university graduates by language of study. Source: IDC

90,000 English

800

Turkish

690

Spanish

540

Italian

240

Chinese

260

Russian

1,300

Others (include

Siamese, Hebrew, Farsi,

Greek, Urdu, Korean,

Japanese, African and

Czech)

5,400 French

3,000

German

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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INVESTMENTS

– We host here Vodafone’s worldwide center of excellence on technology. Things such as RPA (Robotic Process Automation) is being done out of Egypt for the rest of the world. So many activities where you can see that it’s really the technical hub is happening in Egypt. Why is that?

Simply because we have fantastic talent in the market and we have the ability from a cost perspective to offer quality services in a very competitive price to our other operators around the world – Alexandre Froment-Curtil, CEO, Vodafone Egypt.

LABOR COST According to IDC, Egypt offers some of the most competitive operating cost per full-time employee. The cost differences compared to other sourcing destinations in reach are vast. Compared with software development cost in popular nearshore locations for Europe, namely Bulgaria, Romania or Poland, the savings reach up to about 60%. See Graphic 3.

INNOVATION Innovation is at the heart of the industry.

A number of multinationals operating in Egypt are now having innovation centers driving high value to their businesses globally from Egypt. In addition, Egyptian Technology startups are increasingly raising investments from global and regional investors. According to Magnitt, Egypt has the largest growing startup ecosystem in MENA.

The Information Technology Industry Development Agency (ITIDA), the execu­ tive arm of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, is spearheading the development of the sector through several initiatives and programs, ranging from talent development to investor attraction and support.

GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

DRIVER FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENT

The Egyptian government has been working progressively on developing its business environment for both foreign and local investors. This has been reflected in its improved ranking in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business report of 2019, being listed among the most-improved economies and progressing eight places in the rank.

Several global corporations and organi­ zations are leveraging Egypt as a hub for Europe and a gateway to Africa and the Arabic speaking region. Egypt has the elements of the equation, which led companies such as Uber, Siemens, Nestlé, HSBC, and IBM, among others, chose Egypt for their regional/global delivery operations.

There is a plenty of potential for more development and growth for the Egyptian ITO and BPO industry driven by, educated talent, economic growth and domestic demand, and reliable infrastructure for business operations along the Nile River.

Graphic 3. Average annual software developer salary. Source: payscale.com

External factors play in favor of the growth of Egypt’s ICT industry.

The soaring demands in Europe and their current critical shortage of skilled professionals, the change in the Shared Service landscape to higher value services as well as the rising cost in the established CEE nearshore destinations, promise to fuel the growth of Egypt’s IT and BSS industry.  Author: Stephan Fricke, CEO & Head of Advisory Board at German Outsourcing Association and German process Automation Association

7,500 USD Egypt

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20,000 USD

Bulgaria

20,000 USD

Romania

24,000 USD Poland

53,000 USD

Germany

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

INVESTMENTS

GBS IN LITHUANIA: COMPLEX, DIVERSE – AND STILL ON THE RISE

Lithuania’s Global Business Services sector is one of the CEE region’s biggest success stories. With a ready pool of talent and low market saturation, the Baltic state’s GBS industry has attracted international investors from the US, Europe and beyond.

And it’s a formula that continues to bear fruit: the sector grew by 13% in 2018 in terms of employment – a total increase of some 2,000 new jobs. But in a constantly changing global services market, Lithuania’s GBS sector isn’t standing still – with increasing diversification, an emphasis on tech development, and the growing role of robotisation on service delivery, it’s an industry that is constantly reinventing itself to meet the needs of its customers.

in tune with its times. In all, the Report’s findings account for 75% of all Lithuanian GBS centres and 95% of the sector’s total labour force.

In an increasingly globalised market, Lithuania is a multi-lingual society.

85% of young people aged 25–34 in the country speak English – and over half of all Lithuanians speak two SOLID FOUNDATIONS or more foreign languages. According The availability of talent, both native to the survey results, 58% of GBS and foreign, has been the cornerstone centres in Lithuania provide services of Lithuania’s booming GBS sector. in two or more languages, while one And with each of Lithuania’s three centre offers support in an impressive main cities – Vilnius, Kaunas and Klai- 35 different languages! peda – experiencing positive migration in 2018 and continuing to attract Lithuania’s population also leads the EU The latest Lithuania’s Business Services students from all over the country for higher education levels, and it’s Report, released by Invest Lithuania as well as the world, it’s a trend that is set the sheer diversity of the skills and in June 2019, reveals an industry is to continue. competences on offer from Lithuania’s talent pool that has made the country’s GBS sector a draw for multifunctional or niche investments. An increasing Download the full Business number of companies are choosing LithServices Report here: uania to establish their Centres of Excellence, leveraging local talent to deliver RPA, R&D, cyber security, mobile app development and more.

That raw talent has been backed by a business – friendly environment at national level, aimed at removing the barriers to foreign investment. This year saw Lithuania rise to 14th place out

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

EYE ON THE MARKET In Vilnius just 26 people per 1,000 residents are employed in the GBS sector, highlighting lower market saturation than rivals in the CEE region such as Warsaw, Budapest and Prague, and less than a third of the level seen in regional hubs such as Krakow.

of the 190 countries globally that make up the World Bank’s ‘Ease of Doing Business’ ranking – the highest place in the CEE region, even outstripping the performance of well-established locations such as Ireland (23 rd) and Germany (24th). Furthermore, for the past five years in a row, the capital Vilnius has been awarded the best location for Global Business Services in the CEE at the CEE Business Services Summit and Awards.

The city has become the destination of choice for big names such as Moody’s, McKesson, Danske Bank, Western Union, Nasdaq and Booking.com to offer increasingly diverse services to a global GBS market.

Despite its success, Lithuania’s GBS sector hasn’t yet reached the point of over-saturation. In Vilnius just 26 people per 1,000 residents are employed in the GBS sector, highlighting lower market saturation than rivals in the CEE region such as Warsaw, Budapest and Prague, and less than a third of the level seen in regional hubs such as Krakow. Lithuania’s secondlargest city, Kaunas, enjoys even lower market saturation, with just 9.5 people per 1,000 being employed in the GBS centres – indicating plenty of room for growth in the country’s two-city GBS hub.

Furthermore, Lithuania still benefits from a plentiful supply of commercial real estate. The vacancy rate for class A office space in Vilnius increased from 2.7% to 5% in 2018, with further developments giving rise to a forecasted increase of 218,000 sq m between 2019 and 2020. In addition to the Lithuanian capital, Kaunas remains a tenant’s market, with record supply producing a healthy 11.9% vacancy rate.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

With competition growing across the GBS sector worldwide, Lithuania isn’t relying on its existing advantages to drive the sector’s growth. The 2019 Lithuania’s Business Services Report reveals a number of key trends that show the country’s GBS sector is responding to changes in the market worldwide.

(RPA) – a trend that is playing an increasingly important role across the industry globally. Currently, over a third of all GBS centres in Lithuania have successfully implemented RPA solutions, with 85% of them developing these solutions in-house. Furthermore, many RPA solutions developed and implemented in the Lithuanian GBS centres have In particular, the geographical make-up already earned international recogniof investors displays an increasingly tion within their company groups – highglobal reach, with growing investments lighting the pivotal role of Lithuanian from the US and the UK complementing talent in the global market. a steady stream of business from Lithuania’s Nordic neighbours. Sixty per cent Busting a common myth about of all new GBS centres in 2018 were robotics, senior figures in Lithuania’s opened by British and American compa- GBS industry are quick to point out nies, which means that the US companies that this ‘rise of the robots’ doesn’t pose now represent the single largest group a threat to the country’s highly qualified of investors, employing more than 30% workforce. of the GBS industry in Lithuania.

Rosita Vasilkevičiūtė, SVP, Head of AML Centres are also servicing an increasingly at Customer Service Delivery at Danske international customer base, with 42% Bank in Vilnius, told leading Lithuaof GBS facilities providing services to US nian business journal Verslo Žinios that clients and even 97% covering various by deploying robots at its site in Vilnius, European markets. the company had freed its team to focus on areas requiring higher levels of compeAnother key trend has been the diver- tence: Our staff want to carry out more sification of services. While Lithuania’s interesting and meaningful work, and we GBS sector may have its roots in finan- are able to improve our retention rate and cial services, lately its multifaceted talent develop their competencies. pool has enabled the industry to take on a wider range of functions. 2018 saw Also talking with Verslo Žinios, Šarūnas the entry of high-profile international Šuipis, VP Operations and Managing investors including an essential player Director of Western Union’s Lithuanian of the global capital markets Moody‘s, centre, emphasises the role of robotiglobal fertiliser manufacturer Yara, as well sation in his site’s increasingly global as a tech pioneer Bazaarvoice, all of whom service offering: Essentially, we are a high have entrusted their Lithuanian GBS competence centre – we automate work centres with top tier functions including processes not only at our centre, but also logistics operations management, data across the entirety of Western Union. analytics, R&D, and cyber security.

With a solid base of talent and a keen Tech represents an increasingly promi- sense for the trends that are shaping nent area of GBS services. The 2019 survey the industry globally, it is clear that found that IT is the most popular function, Lithuania’s GBS industry is focused performed by more than 5,500 special- on the future. ists and now accounting for 32% of all GBS employees in Lithuania. Nearly half of all centres surveyed perform back-end Author: or as front-end software development functions, with other tech functions such as IT service desk and mobile app development following close behind.

RISE OF ROBOTICS Nowhere is the tech-savvy culture of Lithu-­ ania’s GBS sector more apparent than in the area of robotic process automation

Laisvis Makulis, Head of Business Services Team, Invest Lithuania

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INVESTMENTS

IT ARENA 2019: THE HUMANITY OF TECHNOLOGY

While June is definitely the month of jazz in Lviv, September is undoubtedly the month of tech. Why? In September, Ukraine’s cultural capital and emerging tech hub hosts one of the biggest and certainly the most anticipated event in Eastern Europe – IT Arena 2019. Let’s find out what brings over 4,000 tech geeks to Lviv and why you can’t afford to miss the event.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

A stellar speaker lineup made up with representatives of the world’s top brands is not a rare occasion for IT Arena.

Over the past five years, the event was visited by experts from Facebook, Tesla, Google, SAP, Samsung, GitLab and other successful companies and revolutionary startups. The keynote speaker of IT Arena 2018 – Semyon Dukach spoke on how he turned from a blackjack player into an angel investor, emphasizing the power of immigrant founders. While it still remains unknown who will take the stage as the keynote speaker in 2019, IT Arena is ready to introduce you to the first batch of speakers.

productivity in any business, and tech in particular. Founder of several startups and angel investor, Hemant share his path from an engineer to a person who is helping tech employees stay motivated and productive.

Software development goes far beyond mobile and web. Viraj Tank, Mobile Team Lead at MBition Mercedes-Benz Innovation Lab is responsible for creating and delivering Flagship Mobile Application for Mercedes-Benz Car users. He spent the last 10 years growing and learning with Android and other Mobile platforms and developing multiple products in Mobile and Automotive space. Viraj TECH, PRODUCT & BUSINESS will share his experience of developing GURUS IN ONE PLACE a vehicle companion app for MercedesUkraine has the biggest number of Viber Benz Cars. users – over 24,4% of the app’s traffic comes from In 2019 Michael Shmilov, EASTERN EUROPE’S LEADING Advisor at Rakuten Viber will speak at IT STARTUP EVENT Arena. Earlier, Michael has served as Viber’s Startup Competition and a tech expo COO, and is now responsible for the oper- called Startup Alley have become an inteational running of the fast-moving busi- gral part of IT Arena. The event gives all ness. His speech will revolve around the attendees a chance to check out knowledge of product planning, design, the newest tech products and developand management of the product team ments from Ukrainian and international of a product which is used in 193 coun- startups. Last year, IT Arena startup expo tries by more than 1 billion users. amazed guests with digitized backWhat makes Google a tech leader? packs, VR headsets, bionic body parts, Innovations and infrastructure you may useful business optimization apps, etc. say, but the most valuable resource is, The startup prize fund of IT Arena totaled of course, the people. For many years to $70,000 last year, and 2019 promises Google invents and uses the best prac- to bring even better opportunities for tices of management. With the help great ideas. IT Arena 2019 call for startups of Big Data solutions, they came up closes on September, 1. with the innovative method of tracking Author: employee happiness levels to prevent professional burnouts. Hemant Bhanoo, VP of Product at Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute will share the latest methods of empowering the employees Iryna Zubenko, in the tech industry. After working Communications at Amazon and Google, he for sure knows Manager, Lviv IT Cluster how important it is to stay mindful for

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

The first batch of speakers can be found here:

More details and the latest updates can be found here:

For Outsourcing&More IT Arena offers a 10% discount on all ticket types. Use the promo code: outsourcing10. Grab your tickets here:

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INVESTMENTS

ONLY BY COMBINING FORCES CAN EMERGING EUROPE TRULY MOVE FORWARD If we do not find a comprehensive and joint answer on how to deal with this, we will struggle. We should work together in order to generate growth together and to have a balance in terms of size – said one of my panellists during a recent conference discussing the One Belt One Road initiative and emerging Europe’s future relations with China. In fact, the same could be applied to any other initiative, major international investment or even the region’s political or economic role on the global arena.

– It is important that we, the 23 countries of emerging Europe, work together to promote our potential and what we have to offer to the global economy – said Olga Grygier-Siddons in 2018, during the first Emerging Europe Leaders’ Meeting and Awards, which she attended in her role as the CEO of PwC Central and Eastern Europe. – But before we look at our own individual countries, we need to get the attention of global investors to come to our region. Then we work out the best place to locate that investment. I see a role for the Emerging Europe Alliance in drawing investor attention to the great regional opportunities. It is particularly important given the global competition for talent, as our region has something special that other developed regions don’t – a great pool of well-educated people. Many of them are based in small countries across emerging Europe, but if we can market them as emerging European talent we will all gain something– she continued.

Sir Suma Chakrabar ti, president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development agrees that many of the emerging Europe economies are too small to grow by themselves, but he also points out that even many of the more advanced economies have until now been seen as merely low-cost providers down the supply chain. – One

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of the best ways forward for them is through integration into a regional economy. What has not happened enough is integration between those eastern Europe economies. What integration and innovation do in the long term is to allow ideas, goods and services to cross-borders at a much lower cost, and foster development – he says.

– Peace is only possible through integration when economies, regions, companies and people get together, think beyond borders, innovate and cooperate, where everyone can add value to the regional and European push to be a leader in democracy and the new economy – adds Rosen Plevneliev, former president of Bulgaria and the honorary chairman of the Emerging Europe Alliance for Business Services, Innovation and Technology initiative.

The Emerging Europe Alliance was launched exactly to reach these goals, to increase the international competitiveness of 23 countries of Central and South-Eastern Europe, making it easier for the global markets to identify and recognise the strength of the region as a strategic partner, and compel its operators to conduct business with it. The Emerging Europe Alliance is a community of businesses, associations, local and national governments, NGOs and individuals.

On 4–6 September 2019, Emerging Europe, the news, intelligence and community platform the organisation which created the initiative – is organising the first Global Summit of the alliance in Lublin, Poland.

– The Global Members’ Summit is unique among all the events we have planned this year and a great opportunity to present the economic potential of Lubelskie Voivodeship. This is the first such event in Poland, gathering together in one place business services and innovation professionals from around the world interested in developing and locating investments in Central and South-Eastern Europe – says Jarosław Stawiarski, marshall of Lubelskie Voivoideship.

The Lubelskie region and its capital city of Lublin are an ideal place to host the inaugural Global Summit. It is a rapidly emerging technology and business services destination that is located on the border between Poland and Ukraine, our region’s two biggest economies. It is also a perfect representation of the entire region – emerging and with enormous potential.

The summit will be held over three days and will centre around people and talent. The first day will focus

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

on the alliance members and its three bodies: the Advisory Committee of global experts, the Steering Committee representing regional organisations, and the Council of Ministers responsible for innovation, technology and entrepreneurship across the 23 countries of emerging Europe. The latter will be led by the President Plevneliev.

The second day will feature inspirational keynote addresses, fireside chats and panel discussions related to education: re-skilling and up-skilling, talent retention and employer branding, immigration and emigration, the impact of automation, artificial intelligence and other

technologies relating to the future of work. The third day will showcase the development of technology, innovation and the business services sector in Lubelskie as well as showcasing the riches of the region. Author:

Andrew Wrobel, Founding Partner, Strategy & Content, Emerging Europe, and Leader of the Alliance for Business Services, Innovation and Technology initiative

For more information about the summit, go to www.summit. emerging-europe.com.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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INVESTMENTS

BOOSTING THE EMPLOYER BRAND THROUGH

COWORKING SPACES In the past few years, we’ve seen how employer branding became an essential point of differentiation for small and big companies all around the world. And this trend is growing faster than other significant technology trends.

The truth is that the new generations are looking for specific benefits in a company, which is not as simple as it sounds to provide.

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Being able to adapt to the changing needs that a group of employees has is hard, but continuous change and flexibility are two aspects that define a strong employer brand. And speaking of flexibility, the idea of offering flexible working schedule or remote work possibilities are not new for companies. More than half of the companies included in a global study about remote work reported using this technique as a way to improve their brand.

However, this seems to decrease in importance, as new working possibilities are gaining momentum. And we are speaking here about coworking spaces as a benefit offered to employees to boost the overall brand of a company.

Coworking spaces are basically shared workplaces. As soon as you walk into a coworking space, you will notice the different atmosphere immediately compared to a regular business office. The smell of fresh coffee and energy is everywhere in the rooms,

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

and the people’s excitement is visible.

But besides some clear benefits that companies have when using coworking spaces – affordable office space, reduce costs for maintenance and other office-related expenses – there are also other improvement companies can benefit from.

lifting their benefits packages and include coworking possibilities to amplify innovation and improve employees engagement.

Let’s see some specific improvements for companies using coworking spaces.

1. BUILDING NETWORKS HOW CAN COWORKING SPACES HELP YOUR EMPLOYER BRAND? The general feel that employees have is that they are paid to come to the office to work. But coworking spaces are the opposite. People are paying to work rather than being paid to sit at desks.

This means that this kind of areas is offering employees that secret ingredient to achieve their daily business objectives.

This approach is clearly different from the traditional worker-office relationship, and it is clearly changing the dynamic of a company. But lately, many corporations started

One core motivation for companies to use coworking spaces is the fact that it amplifies the networks. The days of innovation happening behind closed doors are long gone. Now people need to share knowledge, test ideas, and evolve rapidly. Employees are now leveraging coworking spaces to join new communities of professionals, expand their network, and bring value back to their employer. Besides, this is all happening without any costly and risky investments in modern office spaces or even new markets, which offer the company the perfect solution to expand while also keep the financial aspect in balance.

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INVESTMENTS

2. SUPPORTING INNOVATION The previous workspace was seen as a combination of a chair, a desk, and cubicle walls, to ensure that the employee can focus and do their job.

Now, things have changed, and people are looking for more collaboration and teamwork to be innovative and deliver value. This shift is an effect of a broader change in how we work, replacing individualism with team goals, and individual objectives with broader ones.

The problem here is that the way we are working is changing, and so do our expectations regarding the employer and the workspace. As these expectations grow, the same becomes our disappointment if they are not met.

To avoid reaching this point, businesses are starting to enlarge their portfolio of working possibilities and offer a suitable coworking environment that meets all the requirements and boosts engagement.

people says a lot about how they treat their customers. So investing in such practices will bring long term benefits.

However, adapting to the new trends, such as the coworking spaces one, will allow businesses to maintain their reputation outside and inside the company.

What’s the result of that? Engaged people, innovative ideas, and continuous growth.

3. EMPLOYEES ENGAGEMENT

What’s left for your company to do?

Start an employer branding strategy, But besides engaging the current work- use the latest trends, and leverage force, another challenge for companies the results. is attracting new talents. Now many organizations are leveraging the workAuthor: spaces as a tool to impress new staff and attract them. And when a lovely coworking space is used for interviews, the chances to improve the employer brand are even more prominent.

Any business wants engaged and motivated employees that feel proud about working in that company and share the happiness around. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for every business.

Strong employer brands will always stay above their competition, and that’s because the way they treat their

Many pieces of research have shown that both individuals and teams can benefit from the environment change, which often unlocks a new way of seeing and thinking, not to mention the insightful discussions with other co-workers in the space.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Loredana Niculae, CEO NNC Services Romania

INVESTMENTS

ZODIAK

A PLACE WHERE THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF WARSAW IS VIVIDLY DISCUSSED

Launched in December 2018, the ZODIAK Warsaw Pavilion of Architecture has become a unique and modern meeting venue on Warsaw’s map dedicated to business people, investors, scientific circles and entities promoting entrepreneurship, innovativeness and architecture.

The Pavilion is made up of a building which once housed the “Zodiak” coffee shop, and a square. The design was developed through an orchestrated effort of the City of Warsaw and the Warsaw Branch of the Association of Polish Architects. The overarching idea was to provide Varsovians with a place with outstanding architectural value, open for debates on architecture and the economic potential of Warsaw.

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ZODIAK constitutes a platform for discussions on Warsaw’s architecture, plans, studies, future and economic potential. It is a forum where public debates are held, a laboratory where ideas for a modern city are conceived, and a place where the challenges faced by 21th-century metropolises are researched and reflected on – said Rafał Trzaskowski, Mayor of Warsaw.

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EVENTS TO BE HELD AT ZODIAK The first floor of the ZODIAK Pavilion features various events engaging the communities dedicated to the development of Warsaw, constituting a showcase of the rapidly developing metropolitan area of the capital which invests in projects related to urban economic innovations. This place, managed by the Economic Development Department of the City of Warsaw, has been established to foster cooperation between young, creative and aspiring people on the one hand, and representatives of the Warsaw scientific, economic and administrative circles on the other.

Events staged at ZODIAK, including “Startup Art” and “Startup Jump,” have enabled the recognition of the needs of young entrepreneurs, both current and future, regarding mutual cooperation and the possible ways of expanding Warsaw’s potential in various fields. Through its diversified measures, the City is looking to invest in the development of start-ups, whose ideas are expected to contribute to building “Smart Warsaw.” ZODIAK is also where international student initiatives are organised, including the Warsaw Negotiation Round, i.e. an international negotiation tournament held by SGH Warsaw School of Economics.

The potential of the ZODIAK Pavilion is demonstrated by a wide array of events.

This is where discussions are held on the city development plans, Warsaw studies, future and economic potential, as well as challenges to be faced, along with debates on the instruments that could facilitate solving problems reported by residents and cooperation between various business groups, contributing to a better quality of life in Warsaw.

The topics discussed include access to public nurseries and children clubs, housing, education and investments.

In addition, this space is perfect for presenting new Warsaw investments, as well as research into and reflections on challenges faced by local government bodies in 21st-century metropolises. The Pavilion housed the EURO­ CITIES seminar, which attracted representatives of the leading European cities to the building situated next to the Stefan Wiechecki Passage.

The meeting contributed to strengthening cooperation between cities in the field of exchanging experience and implementing solutions aimed at both improving the quality of life of urban populations and promoting sustainable development.

The first floor of the ZODIAK Pavilion features various events engaging the communities dedicated to the development of Warsaw.

Photo: Artur Wosz.

The modern-looking glazed interiors of the Pavilion are where meetings dedicated to Warsaw business circles take place. As part of the “Grow with Warsaw” workshops, a series of meetings

addressed to the real estate market sector was organised. Investors were familia­ rised with Warsaw’s spatial policy and proposals of systemic solutions that are likely to shape the future development of the city.

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Photo: Artur Wosz.

ZODIAK is also a venue for displaying the modern solutions implemented by the city to improve the living standard in Warsaw, including innovative antismog pavements, as solving the smog problem is currently among the key priorities for Warsaw’s authorities.

the Association of Polish Architects via the ZODIAK Foundation.

Since its opening, the Pavilion has housed nearly 200 events of various types, attracting almost 10,000 guests.

WHAT IT ONCE WAS The Pavilion features a series of #ZODIAK_inspiruje lectures held by the City of Warsaw to present the many aspects of shaping a modern city in the spirit of sustainable development.

The lectures are attended by numerous stakeholders of the Warsaw economic ecosystem, creating a bridge between designers, developers, architects, investors, start-ups and business support institutions. Anyone interested in the idea of modern city development, as well as in establishing relations and exchanging knowledge and experience, is invited to attend the meetings.

Zodiak is an example of Warsaw’s post-war modernist architecture. Since 1968, when it was commissioned, it has formed part of the East Side of Marszałkowska Street, i.e. a pedestrian shopping arcade situated on the back of Domy Towarowe Centrum department stores. The architectural design of the East Side was based on three directions, reflecting the urban planning concept prevailing among western metropolises. The vertical structure of the single-storeyed residential section of the building placed emphasis on its location, whereas the two-storeyed pavilion, initially housing a fast-food outlet, was characterised with a light glazed ground Moreover, ZODIAK is where numerous floor contrasting with a robust-looking debates, exhibitions and events first floor. A light structure of the summer devoted to architecture are organised coffee shop, with a terrace, a pergola and by the Architecture and Spatial Planning openwork stairs, added to the architectural Department of the City of Warsaw and delicacy of the building complex.

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INVESTMENTS

The “Cosmos” mosaic decorating the staircase is another characteristic element of the Pavilion.

WHAT IT IS TODAY The current form of the building provides a combination of the most valuable elements of the original design, and certain modifications added to ensure functional convenience.

The idea was to attain the highest architectural and functional value of the ultimate complex. Attention was paid to details and to retaining the chara­ cter of the building. To this end, various solutions which are rarely used in today’s construction were employed, including a suspended staircase with prefabricated lastrico steps supported on a beam and a railing mounted directly on them.

The initially open first-floor terrace was walled off, and the beams of the original pergola can still be seen inside it. White curtains were used to give the interior a softer look. Due to the underfloor arrangement of building’s installations, the concrete ceilings could be left uncovered. This made it possible to create lastrico flooring, cast and cut in-situ.

of the Zodiak bar. The task of its recreation was entrusted to Jacek Hanak, who had previously worked on the original structure.

The “Cosmos” mosaic decorating the staircase, designed by Magdalena Łapińska-Rozenbaum, is another characteristic element of the Pavilion. Its arrangement is consistent with the mosaic by Maria Leszczyńska which originally covered the wall of the Pavilion terrace. The recovered cullet fragments from the original mosaic were supplemented with materials obtained in the same manner – from glassworks waste. This marks a clear reference to the techniques and materials used by 1950s and 1960s artists, while also promoting the idea of recycling.

ZODIAK provides a venue where various events and meetings dedicated to the economic development of Warsaw can be held in cooperation with the City of Warsaw. To arrange an event, send an email to the Economic DevelopThe Pavilion courtyard borders are ment Department: Sekretariat.BRG@ marked by cubic-shaped structures with um.warszawa.pl. evergreen shrubs on the south side, and by a water curtain on the north side. Find out more about the ZODIAK Pavilion The courtyard, connected to the building at www.pawilonzodiak.pl. with operable glazed walls, is intended for displays and outdoor events.

More information:

ZODIAK bears two features reflecting the original elements of the Pavilion.

The first is the Zodiak neon light with an exceptionally looking star crowning the building. It was originally designed by professor Jan Bogusławski and formed part of the overall arrangement

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Economic Development Department Smolna 4 Street, 00-375 Warsaw Phone: +48 22 443 07 56

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INVESTMENTS

IN ŁÓDŹ THE YOUTH CAN DO MORE We have already written about the ‘Youth in Łódź’ programme [Młodzi w Łodzi] in Outsourcing&More some time ago. This programme is unique on a national scale, is constantly being developed and is definitely worth highlighting again.

The implementation of the programme of the ‘Youth in Łódź’ is carried out by the Office for Economic Development and International Cooperation of the City of Łódź Office, in cooperation with universities and leading employers in Łódź.

Thanks to such cooperation between academic, local governmental units and business circles, the initiative of the ‘Youth in Łódź’ programme comprehensively improves the quality of human resources,

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on the Internet. This is also the case in the internships and apprenticeship portal, which is available on the link www.praktyki.lodz.pl. Employers who are partners of the ‘Youth in Łódź’ programme can post free advertisements A portal of apprenticeships and about internships and apprenticeships internships was established as part on the site. This is not the only function of the programme’s implementation. related to the development of potenIn the era of digitalisation, all activities tial job candidates. Another option is carried out in business are reflected to participate in the paid internships encourages young people to plan their future in Łódź, supports the development of students’ professional careers and provides local entrepreneurs and potential investors with highly qualified staff.

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programme, which is a great way to recruit the perfect intern with minimal involvement on the part of the company.

This programme is conducted under the slogan ‘Practice in Łódź!’. In this area, entrepreneurs can count on the support of the city as the promotion of the internship programme, recruitment and the initial selection of applications are carried out by the staff engaged in the implementation of the ‘Youth in Łódź’ programme. The employer receives the group of applicants already shortlisted.

The ‘Youth in Łódź’ programme is an active platform for relations of employers with young employees – both potential employees as well as those who have already taken their first steps on the professional path of personal development.

An interesting initiative is the competition ‘I have an idea for a start-up’, which already was held in two editions, organised earlier as ‘I have an idea for a business’. It is an initiative focused on innovative projects in the field of science and technology but also those that highlight creativity and art at an early Acquiring human resources, partici­ stage of its development. The main idea pation in internships and appren- of the competition is to build bridges ticeships is just the beginning between young business and potential of support that young employees contractors and investors. In addition receive as part of the ‘Youth in Łódź’ to sharing knowledge and the possiprogramme. Another well-functioning bility of obtaining capital for business area is the scholarship programme. development, the competition provides The programme includes not only an excellent opportunity for networking scholarships funded by the Mayor between young businesses and estabof Łódź and local employers, but also lished entrepreneurs. the financing of student dorms and foreign language courses. This range An interesting option available of support is aimed at the crème de in the ‘Youth in Łódź’ programme, is la crème – a group of the most active the initiative carried out under the motto students selected by the employer. Meet Łódź Employers! 1,837 students Funding a scholarship for students have already benefitted from it and this in their final years of study in selected number is constantly growing. Only faculties, employers have the oppor- in the second quarter of 2019, compatunity to present their enterprises nies such as DELL, ABB, Nordea, Whirto the best who are seeking a scholar- pool and Mabion opened their doors ship of the ‘Youth in Łódź’ programme. to students. To pay such a visit, students The rules and conditions for granting must register via the www.mlodziwscholarships, financing dormitories and lodzi.pl portal. Each visit is intended for courses are specified in the regulations groups of a dozen or so people and is set by individual employers in agree- organised in such a way that the students ment with the programme organ- become acquainted with the operations iser. This means that the employer of the company they visit. This type can specify the exact conditions that of process allows for a thorough undermust be met by the future scholar- standing of the company’s work environship holder in terms of knowledge, ment and thus builds students’ awareness skills and experience. As in the case of the potential new job. of the internship, the ‘Youth in Łódź’ More information: promotes the scholarship programme Business Development and the pre-selection of the applicants. and International The scholarship programme has already Relations Bureau been granted the title of ‘Good ScholarPiotrkowska 104a Street, 90-926 Lodz ship’, which is awarded to local governPhone: +48 42 638 59 39 mental units who organise the best Fax: +48 42 638 59 40 scholarship programmes in Poland. e-mail: boi@uml.lodz.pl

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

2008 Year when the programme was established

280+ Total number of companies that are involved in various initiatives of this programme

1,360

Total number of students who have completed apprenticeships and internships

627 Number of scholarship holders

8,360

Number of people trained

250 Number of new companies set up as a result of the competition

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INVESTMENTS

BUSINESS HAS A VOICE IN KIELCE On the support of entrepreneurship in the capital of the Świętokrzyskie Province.

The activity of organisations and institutions associating entrepreneurs in Kielce, as well as efforts undertaken by the city authorities to increase the attractiveness of the city in the sectors with the greatest potential – office and storage, are noticed and appreciated by local businesses.

Periodic meetings with entrepreneurs of the office, construction and development market, organised by the Mayor of Kielce, Bogdan Wenta as part of the Real Estate Forum, Economic Assembly and Business Council are the areas of discussion and building common solutions.

Associations of the Confederation Lewia­tan – the largest employers’ organisation representing the private sector in Poland.

The aim and main task of the Association is to represent economic and social interests of entrepreneurs, influence on the shape of legislation concerning the interests of employers, as well SIPH provides services for legalisation as on social and economic policy impleof commercial documents, consultancy mented also by the city. Lewiatan gathers and training. In 2016, it it received accred- more than 70 members employing almost itation of the Ministry of Development 5,000 people. for providing pro-innovative consultancy services for companies from the SME Association joined the Lewiatan Confe­ sector. The Court of Arbitration operates deration in 2002 and since then it has MISSION: SUPPORTING at SIPH since January 1st 2008. It is the only been continuing a steady and syste­matic THE DEVELOPMENT institution in our region that amicably increase of importance in the region OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP resolves economic disputes. Currently, as an organisation representing the enviThe Staropolska Chamber of Industry SIPH is implementing the project ronment of the Świętokrzyskie private and Commerce (PL. SIPH) has been called “Establishment and functioning business. It implements projects financed operating in Kielce since 1990, partici- of the Arbitration and Mediation Centre from the European funds, mainly pating in numerous advisory bodies and in the Świętokrzyskie Province”. the Human Capital Operational Program, and thanks to the activities and initiatives The Chamber promotes the best inno- taken, Świętokrzyski Lewiatan supports vative projects in the Świętokrzyskie associated enterprises, offering substanProvince with the annual prize called tive support, advisory services including NOVATOR. It also grants socially respon- the development of marketing strategies, sible companies with the “Staropolski strategies for entering foreign markets, Certificate – Reliable Entrepreneur”; it is analyses and reports . the leader of the Świętokrzysko-Podkarpacki Construction Cluster INNOWATOR. Association meets the expectations The Staropolski Capital Fund set up of entrepreneurs and their need for by the Chamber aims to incubate inno- dialogue, discussion and cooperation. vative companies. Since 2015, SIPH has Over the last few years, and this trend been coordinating the activities of two has been maintained, dozens of various consortiums that stimulate the devel- substantive events, of which the vast opment of key regional specialisations: majority are intended exclusively for resource-efficient construction and the business environment (e.g. “On busithe metal-casting industry. ness over coffee”, Świętokrzyska Economy Debate, consultative meetings, “Round INTERNATIONAL CONTACTS tables”, etc.).

The Enterprise Europe Network at the Staropolska Chamber of Commerce Świętokrzyski Lewiatan seeks substantive and Industry disseminates knowledge representation of the business environin the field of the European Commis- ment of the Świętokrzyskie Province – all sion’s policies and has access to the Inter- aspects of the functioning of enterprises national Database of the Cooperation in the region and the country are moniOffers, which contains over 3,000 offers tored, as well as legislative changes that from companies from all over Europe. are being implemented.

It also organises trade missions, international brokerage meetings and is HUB OF INNOVATION connecting with partners in case of indi- – MODERN BUSINESS A model example of a fruitful coopervidual request. ation between the city and business is A BRIDGE CONNECTING the Kielce Technology Park (KPT) – a local TWO WORLDS innovation hub. This place creates very Świętokrzyski Association of Private favourable conditions for the develEmployers Lewiatan is a member opment of entrepreneurs and their and one of the most active Regional companies. By investing in transport,

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

representing the voice of entrepreneurs.

As the only organisation of this type in Poland, it acts as a Regional Financing Institution and, in cooperation with the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development, it participates in the implementation of the EU support programs.

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INVESTMENTS

The main driving force behind the development processes of cities are primarily entrepreneurs.

It is thanks to their hard work and commitment that new jobs are created, further investments are possible, the city’s prestige and its investment attractiveness grow.

Kielce is strong with its traditional industries.

Metallurgy, construction sector and the machine industry play a major role here. We also enjoy the presence of such companies as VIVE Group, which has been supporting our handball players for many years and is a responsible employer and a socially engaged company at the same time.

Invex Remedies – a manufacturer of innovative pharmaceuticals connected with Kielce for years and or domestic Kolporter Group are further examples of success in business made in Kielce.

We are opening up to the modern business services, an outsourcing sector in which we see a great potential for the development of the city.

For all entities representing sectors crucial for Kielce, such as the business services sector, it is not only the economic climate, the openness of the authorities to their needs, but also the presence of institutions that effectively represent the interests of a large part of our community entrepreneurs and employees.

I appreciate the activity of business support institutions in Kielce and how they develop the business ecosystem in My City.

Mayor of Kielce, Bogdan Wenta

office and co-working infrastructure, modern conference spaces and technological facilities of the Park, the City of Kielce shares excellent conditions for the development of innovative enterprises investing in areas with the greatest potential – R&D, IT, production and recently – logistics. KPTs’ tenants can also use professional advice and assistance in establishing contacts.

Thanks to ŚCITTs’ participation in national and international cooperation networks, such as the National Services System, the National Innovation Network, a network of Regional and Proffessional Contact Points of EU Research Programs or the Enterprise Europe Network, a large part of business services can be provided free of charge. The most important services that Centre provides for business are research and consultancy services, In addition to the office and co-working developing and implementing strategies, spaces that already are available, KPT business models and market analyses. is planning to build a Technology Incubator, the space of which will be dedi- WZGÓRZE ZAMKOWE IN KIELCE cated to companies with the greatest IS A BUSINESS TOO potential. California INC is to be a meeting The Institute of Design, located place for science and business. Offering in one of the most charming places over 14,000 sq m of co-working and in Kielce – on the Castle Hill, in the vicinity office space, with its’ laboratory facilities of the Bishops’ Palace, City Park, Market and a conference zone is a response to Square and the main promenade, the growing office market needs in Kielce, especially supports the creative and IT mainly in the context of attracting inves- industries. Offering spaces favourable tors from branches other than typical for co-working, interestingly arranged for KPT (which is technology), including conference areas, organising and hosting the modern business services sector. business events, such as Sector 3.0 meetings – inspiring for fans of modern techTECHNOLOGY TRANSFER nologies and technical innovations.

The Świętokrzyskie Centre for Innova- The Institute attracts innovative ideas tion and Technology Transfer (pl. ŚCITT) and creative minds that are behind them. is another location of entrepreneurship support, dynamically working for Inside a unique architecture of the ninethe construction, development and teenth-century prison there are the excepsupport of the business ecosystem, tional interiors. Institute organises exhioffering a variety of information, advi- bitions that present Polish and global sory, training and expert services. design. This creative industry has a special place here. The goal of the Institute of Design’s activity is to promote the importance of design in production, lifestyle and marketing. Not only the project process, but also the implementation as well as the bridge between designers and business are supported. More information:

Investor Assistance Centre Kielce City Hall: Strycharska 6 Street, 25-659 Kielce Phone: +48 41 36 76 571, 41 36 76 557 e-mail: coi@um.kielce.pl www.invest.kielce.pl/en www.mapa.invest.kielce.pl/en

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Working machines at Elpes. Photo: Elpes.

INVESTMENTS

PRINTING & PACKAGING INDUSTRY IN LUBLIN

ON THE RISE

Last month we celebrated the grand opening of Elpes’s modern manufacturing plant in Lublin, which specializes in the production of laminate tubes mainly for the cosmetics industry.

Thus, the new investor joined an ever-growing group of companies from printing and packaging industry which chose Lublin as a place of the operations. As of today, there are 7 companies, out of which 4 have been located in the Lublin Sub-Zone of the Special Economic Zone EuroPark Mielec in the last 11 years. The level of investment expenditures only in SEZ amounted to over PLN 667 million and the employment reached 460 of newly created jobs.

When looking at this notably growing trend, it can be said that the printing and packaging industry in Lublin is beginning to play a significant role in the econo­­mic development of our city.

It would be difficult to indicate another industry sector that would depend so much on the economic situation of other sectors and vice versa, packaging is indispensible for cosmetics, pharmaceutical, clothing and other industries.

The printing and packaging business in Lublin boasts state-of-the-art means of production and the latest technology, and so is Intrograf – Lublin S.A. company, one of the most modern production facilities of pharmaceutical leaflets and cartons for the pharmaceutical industry in Europe.

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In 2018, the company invested PLN 25 million in new machines to increase the plant’s output. Annually, over half a billion cartons and half a billion pharmaceutical leaflets leave the Lublin’s site. Intrograf’s products reach clients both in Poland and abroad (mainly in Germany, Ireland, Sweden and the Czech Republic), while its factory has been located in the economic sub-zone in the Felin district since 2014 employing over 220 people.

El-Press operates in the business related to print finishing including lamination and UV coating. In 2011, the company moved to a modern production facility located in the Lublin sub-zone, one of the best equipped sites dedicated to the production of print finishing in Poland. El-Press delivers cardboard gift boxes as well as promotional and advertising prints.

Another company specialized in providing solutions to the food sector is EMBE-Press, which applies flexo printing technologies Another company representing printing to produce labels and packaging materials, & packaging industry in Lublin is Essentra. including adhesive foils, shrink sleeves, The company provides innovative primary aluminum lids, PET, metalized and transand secondary packaging and on-pack parent and many other. When you open security solutions across a range of indus- a yoghurt or a box of chocolates, there tries. It is a global company delivering is a big chance you hold in your hands packaging solutions i.a. to beauty, health- a printed packaging product manufactu­ care, consumer goods and tobacco indus- ­red in the company’s Lublin facility. tries. The production plant of Essentra Packaging Sp. z o.o. in Lublin primarily A very narrow, but technologically caters for the needs of beauty & personal advanced and highly precise is the speciali­ zation of the production plant Ball Packcare industry. aging Europe Lublin Sp. z o.o., a manufacOne of the key industries in Lublin is turer of ends for beverage cans. The producthe food sector which cannot exist tion plant was established in 2008 and, without packaging. For example, what’s interesting, it was the first investSTOCK Polska, a leading spirits manu- ment in the economic sub-zone in Lublin. facturer from Lublin is a customer However, the production started a little of the Publishing House El-Press Sp. j. bit later, in 2015. The facility started with The company delivers packaging prod- 60 people at that time and over the last ucts made of materials approved for few years the employment have more food contact. From its beginning in 1994, than tripled.

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INVESTMENTS

Another and perhaps the biggest challenge for this industry is the education system. According to the report, the printing companies were very critical about the level of education of the printing sector’s employees. 90% of the surveyed enterprises complained that the industry was struggling with a shortage of properly educated specialists. Furthermore, only 6% of the respondents believed that the vocational education system was able to supply the sector with qualified professionals, and admitted that the best employees were either to be found on the labour market, or trained internally.

Nevertheless, optimism dominates among the employers, and experts predict a further, though slightly less dynamic growth for over the next two years.

Intrograf. Photo: Cezary Kowalczuk.

There are also local SMEs operating in the printing & packaging industry on the Lublin market, such as Tekmar, a manufacturer of cardboard and cardboard packaging (boxes and cartons, also printed) for the food, cosmetics and chemical industries. With financial support from EU funds, the company has invested over PLN 900,000 in a modern machine park for the implementation of innovative solutions and improving its competitiveness.

The trend of rapid development of the printing and packaging industry in Lublin reflec ts the situation of the industry in Poland. – Polish printing industry is a power. We create the largest market in Europe. Export is one of the key drivers (…) a Polish product has a very good reputation on the European market – said Jerzy Kwieciński, Minister of Investment and Economic Development in the seventh edition of the Report Printing Industry and Printed Packaging Market in Poland (2018) carried out by the Polish Guild of Gutenberg Knights in cooperation with KMPG in Poland and the Faculty of Journalism, Information and Book Studies of the University of Warsaw.

The figures presented in the report clearly indicate, where this optimism comes from. Poland remains the largest market in Central and Eastern Europe in terms of revenue and employment numbers, accounting for 36% of the sector revenues in the region which

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The predicted value of production sold for 2018 is PLN 16.1 billion, which would correspond to a 4.4% growth y/y.

It is notable that export plays an important role in maintaining the growth trend in the Polish printing industry.

amounted to EUR 9.1 billion according to Eurostat. The volume of production sold of the printing industry is growing.

The predicted value of production sold for 2018 is PLN 16.1 billion, which would correspond to a 4.4% growth y/y. It is notable that export plays an important role in maintaining the growth trend in the Polish printing industry.

The high quality of products and services together with relatively low labour costs enable Polish printing businesses to successfully compete on the international market. This is i.a. due to EU funds that have supported companies’ investments over the years. Currently, the situation is changing. In the new EU perspective the budget will be reduced, which means that the level of investment in machinery and technology may drop.

Undoubtedly, the growing number of enterprises from the printing & packaging industry in Lublin is a good sign for the city’s economy. However, there is still room for new investments in the city in this thriving sector chara­ cterized by the substantial potential for innovation.

At the stage when the Lublin Development Strategy for the years 2013–2020 was being prepared, the printing & packaging industry wasn’t considered as one of the key or complementary specializations of the city like the food or pharmaceutical industry. However, taking the rapid development of the sector and the recent reinvestments of EMBE-Press or Intrograf into consideration, it can be concluded that the printing & packaging sector in Lublin is coming to the fore and can be an important driver of city’s prosperity in the future.

More information:

Łukasz Goś Director of Investor Relations Office Lublin City Hall Phone: +48 81 466 25 42 e-mail: lukasz.gos@lublin.eu

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INVESTMENTS

WHERE WORK AND LIFE ARE IN A HEALTHY BALANCE ABOUT WORK-LIFE BALANCE IN BYDGOSZCZ

Mill Island. Photo: Robert Sawicki

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Bydgoszcz is a combination of a dynamically developing economy with space for family life and realisation of personal passions, natural treasures combined with an industrial canvas that has been woven over the centuries. It is an already so much changed, but still changing City on the Brda River, where balance is of great value.

A CITY ATTRACTIVE TO INVESTORS – IT IS ALSO A MAGNET FOR EMPLOYEES

as their competences and educational opportunities. More than half of the total number of students in the voivodeship A team of programmers from Bydgo- study at universities located in Bydgoszcz, szcz creates a modern warning system including many students from countries used by the American authorities to send around the world. Secondary schools and text arrest warrants. A team from Bydgo- technical high schools are among the best szcz is a part of the IT support provided in the country. to the Olympic Games. Specialist military IT solutions, developed in Bydgoszcz, find The market of modern business services, application in the use of the next-gene­ dynamically developing in Bydgoszcz, ration Patriot missile defense system. as well as a strong production, logistics Passionates from the mobile gaming and warehouse sector, result in the creastudio in Bydgoszcz launch a product that tion of attractive workplaces. Thanks delivers entertainment on the highest to this, the City is also a magnet for level to millions of users around the world employees who can develop their career and quickly reaches the top of game ran-­ in global projects and modern techkings. These and many other projects nologies, while maintaining a healthy prove that the inhabitants of Bydgoszcz balance, realising their life passions are passionate professionals, pursuing and aspirations. various projects on a global scale.

They are also business leaders whose open minds and creative approach Share of parks, green areas and green allow them to dynamically develop estate areas in the total area.

Source: Local Data Bank of the Central Statistical the local economy.

Office 2017

More and more investors, both new and those already present in the City, indicate Bydgoszcz as the optimal location for the development of their businesses. The advantages of the City that make up for its investment attractiveness are the convenient location along with the international airport, and a ready offer of investment areas and modern office spaces. On the other hand, it is a high potential of human resources perceived by investors both through a quantitative point of view (Bydgoszcz and the nearest area within a radius of 50 km is inhabited by approx. one million people), as well

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INVESTMENTS

Bydgoszcz is a good place to live and... work in IT Last years have been a time of intense growth of the IT sector in Bydgoszcz. New players such as Cybercom, Cognifide, Meelogic, Sii or deepsense.ai have joined the companies that have been present on the local market for a long time: Atos, Nokia, Mobica, Asseco, Huuuge Games, BSB, or Vivid Games. Smaller local businesses follow the larger brands, e.g.

Idea07, Madmind, RevDeBug and many more.

Such a large number of growing companies brings healthy competition on the market and gives the feeling that the first IT job in Bydgoszcz will not have to be the last one, because today the City offers interesting prospects for professional development, not only at the beginning of the career path. Recently, the offer of Bydgoszcz IT communities has grown, and last year the first cycle of strictly technical conferences “bITconf” was launched in the City. After the success of the first edition, next one is planned already for September.

Why is it worth choosing Bydgoszcz as a place to live in? In my opinion, Bydgoszcz combines the advantages of a big city, such as infrastructure, access to education and good work, with the calmness and healthy distance characteristic of smaller towns.

Being the eighth largest city in Poland, Bydgoszcz remains much cheaper than major Polish centres. This is shown primarily by the prices of apartments – on average, per square meter we will pay much less than in larger cities. Similarly, there are disproportions in rental prices. Average earnings, although slightly lower than in larger centres, go hand in hand with lower prices of food and services. Therefore, moving to Bydgoszcz from a larger city, while maintaining previous level of earnings (which, for example, in IT should not be a problem), can be a good idea for improving the quality of life.

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have the opportunity to recruit the right candidates. Talented programmers from the region and more distanced areas are attracted by the R&D centre in Bydgoszcz, which owes its strong position at Nokia Software to the experienced team and their achievements.

Attractive salary or employee benefits are of course an important matter. In Bydgoszcz, however, we pay attention to more aspects, especially in the area of work-life balance. We do not just care for a good working atmosphere. We also cultivate a culture of knowledge sharing, e.g. by organising events such as “IT Women” – conferences that encourage young women to become interested in science and careers in the IT industry. We support the initiatives of employees, and encourage charitable activities by offering additional days off for volunteering.

Henryk Hruszka Head of Nokia Bydgoszcz Technology Center

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Bydgoszcz is full of parks and squares, surrounded by forests and lakes, and the Brda river which crosses the City is used by triathlonists, rowers, or just ordinary inhabitants willing to take a moment of relaxation on the banks of the clean river. In Bydgoszcz, time passes slower than in larger cities, drivers horn less, and buses get you from A to B more smoothly. The City is not a frequent destination for tourists and it is difficult to come across organised groups visiting the Old Town or foreign guests doing pub crawls. It is much easier to find a musician with a characteristic case going to the opera, philharmonic hall, or one of the buildings of the Academy of Music.

The convenient transport connections of the City is also worth noting. Bydgoszcz airport, in addition to cheap flights to the British Isles and Ukraine, offers a gate to the world in the form of daily connections with Frankfurt, from which you can fly everywhere. It takes 10-15 minutes to get from the city centre to the airport and just a few minutes to find yourself taking a seat at one of the three gates after entering the main doors! It’s really convenient. Patryk Miziuła Communication within the City is also good. Data Scientist, Lead Instructor at In the last rankings of driver-friendly cities, deepsense.ai

The IT industry in Bydgoszcz offers a lot of interesting, developing and international projects. Due to the presence of such technology giants as Nokia, one can make an international career in IT, developing and implementing modern products for the needs of the telecommunications market for clients from around the world.

We strongly focus on young talents and thanks to the large university centres in Bydgoszcz and the surrounding area we

Offer prices for apartments (April 2019).

Source: https://www.expander.pl/raportexpandera-i-rentier-io-ceny-mieszkanmaj-2019/

Bydgoszcz was positioned high among big cities. There is also a very popular city bike, and electric scooters and scooters have recently appeared. The bus and tram fleet are now mostly new low-floor vehicles. The new system of buying tickets in public transport vehicles works perfectly well – all you have to do is press the ticket type on the touch screen and apply the payment card.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

WORK-LIFE BALANCE IN BYDGOSZCZ Bydgoszcz is the greenest city in Poland.

Hundreds of residents and tourists are actively using numerous green areas and forest complexes, as well as from the biggest “Myślęcinek” city park in Poland. Certainly, however, the heart of the City is its unique urban treasure – the Mill Island. It is a green enclave, located just a few meters from the Old Market Square.

It remains in the centre of attention of inhabitants and guests as a natural and cultural area. This unique location is surrounded by the waters of Brda River and its branch Młynówka with a picturesque view created by tenement houses of the so-called Bydgoszcz Venice and an impressive view of three stone circles forming the Opera Nova.

Water, footbridges, old mills (nowadays museums), beautiful tenement houses, well-maintained greenery – all this together with a large number of inhabitants and tourists as well as outdoor events organised here creates today’s unique atmosphere of the Bydgoszcz river island.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

It is from the water that the inhabitants of Bydgoszcz have an infinite supply of positive energy. It is on the Brda River that numerous cultural, sports and entertainment events are organised in the City, gathering residents and guests from all over the world.

Every year, the Bydgoszcz Water Festival “Set your heading on Bydgoszcz 53˚N, 18˚E” takes place here. It is a unique undertaking combining the world of sailors, artists and travelers. In the National Swimming Competition on the Brda River “Bydgoszcz Water”, hundreds of swimmers from all over Poland compete every year against the current of one of the cleanest rivers in the country. Bydgoszcz is also an arena of struggles of thousands of triathlonists from all over Europe, during the annual Enea Bydgoszcz Triathlon organised here for several years. In turn, for lovers of culture Bydgoszcz offers such attractive events as the Bydgoszcz Opera Festival or the “River of Music” – the first and the only series of summer concerts on the water in Poland with the participation of international artists.

The buzzing centre of Bydgoszcz, however, is not only the main streets, pedestrian areas and squares. It is also side streets and alleys, offering many unusual and unique places, which are increasingly gaining recognition, prizes in industry rankings and competitions.

These are places where alternative cafes, small pubs with local breweries, restaurants serving delicacies from various corners of the world, Art Nouveau architecture, museums related to the industrial history of the City, and even a unique Frymark can be found. Everyone in Bydgoszcz has a chance to find something for themselves – and when choosing a place to work, such aspects remain almost as important as the conditions of employment or the opportunities for further career development. More information:

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

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INVESTMENTS WINNER OF 2019

OUTSOURCING STARS

DISCOVER POZNAŃ CULTURALLY Modern cities invest in a culture that creates the identity of their community. In Poznań, cultural initiatives are widespread, and the City’s goal is to make them available for every inhabitant. It is worth noticing that these activities are supported by domestic and foreign investors.

For many years, Poznań has been known for skilful combining of the business world and art. The initiator of the activi­ ties in this direction was Grażyna Kulczyk, who arranged the space for modern art at Stary Browar. VOX, adapted the passageway between the Bałtyk office building and the Shera­ ­ton hotel into an installation of Alicja Biała, which is aimed at raising awareness of the negative role of human in the natural environment Vastint, the owner of Stara Rzeźnia, changed it... into the scene of Teatr Polski [the Polish Theatre] and is also currently engaged in the art community of Poznań.

we would enjoy an intellectual feast.

The area of Stara Rzeźnia, which is almost 5.5 hectares, is located in the northern part of the centre of Poznań within Garbary, Grochowe Łąki and Północna streets. The developer wants to create a residential, office and service complex in this area, which will be complemented by a modern, publicly accessible space.

The area of future development is about 70,000 sq m. Vastint emphasizes that during revitalization this area will preserve its post-industrial character.

With regard to the investor’s broad plans, the premiere of “Hamlet” directed

by Maja Kleczewska was held at Culture and its availability is extremely the beginning of June at Stara Rzeźnia. important for the current authori- The Polish-Ukrainian “Hamlet” is ties of the City of Poznań. Therefore, the biggest event of this season at Teatr numerous activities are conducted Polski in Poznań. The framework of in order to let cultural events take place the art allows the audience to move in various parts of the city. #NaFalach freely around Stara Rzeźnia. Viewers summer festival may be an example. have wireless headphones at their Concerts are planned at the Malta and disposal to change the sound channel.

Strzeszyńskie lakes. In the very centre Thanks to this, everyone can experience of the City, in the courtyard of the City “Hamlet” in an individual way. The atmo­ Hall, theatrical performances take place sphere of the spectacle is created as part of the #NaWolnym project. primarily with the incredible architecture of the main hall, which in the scenery STARA RZEŹNIA [OLD of Zbigniew Libera has turned into SLAUGHTERHOUSE] an oriental, mysterious castle.

When we found out last that Vastint invested in the historical area of 100-year- MALTA FESTIVAL POZNAŃ -old Stara Rzeźnia, we did not ex­­pect that In the summer calendar of Poznań before the beginning of revitalization, cultural events, Malta Festival Poznań 78

has a permanent place. A festival that enjoys recognition throughout Poland and beyond. This year it takes place under the direction of Nástio Mosquito – an interdisciplinary artist, curator of the international Idiom “Armia jednostki / Army of the Individual”. This year’s Malta Festival edition includes 750 artists from 15 countries around the world and 300 events in 50 places in Poznań. During the time of the festival, Plac Wolności transforms into a temporary cultural centre open to the public, operating from morning to night during the festival. It will happen again this year. In the centre of Poznań, there will be a stage, a festival club, a tent with activities for children, space for food trucks and large pillows and hammocks, which create a place for rest and meeting new people. The festival town will wake up early in the morning during yoga, tai chi or common breakfast, and fall asleep late at night by ending the day with concerts and silent disco.

Before the official opening of the festival, the premiere of a joint project of rapper donGURALesko and the Malta Foundation “Ani Słowo bez nas!” took place. The musician has rewritten the book of historian Timothy Snyder “On tyranny: Twenty lessons from the twentieth century” into the language of rap.

The effect was presented during a concert at Plac Wolności.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

There are:

13 cinemas 29 museums 21 theatres 40 art galleries

INVESTMENTS

#NAWOLNYM

This summer, Wolny Dziedziniec (Courtyard of the Poznań City Hall) will once again become a place for meetings with culture.

During the summer, residents and visitors will be able to take part in concerts, outdoor cinema shows and performances of the most popular Polish theatres.

OLD / NEW CULTURAL FACILITIES

This summer, Wolny Dziedziniec (Courtyard) of the Poznań City Hall will once again become a place for meetings with culture. During the summer, residents and visitors will be able to take part in concerts, outdoor cinema shows and performances of the most popular Polish theatres.

Teatr Muzyczny in Poznań (The Musical Theater in Poznań) is currently one of the most dynamically developing cultural institutions in Poland. Every year, it hosts over 110,000 viewers with only 400 seats in the audience. Tickets for shows are sold out very quickly. Therefore, the City decided to build a new seat for Teatr Muzyczny. It will allow, after more – Earlier, before the changes, the courtyard than 60 years of theatre’s functioning of the main building of the Poznań City Hall on a temporary stage, for displaying techwas a parking lot. By the decision of Mayor nologically advanced performances and Jacek Jaśkowiak, the cars of officials and for more than twice as large audiences. councillors were removed from this space. We will be able to watch performances Currently, Wolny Dziediniec is for the needs in a new place from 2023. of residents and tourists. All seats are mobile and the pots can be moved with a forklift. After a year break, on 8 th of June, The detailed project has resulted in the crea- the oldest one cinema in Poznań – Kino tion of a multifunctional space for everyday Muza returned to Święty Marcin street use, which can serve concerts, events 30. Now, viewers will be able to watch and other projects – emphasizes Piotr movies not in one, but in three rooms.

Libicki, Mayor’s Proxy for City Aesthetic There is also a terrace, which can function of the City of Poznań. as another screening place after sunset.

After renovation, it is a completely new This year, on the #NaWolnym stage, Jan cinema in terms of technical equipment Peszek, Andrzej Seweryn with the mono- and decor, yet still with the same atmosdrama “Szekspir Forever!” [Shakespeare phere, which is beloved by all Poznań Forever!], Krystyna Janda, who will play residents. the role of a great opera diva in the play “Maria Callas. Master Class”. Mikromusic, More information: Clock Machine and Stays will perform.

Movie fans will be able to watch 8 films, including “The Florida Project”, “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote”, Investor Relations Department City of Poznań “Youth” or “Room”.

#NAFALACH

Za Bramką 1 Street, 61-842 Poznan Phone: +48 61 878 54 28 e-mail: inwestor@um.poznan.pl

The #NaWolnym project is complemented www.poznan.pl by a series of free outdoor concerts #NaFalach, a new version of Maltańska Scena Muzyczna [Malta Music Scene], which enjoyed great popularity among residents, who are spending the summer in the city. This year, concerts will be held during all summer in two locations: on Malta and Strzeszyńskie Lake.

We already know almost all performers who will appear in this year’s edition of #NaFalach. Mrozu, Happysad, Natalia Przybysz, Daria Zawiałow, Coma, Luxtorpeda, Kamil Bednarek, Rosalie and Rebecca will play for Poznań residents and visitors. The series of concerts will begin on 29th of June with the concert of Natalia Nykiel on the beach of Strzeszyńskie Lake. The concerts will last until the end of the summer.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

INVESTMENTS

PROFESSIONALS

FROM CZĘSTOCHOWA

In Częstochowa, the Better Job Now Program was made in response to the needs of residents and entrepreneurs.

It works in two directions: on one hand, the self-government encourages business owners (through a system of reliefs) to increase salaries and to do some activities in the field of corporate social responsibility. On the other hand it tries to adapt education of human resources to the demand reported by entrepreneurs (among others, subsequent editions of projects and giving employees the opportunity to retrain and improve their competences).

Among the many components of this program, the new self-government’s view on the issue of industry and technical schools deserves special attention. As part of the “Zawodowiec” project, the Development Department and the Investor Assistance Center joined the promotion efforts, which has also been the Better Job Center for two years. This is where they know what specialists will be the best in the near future.

The situation on the labour market in Częstochowa is good, the un­­­employment rate is equal 3.5% (as of April 2019) and fell below the average in the Silesian voivodship. Entrepreneurs from the Northern Subregion of the Silesian Voivodship are aware of the necessity and importance of investments in the development of human resources.

Personnel training activities cannot take place only within the company, entrepreneurs are already looking for their future employees at the level of secondary schools and are trying to influence the profiling of their qualifications. The cooperation of entrepreneurs with schools, both at the post-primary level and higher level, is the only

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chance to educate qualified staff in line with the real demand of the local labour market. The task of the self-government is to create a platform for the agreement of these dependent areas – education and business.

of the “Młodzi Kreatywni” project under the Program for Supporting Entrepreneurship and Creation of New Jobs in Częstochowa for 2013–2018, apart from shaping entrepreneurial attitudes among young people also showed them the benefits of choosing the right The changes which started in 1999 profession. The right choice of a branch were designed to improve our educa- and technical school can be crucial for tional system, adapting it to the needs the development of a young person’s of the labour market. With time, however, career. The total value of the Częstoit turned out that they were not well chowa EU projects dedicated to techprepared and the dual teaching system nical and vocational education in the years in vocational education functions rather 2016–2018 is over PLN 22 million. as a theory. The long-term marginalization of the importance of vocational Demand for young, properly educated schools and treating them as relics employees was shown by the first edition of the infamous past has adversely of the project: “Zawodowa współpraca” affected the image of this branch (eng. 'professional cooperation') in which of education and is one of the reasons the idea of direct access to entrepreneurs for the current employment deficit. with the school’s internship offer turned out to be the key to success. Initially, Częstochowa has been introducing the project assumed that over a thouchanges in technical education and sand students will take part in paid interncreating a new image of vocational ships at fifty entrepreneurs. The number education among young people and of willing employers increased over three parents for years. Subsequent editions times and exceeded one hundred and fifty.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

Among the many components of this program, the new selfgovernment’s view on the issue of industry and technical schools deserves special attention.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

FIELDS OF EDUCATION SUPPORTED UNDER THE “ZAWODOWA WSPÓŁPRACA” PROJECT:

•

• Bolesław Prus School Complex: Technical School No. 11 (mechatronics technician, phototechnician, surveyor technician, electronics technician); Vocational School Complex No. 9 (bookbinder, printer, fitter • electronics); • Władysław Stanisław Reymont • School of the Fashion and Advertising Industry: Technical School No. 7 (fashion industry technician, advertising organization technician, • digital graphic process technician, textile technician, hairdressing service technician); Vocational

School Complex No. 5 (tailor, upholsterer, hairdresser); Stefan Żeromski Team of Technical and General Schools: Technical School No. 6 (hotel technician, IT technician, nutrition technician and gastronomic services, hairdressing services technician); Vocational School Complex No. 4 (hairdresser); Jan Kochanowski School Complex: Technical School No. 2 (logistic technician); School of Economics: Technical School No. 3 (economist technician, salesman technician, tourist service technician, freight forwarder technician); Maria Curie-Skłodowska Gastronomic Schools: Technical School No. 8 (nutrition technician and catering services, waiter); Vocational School No. 6 (chef );

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INVESTMENTS

The continuation of “Zawodowa współpraca” was determined by the success of the previous edition - the market was strengthened by well-prepared staff and the schools acquired the necessary didactic equipment.

• School of Mechanical and Electrical: Technical School No. 9 (mechanic technician, electrician technician); • School of Automotive and Construction: Technical School No. 10 (automotive technician, mechanic technician, rail transport technician); Vocational School No. 8 (mechanic and electromechanic of motor vehicles); • Technical School Complex: Technical School No. 12 (landscape architecture technician, construction technician, equipment technician and renewable energy system, sanitary technician); Vocational Schools No. 10 (fitter of building and finishing works in construction, fitter of network, installation and sanitary equipment, roofer); • Władysław Sikorski Technical Scientific Institutes: Technical School No. 5 (IT technician, teleinformatic technician, electronics technician, mechanic technician, aviation technician); • Maria Grzegorzewska Special Vocational Schools: Special Vocational Schools and Vocational School Complex No. 11 (tailor, cook, upholsterer).

The main goal of the activities of the “Zawodowa współpraca 2” project will be to support students in such a way that they can cope without problems in the labour market after finishing school. This will be served by participation in vocational courses – including certified ones thus providing official confirmation of acquired qualifications, as well as paid internships, internships and specialized classes. You will also be able to take advantage of professional educational and vocational guidance. The project will involve a total of 286 people from grades I-III of vocational schools and grades I–IV of technical schools.

The novelty of the second edition is the fact that the project funds will finance the education of technicians of mechatronics with watchmaker innovation and Częstochowa will be the only city in this part of Europe with such a profile of education. Today, the nearest school educating watchmakers is in Vienna.

Another new technology on the job market is glass technology. Due to the rapid development of two large companies from The value of support provided to the industry in Częstochowa – Stölzle the above fields is about PLN 13 million. and GUARDIAN Glass – this direction gives young people a guarantee of stable The beginning of the school year employment and the possibility of develop2019/2020 in Częstochowa will be ment in global corporations. The demand the inauguration of the 2 nd edition for professionals with such qualifications of the “Zawodowa współpraca” project. is not falling but the insufficient number PLN 4.2 million of EU funding was of them is a problem – “Zawodowa obtained for implementation. This is less współpraca 2” is going to be the answer than at first edition but the second one, to this deficit. At the same time, graduates in addition to even better-paid intern- may continue their education at the Częstoships, brings several surprises in the field chowa University of Technology, where of education profiles. The continuation a new field of study – glass and ceramics of “Zawodowa współpraca” was deter- engineering – was made. mined by the success of the previous edition – the market was strengthened People are the most important in Częstoby well-prepared staff and the schools chowa. Virtually every city resident is acquired the necessar y didactic someone’s employer or employee – they equipment. create a well-functioning economic fabric of the city. New directions of education have been Author: A. Mielczarek prepared for students who are part Translation: M. Wytrzymała of the project implemented as part More information: of the Urban Better Job Now Program.

Not only do they open up the prospect of attractive employment for CzęstoInvestor Assistance Center Department chowa entrepreneurs but above all, they of European Funds and Development are the first important step on the path City Hall of Częstochowa of professional development and enable Waszyngtona 5 Street, 42-217 Częstochowa continuing education at Częstochowa Phone: +48 34 3707 212, +48 34 3707 213 e-mail: coi@czestochowa.um.gov.pl, universities. fer@czestochowa.um.gov.pl www.czestochowa.pl

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

INVESTMENTS

WHAT’S INTERESTING IN RZESZÓW? The year 2018 in Rzeszów has been marked by increased development investments - both residential and office - as well as in the field of specialized construction, dedicated to technologically advanced research and development activities.

In the Rzeszów commercial real estate market 2018 report, Colliers International Poland agency estimates the availability of modern office space in Rzeszów for nearly 90 thousand square meters, while office space under construction at 18 thousand square meters.

The most interesting office buildings under construction are: Rzeszów Business Park, Resovia Office, Asseco Innovation Hub, as well as office building located at Poniatowskiego Street. Undoubtedly, a very interesting offer for potential tenants will be offered by the Rzeszów Business Park – a four-storey building, characterized by a modern and eye-catching design. About 6 thousand square meters of a modern office space in a high standard will remain at tenants’ disposal. The building is located in the immediate vicinity of the center of Rzeszów, at the intersection of Armii Krajowej and Niepodległości avenues.

On the other hand, the 13-storey Resovia Office building, located in the center of Rzeszów, will offer nearly 5 thousand square meters of modern office space.

Resovia Office is situated in the vicinity of Millenium Hall – one of the biggest shopping malls in the region. Finalization of the building is planned for 2020.

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Rental rates for office space in Rzeszów are stable. In the first half of 2018 rents for B / B + class space were at the level of 8.5-10.5 € /m²/month, while in case of class A rental, costs oscillated between 12 – 14 € /m²/month.

Asseco Innovation Hub – the innovative Research and Development Center of Rzeszów’s IT giant Asseco Poland S.A. remains in the construction phase.

The Center will deal with the development of advanced systems and technologies for key national sectors and the global economy – among others health care, energy, banking sector, enterprises, telecommunications as well as agriculture. The research works of Asseco Innovation Hub will focus on priority phenomena and trends from the world of modern technologies, such as: electromobility, telemedicine, artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, as well as on control modules for unmanned aircraft systems. The Asseco Innovation Hub will also develop concepts related to broadly understood IT security. The planned date of opening Asseco Innovation Hub is the second quarter of 2020.

Resovia Office.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

SoftSystem Ltd. – one of the leading IT companies in south-eastern Poland, engaged in the development and opera­ tion of laboratory information systems and integration services for medical facilities, operating mainly in the United States and Canada, started the construction of a modern Research and Development Center in Rzeszów in November 2018.

The R&D center will operate on the basis of scientific and R&D activities in the field of information technology, with particular emphasis on specialized IT solutions dedicated to the medical industry.

The Research and Development Center building will have well-equipped laboratories, modern offices and conference rooms, as well as a two-level underground garage. The total area of ​​​​the building will be 4,700 square meters. The completion of the investment is planned for the second quarter of 2020. In Rzeszów alone, SoftSystem employs over 520 IT specialists, and additionally develops its branch office in Lublin.

The decision to build an innovative Research and Development Center was also made by dynamically developing Rzeszów Software House – IDEO Sp. z o.o.

As part of the planned investment at Wioślarska Street in Rzeszów, a modern research and development facility with a capacity of 6,300 cubic meters will be created. As part of the R&D center, innovative projects in the field of telemedicine will be implemented. The mentioned projects will be created at the interface between advanced IT solutions and knowledge from various areas of medicine.

Rzeszów Business Park.

Rzeszów Business Park.

More information:

Investor Relations Office City Office of Rzeszów 3 Maja 7 Street 35-030 Rzeszów Phone: +48 17 875 47 43 e-mail: boi@erzeszow.pl

Asseco Innovation Hub.

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

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INVESTMENTS

HR NEWS BARTOSZ JANKOWSKI TO HEAD NEW DEPARTMENT DESIGN&BUILD AT COLLIERS INTERNATIONAL

Leading commercial real estate consultancy Colliers International is extending its range of services in Poland. The company has been joined by Bartosz Jankowski, who has become the director of the new Design&Build department as a partner.

The new business line will offer fit-out and construction services, including comprehensive implementation of space arrangement projects in office, hotel and service buildings.

Bartosz Jankowski has many years of experience in construction and arrangement projects, especially in the office sector. During his career, he has represented tenants and run projects on behalf of the contractor. Bartosz is an experienced manager with extensive technical knowledge. Over the past few years, he has successfully built up a multi-sector design company, of which he was the founder and management board member.

MARIUSZ ODKAŁA LEAVES TELEPERFORMANCE POLAND Mariusz Odkała, President of the Management Board, Managing Director in Tele­ performance Poland, made last week a decision about professional changes.

He will leave Teleperformance effectively in the 30th November 2019.

strategy (chat, social media, mail, telephone) and multilingual projects for global brands, ensuring the highest data security standards. An HR strategy was also implemented to achieve a high level of employees satisfaction and commitment. This was appreciated mainly by world well-known brands, from the sports, clothing and financial sectors, but also global leaders in the technology industry – a manufacturer of smartphones, electronics and broadly understood entertainment, a producer of software and computers, an audio and video device manufacturer, and a leader in professional printing devices. Currently, the company serves 20 markets in 17 languages.

In 2012–2019, he consistently built the company's position as a leader in the outsourcing industry and changed the face of the Polish branch, belonging to the global leader of the Teleperformance Group. The company's revenues have increased almost tenfold in the last 6 years, and EBIT is currently one of the highest in the industry in Europe.

Employment increased from 200 people in 2012 to almost 1500 now. The company's operations are conducted in 5 highclass office buildings in Warsaw, Katowice He has more than 25 years of experience and Kraków. The company employs citi- in management, sales, and marketing. He zens of 49 countries today. has held management roles in companies from e-commerce, telecommuniHe had been changing the profile cations, and maritime industry sectors. of the company's operations putting He was responsible for the management on dynamic development and contin- and development of the multinational uous improvement of high-quality structures in companies within Poland services by implementing multi-channel and Europe.

Bartosz is a graduate of the Warsaw University of Technology, the Warsaw School of Economics and the University of Reading (College of Estate Management) and he is a member of RICS.

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Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

RPA DEVELOPER

A GUIDE THROUGH INTELLIGENT AUTOMATION JOURNEY

Business Process Automation and Robotic Process Automation undeniably have become part of our reality.

Some companies have already implemented it, others have just become familiar with its capabilities and benefits. We read about it in newspapers, we hear about it on television, we often talk about it during lobby conversations. What is more, organizers of international events compete with each other in attracting participants, posting in programmes catchy terms: RPA, IPA, BPA, digital workforce, digital transformation, digitalization, outsourcing, big data, etc. You cannot act indifferent in regards to that.

RPA Developer’s main task is to support customer in his journey through Intelligent Automation. He works closely with the assigned client, usually a large corporation or institution, representing finance, healthcare, production, logistics, aviation, business services or public sector.

He supports identification of processes that have automation potential – large volume, repetitive, tedious, labour-intensive, time-consuming and rule-based tasks – and precisely describes these processes. With state-of-the-art techno­ logies such as Blue Prism and / or UiPath Companies that specialize in business he configures and models automation process automation enter the market scripts. All these are to design, build and more and more often. Labour market is run an intelligent robot that will work also evolving. New roles and positions are side by side with human colleagues and being created to respond to new busi- imitate the most boring part of their work. ness challenges. Effective implementa- With a small exception – 24/7. tion of RPA would be impossible without RPA Developer.

A digital worker is an automated team member trained to carry out a business process just like any employee, only faster and without mistakes. As it turns Author: out, an average office worker spends half of his day navigating multiple IT systems.

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) will free employees’ time for more creative and valuable work.

Kinga Pokorska, HR Specialist, Digital Workforce

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people, mainly among university gradu­ ates. Technical studies will be a good basis to start thinking about pursuing such a career, but it is not a common rule. Position of RPA Developer requires many different competences and skills and has been created primarily for people who are passionate about automation. It is important to know at least one programming language, eg. Python, C#, VBA, with which one can create scripts. Previous experience in RPA and familiarity with the AGILE methodology will be an unquestio­ nable advantage too. RPA Developer is a logically thinking person who has an eye for details and who perceives new challenges as an opportunity for self-development. Due to the international work environment, he should be fluent in English.

RPA Developer’s work has a measurable impact on profitability and competitiveness of a company, that is why companies are looking for people who skillfully build and maintain good relations with a client. RPA Developer should be able to understand business needs, set goals and implement them in accor­dance with the fixed timetable. Therefore, it Role of RPA Developer is becoming is necessary for him to have above­more and more popular among young -average communication skills.

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The ability to share knowledge is equally important. Thanks to the excellent academy, knowledge gained, participation in various projects and interpersonal skills RPA Developer quickly becomes an expert in his field and can become a trainer.

of a team manager. It is also possible of the most wanted professionals in IT to develop in a different role or in other sector. The best specialists can receive company’s location. high or very high remuneration.

Currently, every large organization that has routine and tedious processes notices the need to invest in RPA solutions. It understands the benefits of busiFor this position, the development oppor- ness processes automation: faster digitunities are wide. Excellent results, know­ tization, increased productivity, better ledge of processes and activities allow consumer experience, fast and error-free you to quickly be promoted to a position delivery. Hence, RPA Developer is one

RPA Developer is a guide through Intelligent Automation journey and a consultant, whose knowledge and experience support any company implementing a digital transformation strategy, striving to improve quality while reducing costs. He is a wizard of the future.

CAREER & DEVELOPMENT

WNS UNCOVERS ITS HR SIDE

Interview with Martyna Olesińska, Senior Group Manager – HR at WNS Global Services.

Pro Progressio: WNS is one of the world leaders in providing business services.

You specialize in financial and accounting services, carrying out research and business analyzes and in running customer service centers. In what industries/sectors do you operate in Poland?

How big is your team, so it could handle all projects?

Martyna Olesińska, Senior Group Manager – HR at WNS Global Services: The WNS delivery center in Gdynia, Poland, caters to a number of European clients. We offer these clients a range of finance and accounting processes, besides customer interaction services. Our team is capable of supporting services in 13 European languages. Our clients are from travel, music & entertainment and technology industries.

You are in Poland since 2012. Why you chose Gdynia as location for your branch?

The population of the Tricity region of Gdynia, Sopot and Gdansk is exposed to a number of European languages because of its proximity to Germany and Scandinavia. It has a large student popu­ lation – an estimated 90,000 – since it is a hub of higher education. As many as 130 higher education academies, 17 universities and 18 technology universities are

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present in this region. These two factors – a large pool of Germanic and Nordic language speakers and a sizeable market of young talent – have made Gdynia a favorable destination for a delivery center for WNS. How WNS takes care of its image as an employer in the Tricity labor market?

WNS has been able to attract talent in the Tricity market because of its strong employer brand. It is well recognized in the market as a company that provides its employees ample opportunities for learning and development.

There are in-house learning platforms such as The Gateway that offers third-party certification on a number of industry domains and WNS Education for BPMspecific certification courses on digital technologies. So young graduates, who join the company as generalists, can soon become domain specialists and continuously update their skills to stay relevant for a digital future.

skills, a WNS employee can develop into a well-rounded professional with high growth prospects.

The other factor that attracts talent to WNS is its strong growth record.

Steady growth in terms of not just revenue and profits but also its global footprint has inspired confidence in WNS in the talent market.

In recent years, the hot topic in HR is the generation gap between employees and especially the characteristics of millennials. What kind of employees are they? How do you strive for them?

What do they want (expect) from you – as an employer?

Seventy percent of employees in WNS are below 30 years of age. WNS also has a sizeable population of millennials, or employees who are currently in their 20s. This generation is most comfortable with the latest technologies, enjoy collaborating, do not like hierarchies and do not mind switching jobs if they are not satisfied with what they are doWNS is investing in creating “T-shaped” ing. It has made the job of HR extremeprofessionals – where the center is ly challenging. HR managers must find the ‘I’, that stands for the individual and new ways to keep millennials engaged the three points of the “T” represent at work. Some important considerations domain expertise, technology knowl- for a millennial-fit work culture are a coledge and sales orientation. With these laborative work environment where there

Outsourcing&More | July–August 2019

Besides domain expertise, the F&A talent of the future will need to develop advanced data skills and soft skills such as problem-solving, analytical thinking and communication.

and communication. As mundane, repe­ titive tasks get automated, professionals who are thinkers rather than just doers will find greater relevance in the market.

How did your professional career look like? Why did you choose HR? I started my career in talent acquisition specialist and then I moved to the HR department where I had possibility to gain knowledge in HR, Admin, Recruitment, Training and in Business Partner Role.

I also took part in re-engineering projects from hire-to-retire, to map and improve HR Function in life science, payroll and automotive companies.

It gave me broad understanding of end-to-end HR function and international business environment.

is trust and understanding among employees, regular mentoring rather than just managing talent, empowering millennials to come out with fresh ideas and make changes at the workplace, instant recognition where they are recognized among their peers and rewarded for a job well done, and encouragement to take up projects outside work such as a social cause or community building within the organization.

changing. What competencies do they need in the future to meet this role?

The role of an F&A professional has indeed undergone big change. WNS offers its clients domain-specific F&A services, which means the F&A solutions for a travel company will be different from those for a healthcare company. Hence, an F&A professional must be familiar with the client’s industry domain.

I chose HR function because we play a criti-­ cal role in strategic decisions of organi­ sation and consult all employees across role bands for their career and development, reskilling, digital leadership and organizational redesign.

I really enjoy working for business and people – it’s very challenging as one has to push beyond their own comfort zone constantly, be open for different culture and constantly invest in learning.

HR is my passion and I believe it’s fasciBesides domain expertise, the F&A talent nating, growing and integral part In the times of the digital revolution of the future will need to develop of the business. and global changes taking place all advanced data skills and soft skills such over the world, the role of financiers is as problem-solving, analytical thinking Thank you for the interview.

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19.09.2019

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