No. 235 / 2015 Polish Market by Polish Market

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BUSINESSWOMAN You are involved across a spectrum of roles. How do you reconcile all these duties? With adequate experience and willingness to work, you can reconcile::different roles. Perhaps I should give up something, but No. 235 /2015 www.polishmarket.com.pl it is not in my nature. I am a positive person and I cannot say “no” to people. All my activities start as someone asks me for a favour and just I cannot refuse. Sometimes I do not want to refuse. I believe that if you get organised, you can do a lot.

I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT women CAN DO MORE.

PU B LISHED SIncE 199 6

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Do you have a gradation of functions, or are they all equally important? First of all, I am the President of the International Institute of Polish Culture in Padua, which I established and I feel strong ties with. I give 100% of myself to it. Other functions that I hold are somehow related that major one. Cultural issues overlap, so I can quite easily can reconcile several functions. Since I moved to Italy many years ago, I always felt Polish and was active in supporting Polish culture. Since I have moved to Italy from the US many years ago I always felt polish and was very active in promoting polish culture. PM

them are Poles. So I encourage Poles and Polish community to come to Padua and delight in discovering our history. All Poles are impressed when I show them Padua and tell them about our common history. The world owes much to Poles, and to Polish scientists. It is a pity that so little is known about it, and It dosen’t have good promotion. You founded the Associazione Italo-Polacca Padova, with the city’s first Polish school is affiliated with it. Was it because you wanted to commemorate Polish history and national identity? The school was established in 2008 to foster the history of Poland and conduct Polish language courses for children and adults, including as part of Saturday school. I had great support from polish consul in Milan at the time Adam Szymczyk. The fact is that children who come to Italy from Poland and, after a few years, forget their mother tongue. I couldn’t understand it. I realize that the fault often lies with the parents, that did not have enough time, but we also have many parents, that care for their children polish identity, do care about their country of origin, the culture and the history. That is why, I try to help them to have the opportunity to study in a Polish school, learn the Polish language and cultivate national identity. PM

businesswoman

Dorota Hryniewiecka-Firlej

polish market 57 President of the ManageMent Board of Pfizer Polska

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CONTENTS

4. Women power

27. Jolanta Tourel: The Woman who promotes investments in Poland

6. Elżbieta Anna Polak: New prospects for Lubuskie

28. Wanda Wegener and Aleksandra Wegener: Innovative project from polish women

8. Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz: Warsaw is becoming great 30. Prof. Marzena Dominiak: Health comes first

9. Małgorzata Mańka-Szulik: Sustainable development in Zabrze 31. Agata Jasiczek, MD: Any change should be made slowly

10. Urszula Ciołeszyńska: Female solidarity is the most important 32. Anna Rulkiewicz: Quality first

12. Dorota Hryniewiecka-Firlej, MD, Ph.D: About innovation in the pharmaceutical sector 14. Katarzyna Rudnicka: Is not easy in Poland to be a highly regarded woman president

33. Beata Drzazga: Health above all 34. Dorota Tworek: Investments out of passion for art 36. Beata Pawłowska: Sensitive to ecology

16. Women in diplomacy 38. Alicja Wojciechowska: Values give meaning to life

18. Ewa Denikiewicz-Piacentile: The Citizen of the world? Perhaps. A Pole? First and foremost

39. Sylwia Mokrysz: Mokate’s Women

20. Olga Grygier-Siddons: An effective business leader

40. Sylwia Ładzińska: Based in a modern world

21. Barbara Sissons: Business is not only men’s world

41. Polish gems

22. Teresa Kamińska: Innovation and advanced technologies in Pomeranian Special Economic Zone

42. Women with Pearls 46. Alicja Wolniewicz: Watch out! A talent on the horizon

23. Diana Cichy: My exclusive “know how” in making valuable contacts

47. Barbara Hanczka: Corin a woman for women

24. Prof. Danuta Ciechańska: Woman Institution

48. Gosia Baczyńska, fashion designer: An architect of Polish fashion

25. Prof. Magdalena Wyrwicka: Engineering studies are not the studies for the chosen few

50. Joanna Grabowska and Agnieszka Charuba: Perfection in every inch

26. Monika Szczerbak: You can fulfill yourself both in family and in professional life

52. Women talk about the challenges of contemporary Europe

Cover: Dorota Hryniewiecka-Firlej Photos on issue: www.shutterstock.com

SPECIAL EDITION

President: Krystyna Woźniak-Trzosek

Writers/Editors: Maciej Proliński, Jan Sosna, Sylwia Wesołowska- Betkier, Grażyna Śleszyńska, Janusz Korzeń, Jerzy Bojanowicz, Janusz Turakiewicz,

Vice - Presidents: Błażej Grabowski, Grażyna Jaskuła

Contributors: Agnieszka Turakiewicz

Address: ul. Elektoralna 13, 00-137 Warszawa, Poland Phone (+48 22) 620 31 42, 652 95 77 Fax (+48 22) 620 31 37 E-mail: info@polishmarket.com.pl

Graphic design: Godai Studio Agnieszka Andrzejczak -Charuba, Joanna Wiktoria Grabowska

Publisher: Oficyna Wydawnicza RYNEK POLSKI Sp. z o.o. (RYNEK POLSKI Publishers Co. Ltd.)

Editor-in-Chief: Krystyna Woźniak-Trzosek Deputy Editor-in-Chief: Ewelina Janczylik-Foryś redakcja@polishmarket.com.pl Marcin Haber m.haber@polishmarket.com.pl

Sales: Phone (+48 22) 620 38 34, 654 95 77 Marketing Manager: Marianna Dąbkowska marianna.dabkowska@polishmarket.com.pl

DTP: Godai Studio www.godai.pl Printing: Zakłady Graficzne TAURUS – Roszkowscy Sp. z o. o., www.drukarniataurus.pl Oficyna Wydawnicza RYNEK POLSKI Sp. z o.o. Nr KRS 0000080385, Sąd Rejonowy dla m.st. Warszawy XII Wydział Gospodarczy Kapitał zakładowy 80.000,- zł. REGON 011915685, NIP 526-11-62-572 Published articles represent the authors’ personal views only. The Editor and Publisher disclaim any responsibility or liability for their contents. Unso-licited material will not be returned. The editors reserve the right to edit the material for length and content. The editors accept no responsibility what-soever for the content of advertising material. Reproduction of any material from this magazine requires prior written permission from the Publisher.

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BUSINESSWOMAN

„Sukces to coś więcej niż pieniądze. To praca, możliwość tworzenia, wyznaczania celów i ich osiągania. To zwykła praca robiona w niezwykły sposób.”

Charles Knight

Drodzy czytelnicy, Przygotowaliśmy dla Was numer szczególny o niezwykłych kobietach, które nie tylko odniosły sukces, ale które miały także odwagę swoim talentem i niezwykłym pomysłem podzielić się z innymi. Piszemy o wspaniałych Polkach, które są naszymi ambasadorkami na całym świecie, przynoszą sławę i dumę swojemu krajowi, działając w różnych obszarach, takich jak gospodarka, nauka i kultura. Kiedyś, przed laty, w nauce mieliśmy Marię Skłodowską-Curie, teraz mamy profesor Marię Siemionow, która wraz z zespołem lekarzy z kliniki w Cleveland dokonała pierwszego przeszczepu twarzy na w Stanach Zjednoczonych. Polską naukę reprezentuje jeszcze wiele znakomitych kobiet i niektóre z nich Państwu w tym numerze przedstawiamy. Pokazujemy też Panie działające w obszarze gospodarki, kultury i sportu. I oczywiście przypomnimy sylwetki laureatek naszych dorocznych nagród – Pereł Honorowych, wyróżnień, które od 10 lat wręczamy jesienią podczas uroczystej Gali na Zamku Królewskim w Warszawie w takich kategoriach, jak gospodarka, nauka, kultura, krzewienie wartości społecznych i patriotycznych. Wśród wielu naszych laureatów jest też kilkanaście Pań, prawdziwych perełek polskiej nauki i kultury. Podobno w trudnych czasach zarówno w polityce, jak i w biznesie, najlepiej sprawdzają się kobiety, a że trudne czasy mamy, kobiety, chociaż nie są remedium na całe zło, to niewątpliwie potrafią zdziałać cuda swoim uporem, konsekwencją w działaniu, ale także miękkimi cechami charakteru, jak empatia, życzliwość, delikatność, wyrozumiałość i przede wszystkim nadzwyczajna intuicja w dokonywaniu trudnych wyborów. Dlaczego numer o kobietach? Nadchodzący rok obfituje w wydarzenia związane z aktywnością zawodową kobiet. W marcu odbędzie się w Warszawie doroczny kongres organizowany przez Urząd Patentowy pn. „Innowacyjność i kreatywność kobiet”, a w czerwcu 2016 roku Światowy Szczyt Kobiet. Z drugiej strony obserwujemy też coraz większą rolę, jaką odgrywają kobiety w polityce, gospodarce, nauce, biznesie. Biorąc pod uwagę politykę posłużę się danymi statystycznymi, które doskonale świadczą o tym, że jeśli kobieta chce, to może. W wyborach parlamentarnych w 2001 roku kobiety stanowiły około 20% wszystkich kandydatów, w 2011 było ich już 42%. W obecnej kadencji Panie zdobyły 27% mandatów do Sejmu i 13% do Senatu. To najlepsze w historii naszego parlamentu wyniki, jeśli chodzi o udział kobiet we władzy ustawodawczej. W Izbie Niższej Parlamentu zasiadło 119 kobiet - o siedem więcej niż w poprzedniej kadencji. Senatorek mamy zaledwie 13 na 100 mandatów, czyli 13%. Tyle, ile było w poprzedniej kadencji. Po kobiecie stanowisko szefa rządu obejmuje następna kobieta. Stopniowo wzrasta też liczba kobiet na stanowiskach rządowych i w administracji samorządowej. Niezwykłą aktywnością cechuje się wiele kobiet biznesu. Jest wśród nich wspaniała kobieta Urszula Ciołeszyńska, która kilka lat temu, bazując na europejskich fundamentach, powołała Polską Sieć Ambasadorów Przedsiębiorczości Kobiet, liczącą obecnie ponad 300 aktywnych pań, do których mam przyjemność należeć. Jest to działalność nie tylko w obszarze Polski, ale także na arenie międzynarodowej. Zapraszamy Państwa do lektury. Warto poznać silne kobiety, które swoim działaniem tworzą silną markę „Polska”. W następnych edycjach będziemy przedstawiać kolejne wspaniałe panie.

“Success is more than just money. It’s about work, creativity, setting goals and achieving them. It’s a usual job done in an unusual way” Charles Knight Dear Readers, I am pleased to present you with this special edition of “Polish Market” devoted to extraordinary women; the women who are not only successful, but who also had the courage to share their talent and unique ideas with others. We are telling the stories of the wonderful Polish women, who are our ambassadors around the world, bringing fame and pride to our country in various fields of activity: economy, science and culture. Once, we had Maria Skłodowska-Curie, now we have Maria Siemionow who, aided by a team of doctors from the Cleveland Clinic, made the first face transplant in the United States. But there are many more illustrious women in Polish science and some of them are profiled in this special issue. We are also portraying ladies working in the areas of economy, culture and sports. Obviously, we are also recalling the female winners of the Honorary Pearls of “Polish Market”, statuettes awarded for the last ten years to outstanding public figures in the fields of economy, science, culture, promotion of social and patriotic values, at an annual autumn gala held at the Royal Castle in Warsaw. There are more than 10 women, genuine gems of Polish science and culture, among our laureates. Women are believed to be the best choice for tough times, and since times in both politics and business, are indeed tough, women, though not being the cure for all evil, of course, are undoubtedly able to work wonders with their persistence, determination, but also ‘soft skills’ such as empathy, kindness, gentleness, understanding and, above all, an extraordinary intuition in making difficult choices. Why is this issue focused on women? The coming year will be full of women’s events. In March, the annual congress “Innovation and Creativity of Women” will be organised by the Patent Office, and in June 2016 Warsaw will host the Global Summit of Women. The presence of women has been increasingly conspicuous in politics, economy, science, business. Taking politics as an example, I will refer to statistics showing that the saying ‘where there is a will, there is a way’ is more than true about women. In the 2001 parliamentary election, women accounted for about 20% of all candidates, whereas in 2011 the figure went up to 42%. In the 2015 parliamentary election, women obtained 27% of the seats in the lower chamber and 13% in the Senate, which is the best result in the history of Polish legislature. Accordingly, we have now 119 female MPs – seven more than in the previous term, and 13 female senators – the same as in the previous term. A female prime ministerhas been succeeded by another woman. The number of women in high-profile roles in the public administration and local government is on the increase, too. There has been a growing activity of businesswomen, among them Urszula Ciołeszyńska, a great woman who set up the Polish Embassy for Women Entrepreneurship a few years ago. Based on strong European foundations, it now brings together over 300 active ladies (myself being a member). Its initiatives are not confined to Poland, but fall within the framework of a large international movement. I wish you a pleasant read. It is worth getting to know the strong women who create a strong brand Poland. In the future editions, which will for sure follow, we will present the profiles of wonderful Polish ladies. Krystyna Woźniak-Trzosek Editor-in-Chief President of Rynek Polski Publishers Co. Ltd. polish market

WOMEN POWER

Elżbieta Rafalska

Anna Zalewska

Anna Streżyńska

Beata Kempa

Beata Szydło

he situation of women in politics has changed over the past decades, although it is still not a dream one for all organisations calling for equal rights for men and women. Debate about the participation of women in politics has been going on for several years. In 2011, the parliament adopted a quota system which requires the electoral committees to enter at least 35% of women on the election tickets. The changes served their purpose and contributed to doubling the share of women on election tickets. But critics demand a 50% quota in combination with a zipper system in which women and men are placed in alternate slots. In fact, they argue that women actually have a 35% representation on candidate lists, but they are placed towards the bottom end of it, which often precludes the actual presence of women in political life. However, statistical data do show some progress in this respect. In 2001, women accounted for about 20% of all candidates, whereas in 2011 the figure went up to 42%. In the 2015 parliamentary election women obtained 27% of the seats in the lower chamber of the parliament and 13% in the Senate, which is the best result in the history of Polish legislature. Accordingly, there are 119 female MPs – seven more than in the previous term, and 13 female senators – the same number as in the previous term.

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Elżbieta Witek

The newly formed government is headed by a woman, and its female members profiled here were selected not for the sake of gender parity, but because they are competent.

BEATA SZYDŁO PRIME MINISTER Deputy to the Parliament of the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Term. Since 16 November 2015, Prime Minister of Poland. In 2005 she joined the Law and Justice party and was elected to the parliament. She was then a member of the Committee on the Economy and the Committee on Local Government and Regional Policy. In 2007 and 2011, she was re-elected as Member of Parliament. During the Sixth and Seventh Terms, she served as Deputy Head of the Committee of Public Finance. In 2010, she was elected the party’s Deputy President. She led two successful campaigns in the presidential and parliamentary elections of 2015. On 13 November 2015, she was designated as Prime Minister by President Andrzej Duda. She is Poland’s third female prime minister and the second woman in the world to succeed

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BUSINESSWOMAN

a woman (Ewa Kopacz) as Prime Minister. On 18 November, she delivered her government’s policy statement (exposé) and was given a vote of confidence by the Parliament.

ELŻBIETA RAFALSKA MINISTER OF FAMILY, LABOUR AND SOCIAL POLICY Senator of the Sixth Term and Deputy to the Parliament of the Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Term. She graduated with honours from the Academy of Physical Education in Poznań - Branch in Gorzów Wielkopolski. In 1994-2005, she was a member of the City Council of Gorzów Wielkopolski. In 2005 she was elected senator on the PiS ticket in Lubuskie Region. As a senator, she chaired the Committee on Local Government and Public Administration. From 6 June 2006 to 5 April 2007, and again from 24 August 2007 to 3 December 2007, she served as Secretary of State in the Ministry of Labour and Social Policy. In the European elections in 2009 and 2014, she ran for European Parliament from Gorzów. In the parliamentary elections in 2007 and 2011, she won an MP seat from Lubuskie. She sat on the Committee on Labour and Social Policy and on the Committee on Public Finance. She is Vice-President of the Lubuskie District Board of Law and Justice. In 2013 she became a member of the Political Committee of Law and Justice.

ANNA STREŻYŃSKA MINISTER OF DIGITISATION She was trained as a lawyer. In 1995-1997, she worked in the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection (UOKiK). In 19982000, she was a counsellor for to three successive ministers of communications. In 2001-2005, she ran a private counselling firm. From November 2005 to May 2006, she was Undersecretary of State in the Ministry of Transport and Construction, responsible for communications. From January to May 2006, she was Acting President, and in May 2006 she was appointed as President of the Office of Electronic Communications, a position she held until February 2012. In 2012-2015, she provided free-lance counselling services, and at the same time in 20142015 she was the CEO of Wielkopolska Broadband Natwork, and in 2015 she was the CEO of the Internet for Mazovia Project. Most recently, she sat on the Digitisation Council under the Minister of Administration and Digitisation.

ANNA ZALEWSKA MINISTER OF EDUCATION Deputy to the Parliament of the Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Term. She graduated from Polish Studies at the University of Wrocław. She worked as a teacher and deputy head teacher in a high school. She used to be Deputy Governor of Świdnica County.

During the Parliament’s Sixth Term, she was a member of the Committee on Education, Science and Youth Committee, Committee on the European Union, the Standing Sub-Committee for the Economics of Education and Science, the Standing Sub-Committee for the Use of EU Funds and the special parliamentary commission investigating the circumstances of Barbara Blida’s suicide. In the Seventh Term, she sat on the Committee on the European Union and the Committee on Health. She was also an active member of parliamentary delegations and Polish-Czech and Polish-Ukrainian bilateral groups.

ELŻBIETA WITEK MINISTER-MEMBER OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS Deputy for the Parliament of the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Term. She is a graduate of the Wrocław University’s Faculty of History and Philosophy. In the 1980s, she was among the founders of the Solidarity Trade Union in Jawor. When it was delegalised and the martial law was declared, she became an activist of the underground movement. For participating in a demonstration on 31 August 1982, she was sentenced to three months of imprisonment and then she was fired and victimised for her stance and views. After the reactivation of the trade union in 1989, she became the Head of the Solidarity Trade Union Workplace Committee of Education Employees in Jawor. She was awarded the Gold Medal of the National Section of Education the Solidarity Trade Union. In 2005, she was elected as a Member of Parliament. In 2007 and in 2011, she successfully ran for re-election. In July 2015, she became the spokesperson for Law and Justice. On 16 November 2015, she was appointed as a member of the Council of Ministers. As part of her ministerial portfolio, she is Head of the Political Office of the Prime Minister and spokesperson for the government.

BEATA KEMPA MINISTER-MEMBER OF THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS Deputy to the Parliament of the Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Term. In 2006-2007, she was Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice. Graduate of administration at the Faculty of Law and Administration of the Wrocław University in 1990. In 1998 – 2005, she was a councillor of the city council and the municipality council of Syców. For several years she worked as case worker for adults. Since October 2005, she has been a Member of Parliament. In 2006, she was nominated as Secretary of State in the Ministry of Justice. In 2009, she became a member of the parliamentary special committee investigating illegal pressures on the shape of the Act on Games and Mutual Wagering. In 2011, by the decision of the Political Committee of Law and Justice, she was appointed as the party’s district representative in Kielce. On 16 November 2015, she was appointed as member of the Council of Ministers in the government of Beata Szydło • and Head of the Chancellery of the Prime Minister.

polish market

NEW PROSPECTS FOR

LUBUSKIE Elżbieta Anna Polak, Marshal of the Lubuskie Region, talks to “Polish Market”.

You are the only woman in Poland to serve as a Region marshal. Does it help you in the exercise of your duties? It does not matter whether the marshal wears trousers or a skirt; what matters is efficiency. Women are becoming more visible in social and political life, they are well educated and have clearly defined objectives. For me, holding the position of Marshal is a special reason for pride. First, since 2008, as Deputy Marshal and then, since 2010, as Marshal I have been able to influence the development of my region and enjoy it when figures translate into tangible benefits. PM

In a ranking on the use of European funds in the years 2004-2014, published in the “Wspólnota” magazine, Lubuskie was ranked fifth in the category of regions, with PLN 925 in EU funding per capita. By contrast, in Warmińsko-Mazurskie Region which took the first place, the figure was PLN 1,125 per capita. Is this a good result? In my opinion, a growth of GDP and real wages, or a drop in unemployment are more relevant than rankings, as these data actually confirm the expected results of investments made over the past years. You can hardly identify a sphere of life where changes that have taken place with EU funds cannot be seen with the naked eye. Yet, the Lubuskie Region must keep catching up with the best and reasonably plan expenditures under the new financial plan. It is possible: our strategy and the Regional Operational Programme have been developed to focus on the concentration of priorities and innovative solutions. PM

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BUSINESSWOMAN Is it true that the Lubuskie Region has succeeded in narrowing the distance separating it from the neighbouring regions of Wielkopolska, Lower Silesia, or even Germany’s Brandenburg? Definitely yes, it is largely attributable to EU funds. Over 10 years of Poland’s membership in the European Union, the Lubuskie has completed projects worth more than PLN 22 billion, including nearly PLN 13 billion in EU funding under the Integrated Operational Programme for Regional Development, Sectoral Operational Programme (competitiveness of enterprises and transport), as well as the Community Initiative INTERREG Poland-Brandenburg. Lubuskie’s location put the region at an advantage. Even before Poland’s joining the EU, we could familiarise ourselves with the funding application procedures, as we were using pre-accession funds. In the following years, new opportunities emerged with the creation of the Lubuskie Regional Operational Programme. At that time, we entered into more than 1,000 contracts for projects with a total value of PLN 2 billion. Compared to Lower Silesia and Wielkopolska, we had a much smaller allocation at our disposal. I would also point to investments which, while not visible to the naked eye, are of indisputable importance. I mean the human capital, corresponding with the amount of PLN 900 million that was spent on support for more than 6,000 start-ups, on educational projects, or employee trainings. It should also be noted that cooperation between Lubuskie and Brandenburg brings fruit in terms of integration of people, experience sharing, transport and historical heritage and neighbourhood relations. Now, we are about to launch the Regional Operational Programme - Lubuskie 2020, with a budget of more than EUR 906 million. PM

What are Lubuskie’s plans for the new financial period of the European Union? It is expected that, of all national and regional operational programmes, we will implement a total investment volume of PLN 12 billion until 2020. The plans we have are very ambitious, but realistic, written down in the strategic papers and substantiated with reliable diagnosis. A large portion of the allocation under the 2014-2020 financial plan will go to entrepreneurs for innovation and the commercialisation of knowledge, which means for cooperation between academia and business. It is worth remembering that locals in Lubuskie have long been taking matters into their own hands and setting up firms. The region’s economy is based on small and medium-sized enterprises, which find a conducive business climate here. We have science and technology parks, research centres and semi-business institutions. In the new financial period, funding goes to projects that involve the use of that infrastructure, as far as it allows the transfer of knowledge to business. We want to make sure that that the infrastructure developed with the contribution of EU funds finds the widest application possible. We focus on social and territorial sustainability, accessible in terms of transportation, based on selected smart specialisations, such as the green economy, innovative industry, health and life quality. PM

And what about infrastructure projects? The needs here are still enormous, especially that transport infrastructure is one of the great strengths of the Lubuskie Region. Lubuskie is always “on the way.” We have the A2 motorway “Freedom” and the construction is far advanced of the S3 expressway, but it is necessary to build ring roads bypassing cities to get them connected with the motorway network. It is something we need to do for the residents and entrepreneurs, for whom efficient transportation is a prerequisite for business success and an important factor when it comes to attracting potential investors. But also for tourists who, while travelling through Lubuskie, might wish to stay over and explore the region. The S3 expressway running through to Lubawka; upgrades of the regional roads 27 and 12; new bridges over the Oder in Milsko, Kostrzyn and Krosno Odrzańskie; overhauls of railway lines: Berlin-ŻaryWrocław, Kostrzyn-Krzyż, as well as the so-called “Nadodrzanka”; modernisation of energy networks and the Oder Waterway; construction of a paediatric clinic in Zielona Góra and radiotherapy centre in Gorzów; development of science and technology parks and the oncology centre; educational programmes, transfer of knowledge to business, entrepreneurship and new attractive jobs – we will have loads of work in the new EU financial • period. The bar is set high, but the stakes are even higher. PM

polish market

WARSAW IS BECOMING GREAT Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, Mayor of Warsaw

anaging a big city is a bit like ruling a state. The problems are similar - perhaps only on a smaller scale. But Warsaw has a population of 2 million people and a budget of almost PLN 15 billion, so can its challenges be of a smaller scale? Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz always stresses that she owes who she is to her family. She was strongly influenced by her father who fought in the Warsaw Uprising, but most of all by her grandmother and mother, who were both enterprising and firm women. And firmness is a feature of hers that catches the eye. First, consistency in the choice of education, with academic degrees culminating in professorship, then in the pursuit of the professional career. Although it has been nearly a decade since she debuted in local government, she often evokes the experience she gained while serving in two prominent positions - President of the National Bank of Poland (NBP) and Vice-President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). In the first one, she accomplished something that no one had done before her: she cleaned up the banking system and successfully carried out the redenomination of the Polish zloty. That is when she confirmed herself in the conviction that a leader should not dissimulate it if there is something he or she does not know, but have the courage to ask experts for advice. Therefore, as the president of the National Bank of Poland, she consulted foreign specialists. She did not want to experiment because the reforms that she

was in charge of were to affect absolutely every Pole. Learning from mistakes is not her story. “My advice to top-level managers is to capitalise on good practices,” says Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz. “Provided, of course, that the source of these proven solutions is referenced,” she adds, smiling. As the mayor of Warsaw she can well demonstrate her experience in management. She keeps a watching eye on the city’s budget, applies for EU funding, reasonably distributes resources. When she was elected for the first time in 2006, she was perfectly aware of what she was taking on. Nine years ago, Warsaw was extremely underinvested. Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz set herself a priority of introducing European standards in public transport. Today she can talk of success, as 60% of Warsaw residents move across the city every day using buses, metro and trams. She completed the first metro line at express speed and started the construction of the second line. The central section of second line, which is already operational, carries more than 100,000 passengers a day. Purchases of new trams, buses, metro trains, a bid for of the extension of the second metro line… Such things no longer create excitation. Residents take it as a normal course of events. Two areas in which Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz invests most are education and health. For the first one, she has already earmarked an astronomical sum of PLN 2 billion, with tens of new schools, kindergartens and nurseries and hundreds of those under modernisation. Still, further spending is needed on new nursery schools, especially in districts inhabited by young people. “Demography in

Warsaw is doing well. We are happy that new Varsovians are born,” emphasises Gronkiewicz-Waltz. As for Warsaw’s public healthcare, it was given a PLN 1 billion cash injection. Many hospitals had new facilities built; eleven hospital departments were modernised, new out-patient clinics were built, new equipment was bought. “Delayed investment did us good in a way, because compared to Western hospitals, which were fitted out many years ago, we now have the most modern equipment,” says Gronkiewicz-Waltz. The mayor of Warsaw stresses that when managing a team it is important to listen to both collaborators and residents. She perfectly knows she has always someone breathing down her neck and checking up on her: opposition city councillors on the one hand and residents on the other hand. And she is all the more motivated. Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz understands that Varsovians know themselves what they need, which is one of the reasons why three years ago she introduced participatory budgeting. Warsaw is increasingly becoming a comfortable place to live in, not least owing to its hard infrastructure, but also to cultural and recreational assets. Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz will go down in history as the mayor who built the first ever Museum of Warsaw’s Praga district, who made residents enjoy the Vistula again, and developed more public housings than anyone else did before. Paraphrasing Stefan Starzyński, the mayor of Warsaw at the time of the siege in 1939, Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz may well say that “Warsaw is becom• ing great.”

WARSAW 8 polish marketspecial edition 2015

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BUSINESSWOMAN

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IN

Zabrze

“Looking back, we can see how thoroughly the city has changed in all areas over the past few years. Mindful of the importance of historical heritage, Zabrze builds its future on the stable ground of European culture, patriotism rooted in the regional ethos, and respect for family values. The city has established itself among the leading centres of science, culture, sports, medicine, tourism and innovative economy,” says Małgorzata Mańka-Szulik, Mayor of Zabrze.

n recent years, more than PLN 700 million have been secured from external sources to finance projects aimed to improve the city’s life quality, as well as to increase its attractiveness for entrepreneurs. These funds are designated for investment, environmental protection and social cohesion programmes, creating friendly conditions for residents, investors and tourists. Zabrze’s hallmarks of European renown are brands such as the Silesian Centre for Heart Diseases, Institute for Chemical Processing of Coal, Coal Mining Museum with the Historic Coal Mine Guido, Górnik Zabrze football club, Foundation for Cardiac Surgery Development. In addition to them, the city has a reputation for its cultural institutions: theatre, philharmonic orchestra and the House of Music and Dance, and special events, including especially the Krzysztof Penderecki International Festival. In addition to the vastly developed sphere of culture, Zabrze can boast a creative field of science and education with the Silesian University of Technology, Silesian Medical University, Higher Technical School and scientific institutes. Zabrze’s potential consists of a rich economic landscape of small and medium entrepreneurship and giants such as Mostastal, DB Schenker, Kopex, JSW Coks, Fortum, or Elzab. In an effort to support entrepreneurs, the city has formed Zabrze Centre for Enterprise Development and allocated more than PLN 50 million for infrastructure with the Special Economic Zone. These measures result in the creation of new jobs by such investors as: Bakery Kłos, Metal Solution, Schoeller Allibert, Bud-expert and Metal Service Center. The upgraded transportation network, with the Silesian Diametric Road Route (Drogowa Trasa Średnicowa) and local roads, has generated a marked increase in interest in our investment areas. It cost almost PLN 1 billion to carry out one of Poland’s largest water supply and sewage system modernisation projects,

ZABRZE’S POTENTIAL CONSISTS OF A RICH ECONOMIC LANDSCAPE OF SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND GIANTS...

which also spawned the construction or resurfacing of approx. 700 thousand sqm of roads and pavements. The programme of thermal improvements to public buildings, coupled with measurable savings, results in revamping of the city image. The city is expanding its municipal hospital, an important centre for medical technology transfer Cardio-MedSilesia has been launched, and the new premises of the Silesian Centre for Heart Diseases have been commissioned. 180 hectares of reclaimed urban space around the Bytomka were made publicly available for recreation and environmental education. Sports infrastructure is being developed, too, with 7 newly built or renovated gyms, 29 multi-purpose pitches, an athletics track, an indoor swimming pool, a tennis hall, and last but not least, a stadium able to cater to the needs of a develop• ing city. polish market

FEMALE IMPORTANT

SOLIDARITY IS THE MOST

Urszula Ciołeszyńska, Founder and President of the Polish Embassy for Women Entrepreneurship, Ambassador of Women’s Entrepreneurship Day in Poland

ominated by the European Commission as an Ambassador of the European Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors in 2009, she decided to continue the project in Poland, organising the Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors. She went on to establish in Poland two foundations that promote entrepreneurship among women. A graduate of the University of Economics in Wrocław, she has many years of experience of working in both government administration as well as in multinational companies. Since 2003, she has owned the Economic Promotion Agency, a consulting firm specialising in providing comprehensive advisory services to new and existing businesses in Poland to acquire funding through the European Union. During her time with public administration, she collaborated with the American Peace Corps volunteers - economic advisors who came to Poland to teach entrepreneurship. A graduate of the International Leadership Exchange, a US exchange programme that she attended in the US, she had an opportunity to take a closer look at practical solutions applied by some US states for the benefit of economic development, including entrepreneurship incubators, career centres and institutions supporting the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises.

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BUSINESSWOMAN

She is a co-founder of the Club of Entrepreneurs and Experts under the National Board of the Polish Economic Society. She is a member of the International Association of Lions Clubs, one of the largest volunteer organisations in the world. In recognition of her international social activities, she was awarded the title of Goodwill Ambassador of Lions Clubs International. On 4 October 2015, at the Paszkówka Palace near Kraków, which is home to the Brotherhood of the Bronze Bell, Urszula Ciołeszyńska received the title of Dame of the Bronze Bell, which refers to the symbolism of the Wawel Sigismund Bell. The congratulatory letter reads: “The challenges facing Poles in the 21st century impose on the Brotherhood of the Bronze Bell the obligation of creating a new elite, a modern aristocracy of spirit, thought and action, whose successes and careers fit into the image of Poland as a country proud of lots of its achievements. Knights of the Brotherhood are Poles and people of Polish descent, as well as the citizens of the free world who, through their actions at the international forum, in Poland and in their homelands, contribute to strengthening the authority and prestige of Poland.” She is guided in her life by the simple principle “The more you give, the more you get”, and it is not just about money. For her, honesty and responsibility are the values that give meaning to life and are the driving force behind action. She believes that we are obliged to use our talents to help those who need help. The appointment of Urszula Ciołeszyńska, in 2009, as Ambassador of the European Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors was a spur to create the Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors (together with a dedicated foundation), which currently brings together more than 300 women throughout Poland. The Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors is modelled on the European Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors, and brings together successful women who focus on providing role models, while running their own businesses. The Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors are selected in keeping with the principle of diversity, which means that they represent all regions in Poland and various company sizes, industry sectors, entrepreneurs’ backgrounds, ages and experiences. The mission of the Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors is to promote enterprise among women as well as to motivate and support them to employ their skills and passions in order to create and establish new values. We promote the idea “The Success Can Be Yours – Be An Example For Others.” In order to promote a positive image of entrepreneurs, one of the prerequisites for being selected as Women Entrepreneurship Ambassador is to abide by ethical standards in business. We also strongly

encourage Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors to demonstrate the Code of Ethics of the Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors in their firms as far as possible. During the World Economic Forum “Women in Leadership” 2014 in Dubai, where she was a speaker, she was invited by the coordinator of Million Women Mentors, a US mentoring programme, to cooperate in promoting the idea of mentoring in Poland and Europe. Million Women Mentors is a social movement, now under way in the United States, initiated and overseen by STEMconnector, a Washington DCbased organisation, which engages one million scientists, IT specialists, engineers, technologists, chemists, physists, mathematicians to serve as mentors for young women across the middle school to work age continuum to ensure they develop the interest and confidence they need to persist and thrive in STEM (S – Science, T – Technology, E – Engineering, M – Mathematics) courses and careers. The project’s purpose is to support women, regardless of their age, in their attempts to acquire practical skills in the area of new technologies and digital competences mostly via an Internet platform. Such a project is needed due to an insignificant number of women studying and working in the STEM disciplines. Urszula Ciołeszyńska is a coordicator of Million Women Mentors Poland, a Polish leg of the US educational project, which was officially inaugurated during the Million Women Mentors Summit & Gala on 25 September 2015 in Washington DC. Urszula Ciołeszyńska, who attended it, was honoured with a special mention for having initiated the Polish edition of the MWM project. Being a partner of the MWM project which is currently in progress in the USA, we will be involved in implementing a joint vision of lending support as mentors in the STEM fields, having full access to all professional and technical resources and best practices. In return, on or before 2020 we plan to establish co-operation with and activate change leaders, representatives of institutions and organizations from the following sectors: Science, Local Government and Business so by 2020 we will have 20,000 Polish specialists recorded in the MWM Poland directory as STEM mentors (both those in Poland and the Poles around the world). Thanks to the modern Internet platform being a basis for the MWM project, all mentors are guaranteed an opportunity to work from any location, which means that we are going to invite Polish mentors both from Poland and from abroad. Additionally, at our initiative the programme was extended to include the promotion and propagation of entrepreneurship. Urszula Ciołeszyńska is a co-founder of the Brussels-based Women Entrepreneurship Platform, which aims to support women’s entrepreneurship

WE PROMOTE THE idea “THE SUCCESS CAN BE YOURS – BE AN EXAMPLE FOR OTHERS.” based on the five pillars, representing five areas of women’s entrepreneurship which need to be encouraged, supported and promoted: 1. Entrepreneurship Education, 2. Networking, 3. Innovations, 4. Access to Financing and 5. Entrepreneurship-Friendly Government Policies. Urszula’s actions towards international promotion of women’s entrepreneurship have not passed unnoticed. She was invited to join the group of Ambassadors of the International Day of Women’s Entrepreneurship, as a representative of Poland. Last year, 19 November was officially proclaimed as the Women’s Entrepreneurship Day - WED. The United Nations established that every year this day will be dedicated to entrepreneurial women, who own or co-own firms, especially family businesses, or who are planning their careers running their own business. As part of WED, special programmes were dedicated to female students - Student Ambassador Programme, and to colleges - Education Programme. Women’s Entrepreneurship Day is not one day in a year, but a global movement promoting entrepreneurship among women. It was launched in partnership with the United Nations and the US State Department. WED’s mission is to empower women and their businesses, as well as gather a think tank of women leaders that amplify their merged message of expanding businesses with good social initiatives in communities around the world. WED World Ambassadors are the world’s leading women entrepreneurs and innovators, facilitating change by empowering their communities and countries. They inspire and motivate men and women globally to make the pledge of Time, Talent & Treasure. As the Ambassador of the Women’s Entrepreneurship Day in Poland, Urszula Cioleszyńska participated in the 2015 WED events in the UN headquarters, New York, and on the basis of experiences gained there and new contacts made, she is now planning, together with other Ambassadors, to organise next year events in all provinces of Poland, as well as abroad in coopera• tion with the Polish diaspora.

polish market

About

innovation in the pharmaceutical

sector

INNOVATION IS ANY STEP, EVEN THE SMALLEST ONE, TOWARDS GREATER PERFECTION.

Dorota Hryniewiecka-Firlej, MD, Ph.D. President of Pfizer Polska Sp. z o.o.

Innovation in the sphere of medicines means relieving pain and alleviating suffering. Could you cite some of the company’s recent successes in this area? We offer physicians and their patients several fully innovative pain relieving medicines. These drugs are one of a kind. The physician expects a highly effective product while the patient wants one with minimum side effects. We have been able to meet these expectations to an increasing extent. A frequent side effect of classical painkillers is bleeding from the digestive tract. You should remember about it while casually buying such drugs at a petrol station, for instance, because you are just a step away from losing control and overusing the drug. And this always ends badly. When a patient with bleeding from the digestive tract lands up in PM

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hospital the medical history often contains information that he or she has taken painkillers. Thanks to innovative solutions, we have been able to offer new medicines where side effects of this kind are significantly reduced. How big is the risk and costs on the road to innovation? Until quite recently innovations used to come into being in the privacy of small laboratories. Today, they require huge outlays, high investment. We set aside USD 7 billion to search for new molecules. At the start of a research project, there appear around 50,000 molecules. At our Centres for Therapeutic Innovation, we try to identify the molecules which have a chance to be brought to the marketplace. After all, innovation always means an invention and its practical application. PM

It is about putting an idea into practice and then reaching the patients with it. If we manage to find in this set of thousands of molecules at least one which meets the criteria of efficacy and safety we can speak about success and satisfaction. Let us remember Louis Pasteur’s remark: “La chance ne sourit qu’aux esprits bien prepares” (Chance only favours the prepared mind). It happens quite often that the Management Board is forced to take the decision to discontinue a research project at its second or third stage because the risk of failure exceeds an acceptable level. And the risk is constantly growing. However, the company’s propensity to take it is also rising. The reason is the constant growth in the number of factors which trigger new types of pain as the pace of life accelerates. We are also seeing growing lifestyle-related differences among people in terms

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BUSINESSWOMAN of sensitivity to pain. After all, it is easier to treat “clones.” Meanwhile, we can see that the Gaussian curve is increasingly flattening. How often are you able to select a molecule and put it into mass production? It is only once in several years that we manage to discover something.

Do you conduct research in cooperation with state research units or is everything done on an in-house basis? Pfizer is open to cooperation. As I mentioned, it has set up Centres for Therapeutic Innovation. Located at the best American universities, these research centres employ experienced scientists and the universities may approach them with their scientific projects. The centres evaluate the projects, looking whether they could contribute to improving patients’ quality of life and assessing the chances of starting mass production. There are four centres of this kind in the United States. And there are plans for expansion into Europe. I dream of such an institution being established in Poland. Then, our intellectual and laboratory base could be combined with the experience of the people working at the American centres. This is where I see a chance for the growth of both our local and European innovations. Another chance that I see is bringing the academia and the world of medical sciences closer to the world of business. Inventions without big money remain merely discoveries. They are forgotten. To be useful for society, research projects need to have the guarantee that they will be brought to the marketplace. We are already seeing in the European Union the first signs of ties between research and business in the pharmaceutical sector. There are already private laboratories which attempt to acquire sources of funding on the market. These labs have established contacts with our company as well. These are usually small biotechnological firms with significant intellectual resources. However, they lack sources of funding to fully exploit this huge knowledge. It is worth stressing here the role that the state may play in providing systemic financial support to these small firms. So far the state’s capabilities in this respect have not been exploited to a satisfactory extent. PM

Is Pfizer interested exclusively in research projects started from scratch, or do you also acquire ready solutions? We are interested in projects at any stage. For nearly two years since I assumed the post of president of Pfizer Polska we have been looking for cooperation opportunities in every possible direction by supporting any kind of local initiatives at various stages of research. PM

Pfizer has been present on the Polish market for over 50 years now. Doesn’t this vast experience and success create the risk that the company will rest on its laurels and stagnate? Being mature and successful often makes you complacent about the position you have achieved. But the reality which surrounds us is changing at an increasingly rapid pace. We are always on the lookout for creative people with a passion and incessant desire to search for new solutions. Age is not an essential variable here. We have employees in every age group. We invest in students, offer them internships and select talents. It is a condition of our development. PM

How has the Polish market changed over the 50 years since Pfizer came to Poland? One can hear that public attitude to medicines is changing. We rely less and less on our grandmas’ methods and increasingly entrust our health to physicians. Is it possible to verify this opinion? The Polish pharmaceutical market is difficult, mainly because of the quickly changing legal, social and political situation. It is impossible to allow for such developments in annual or longer budget plans. But you should not take offence at this state of affairs. Other sectors of the economy are not free from such problems. When it comes to the attitude of patients to medicines, it seems to me that there is still some sort of reserve or sometimes even scepticism on people’s part. The attitude to medicines depends on their complexity and uniqueness. I have experience on the specialist market for drugs subsidized by the state. Patients suffer from very complex autoimmune diseases or cancer. The treatment regimes are very complex and difficult to explain to the patient. However, speaking about the broadly understood attitude of the patient, one should say that there is a clear evolution taking place. The patients, passive until recently, are becoming active. Their awareness when it comes to pharmaceuticals is increasing. The Internet and open borders have their impact here. Today, patients are able to take a better care of their health and even fight for it. PM

There is talk that interest in vaccination is falling. We can hear anti-vaccination rhetoric. What do you think about it? The anti-vaccination movements have recently proposed that if the state makes vaccination compulsory it should undertake to cover the costs of treatment in the case of post-vaccination complications. The question arises who, if the parents have full freedom to decide, should cover the costs of hospital treatment for a child which has not been vaccinated. I would also like to stress that a child which has not been vaccinated spreads the diseases PM

and exposes to it other children - in a kindergarten, for instance. PM

Now, will you allow me to ask you a few more direct questions? Go ahead.

Could you tell me spontaneously, quickly and shortly what innovation means to you? As the number of definitions is really gigantic, I will give you one which I like and one which I like even more, that is one which is someone else’s definition and one which is my own. The first one, borrowed from Edwin Herbert Land, an American physicist, scientist and inventor, goes as follows: “Innovating is not to have a new idea, but to stop having an old idea.” And this is my own definition: “Innovation is any step, even the smallest one, towards greater perfection.” PM

What kind of innovation in pharmacy do you value the most? Vaccines because vaccination is the best natural process of gaining immunity by the human organism. PM

And what kind of “innovation” is able to throw you off-balance? A bad law on intellectual property protection because it hampers innovation.

Who would you award with the Nobel Prize for innovation in pharmacy? Louis Pasteur.

An award requires justification. An invention requires creativity. Pasteur was full of it. Innovation requires courage. Pasteur showed it on many occasions. This is why he is my intellectual hero in the sphere of life we are talking about. PM

And if you were to award the Nobel Prize to an institution? Then, of course, I would award it to Pfizer.

Isn’t your decision a bit too subjective? Every award involves an emotional factor. There is no award without emotions. I would give my company the Nobel Prize for its readiness to take a risk and incur losses in its search for medicines for diseases which are still incurable today. PM

What kind of search do you give priority to? Given the growing number of phenomena in the face of which we still often feel helpless, I see hope in our contemporary “young Pasteurs”. Let us look for them and find them. And then, let us promote • their new vaccines. PM

polish market

IT IS NOT EASY IN POLAND TO BE A HIGHLY REGARDED

WOMAN PRESIDENT

14 polish marketspecial edition 2015

Katarzyna Rudnicka, President of Vivenge, talks to “Polish Market”.

You stress in your comments that confidence is one of the factors on which to build a company’s brand. Are such soft competencies particularly important in business these days? Have Polish people started to trust each other? A company’s brand is the first association that comes to your mind when you see its logo or hear its name. The brand means the company’s value, price, quality and importance attached to it by consumers. Confidence is the basis for the company’s life. A client guided by confidence in the brand returns to it many times. An employee guided by confidence in the company is loyal and dedicated. People looking for a job seek employment with a company enjoying a good reputation and confidence. Suppliers are eager to work with companies whose main motto is taking care to ensure mutual confidence. Two years ago, we decided that every activity at Vivenge, from issues of minor significance to really important ones, would be focused on proving that we trust each other so that we are able – always and everywhere, at any time of day or night - to tell our work colleague: “I trust you.” We also understood that our firm will achieve the biggest success when our customers start to say: “we trust Vivenge” Our efforts are now focused on this goal. It is a very good and clear objective. It can hardly be misunderstood or corrupted. PM

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BUSINESSWOMAN You strongly believe in the power of corporate social responsibility activities. Why do you think that activities of this kind are the best for business development? I will repeat I am convinced that confidence is the base for a company’s life. It is pure blood flowing in the circulation system of the company’s various daily tasks and activities. Business, by definition, is oriented at generating profit. This is its basic task. In exchange for profit, business creates jobs, generates investment contributing to the development of regions, creates new technologies, changes the world and introduces innovations, including those groundbreaking ones. This was, and still is, the role of business until the end of the second millennium. The social spirit is now changing as we have entered the third millennium. Individual people know they are the creators of their own life while societies are aware that their way of thinking creates the reality of nations and continents. We are entering an era of new responsibility for actions and thoughts. We already know that the future of the Earth depends on our decisions, on our way of thinking. Business is also aware of these changes and follows them. Sharing profit with the needy is today’s image of business. It means attaching value to what you can give to others. PM

You openly admit that Vivenge’s main asset is its people. You base your success on an individual approach to every employee. This is quite an unusual model of operation. People are the basis for the life of a company. The customers are its oxygen while the people who work for the company are its lungs. The oxygen would count for nothing without the lungs. Thanks to the lungs, the oxygen is delivered to every cell of the organism. Much has been written about the importance of the human factor. It is hard to find new conclusions different from those that have already been repeated on many occasions by great leaders. We say that we are a community, that everyone of us is different, but that together we make up a single whole. We pursue together a single goal, which is to have full confidence in ourselves and full confidence from Vivenge customers. PM

My personal reflection after nearly eight years of managing the company is that it is not easy in Poland to be a highly regarded woman president. Men make up a majority of Polish top managers and prefer to “do business” in a men’s circle. A woman has to prove her high competence and truly great intelligence. Should this problem at all be publicized, or perhaps this evolution in thinking should go on naturally, in your view? In my view, women will manage by themselves. Statistics show clearly that women do business in a way which is less risky and is based to a greater extent on moral principles. The third millennium which we have entered is a time of integration among societies and nations. Women are dedicated for this task. Each of us has “sucked with our mother’s milk” great reserves of love and compassion for another person. These will be the most important qualities in the coming new era of humankind. Women will no longer have to hide their potential of good and compassion. They will lead the way in creating new attitudes and behaviours. For hundreds or even thousands of years women used to hide their real feelings. But despite that, they always created homes and communities full of warmth. They turned punishment into a blessing in any possible way. Today, we are able to openly create firms, nations and societies full of warmth and brotherhood. PM

What are Vivenge’s development plans for 2016? Vivenge’s plans have been well established for years. In 2010, we adopted a development strategy until 2020 and we are gradually putting it into practice. Under the strategy, by 2015 we were to launch modern technologies and double our production capacity and warehouse space. We have managed to achieve this goal. The next five years will see our rapid entry onto foreign markets. At the end of 2020, our exports are to account for at least 45% of our total sales, with a steady increase in revenues on the domestic market. Many clients and many markets are waiting for us. PM

In 2008, Vivenge managed to weather the economic crisis and its consequences. You say it was due, among others, to brand Poland, which is increasingly recognizable in the world. What makes you believe in the good reputation of the Polish economy? And does it really help in running a business? Poland is a wonderful country. This is where Vivenge has come into being and developed to become a market leader. Our products move on Polish roads, Vivenge employees have been educated at Polish universities and our children are taught at Polish schools. In the course of 25 years we performed an exceptional task – we caught up with Europe. Polish firms passed excellently a test in economics and entrepreneurship. We built from scratch and then developed all sectors of the economy. The sector in which Vivenge operates is a niche sector, but very dynamic one. The process of rebranding, and changing a company’s marking and image takes place in the case of mergers, acquisitions, image changes and companies’ new strategies and communication. We are among the best Polish firms in this respect. We have carried out rebranding processes for such well-known brands as Poczta Polska, Pekao, mBank, Lotto, Lotos and Plus. I strongly believe in our country and especially in the potential of Polish people. We are a very enterprising people. Business is not yet in full swing in Poland. I am convinced that in a few years’ time most Polish market leaders will become leaders of foreign markets and many of them even of the global market. • PM

Until recently there was much talk about gender inequalities on the labour market. Statistics show a disproportion between women and men in managerial posts. What do you think about this problem as a company president and a women? How are you, and other women, perceived in business? In my professional life, I have encountered several times instances of inequality. It is still a regular occurrence that a woman in an equivalent post, with a similar educational attainment and managerial skills earns less than a man. This is the case not only in Poland but also in a large part of Europe. However, the number of women in managerial posts, even the highest ones – of general directors, company presidents, mayors and country presidents – is growing and, consequently, inequality is diminishing. This means that women manage very well, despite this state of affairs. Let us imagine for a while the opposite situation: that it is men who across the world have lower wages than women and are reluctantly employed in responsible posts. This sounds improbable. Women are excellently educated and very well prepared for their careers. Additionally, many of us act with reserve and calm, which often sets us apart from men and does not undermine the great enthusiasm we draw from managing. More and more women attain a specific kind of harmony between their professional and private life, and are able to find long periods of time reserved for themselves - for the development of their passions and interests. PM

polish market

URSZULA GACEK

WOMEN IN DIPLOMACY

SABINA KLIMEK

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BUSINESSWOMAN PAULINA KAPUŚCIŃSKA, CONSUL GENERAL IN CHICAGO Paulina Kapuścińska was born in Warsaw. She completed her masters studie’s at the University of Warsaw in 1997 at the Faculty of Geography and Regional Studies. She received her second diploma after completing Postgraduate Studies in National Security in 1999, which were co-organized by the Faculty of Political Science of the University of Warsaw and the Embassy of the United States in Warsaw. She obtained her third degree from Warsaw’s National School of Public Administration and the Paris-based Ecole Nationale d’Administration, graduating in 2003 with a diploma in European Integration. She began her professional career as a journalist. She later joined the ranks of public administration in May 1999 as Assistant Press Spokesman for the Chancellery of the Prime Minister and then for the Team of Advisers to the Prime Minister, where she was responsible for contacts with the media for the Prime Minister. After a series of required trainings in 2001, she passed all examinations to become a career civil servant. In 2002 she began work with the Foreign Ministry’s Department of the European Union and Accession Negotiations. She was responsible for contacts with the press for the Chief Negotiator for the Republic of Poland with the European Union. In 2004-2007 she worked as Consul for Culture, Media, Education and Polonia at the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Los Angeles. On 15 September 2007 by decision of Foreign Minister Anna Fotyga, Paulina Kapuścińska was appointed Consul General of the Republic of Poland in Los Angeles. She brought Polish events to the most prestigious concert halls and theaters in Los Angeles, e.g.: concerts of film music by Polish composers Wojciech Kilar, Krzysztof Komeda, Krzesimir Dębski in the prestigious Zipper Hall in Los Angeles, concerts of Fryderyk Chopin’s music performed by Marek Tomaszewski at The Broad Stage in Santa Monica as well as a number of exhibits and conferences on the West Coast of the United States. To mark the 70th anniversary of the end of WWII she organized an unprecedented ecumenical Holy Mass at the Los Angeles Cathedral, attended by former soldiers of the Home Army, many of whom fought in the Warsaw Uprising. The Mass was attended by more than 3,000 people. She also helped revive the Paderewski Piano Festival in Paso Robles, where the Polish Prime Minister and artist lived. Thanks to her efforts, the First Lady of Poland – the late Maria Kaczyńska-took under her patronage an exchange programme for the youth of Paso Robles and Tarnów. On returning to Warsaw in January 2010, Paulina Kapuścińska began work with the Foreign Ministry’s Department of Cooperation with the Polish Diaspora. In January 2011 she was the winner of the competition for the post of Director of the Office of Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. On 1 September 2012, by decision of Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski, Paulina Kapuścińska was appointed Consul General of the Republic of Poland in Chicago in the rank of Minister Counsellor.

URSZULA GACEK, CONSUL GENERAL IN NEW YORK She was born in Great Britain as a daughter of Polish émigrés. Her father, Bolesław, was a WWII veteran, who served in the Army of General Władysław Anders.

Urszula Gacek is a graduate of the University of Oxford with a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics. In 1991, she moved from Great Britain to Poland. For many years she was engaged in business, as an expert in the transformation taking place in Poland, especially the oil, gas and chemical industries, after the fall of communism. She served as the CEO of a regional development agency (Tarnów Industrial Cluster) and acted as an adviser to small and medium sized enterprises in southern Poland. She worked closely with USAID, the Japanese International Development Agency and with various European Union funded regional development projects. Elected to the Polish Senate in 2005, she was an active member of the Committee for Emigration Affairs and Contacts with Poles Abroad, the Foreign Affairs and European Union Affairs Committees, as well as being Deputy Chair of the Polish-British Parliamentary Group. Urszula Gacek was a delegate of the Polish Senate to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. In 2007, she became a Member of the European Parliament. She served as a Member of the Committee for Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and of the Sub-committee on Security and Defense. Furthermore, she participated in the work of the European Parliament’s EU-USA delegation, as well as the delegations to Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Between February 2011 and November 2014, Urszula Gacek served as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France. On 21 December 2014, she took up the post of Poland’s Consul General in New York.

SABINA KLIMEK, CONSUL, DEPARTMENT OF TRADE AND INVESTMENT PROMOTION AT THE CONSULATE GENERAL OF POLAND IN NEW YORK Prior to her diplomatic career, she was involved in business as a negotiator of international trade agreements; she also worked for Hewlett-Packard and Deloitte Business Consulting. In 20072011, she was a foreign desk journalist at the news channel Polsat News, and reporter of “Panorama”, the news programme on TVP2. Sabina Klimek is also a certified coach, specialising in trainings covering negotiations, marketing, sales techniques and business communication. A graduate of the PhD studies at the Socio-Economic College, Warsaw School of Economics, University of Economics in Katowice, University of Mikkeli in Finland and University of St. Andrews in Scotland, she is cofounder and president of the Supervisory Board of the European Institute “Pro Futuro Europae”, member of the Business Forum and European Commission’s Forum for Food, expert with NORMAPME, the European voice of SMEs in standardization, and substitute member of the European Economic and Social Committee. She authored numerous publications in the area of entrepreneurship, including the book “Entrepreneurship Without Secrets.” The “Dziennik Zachodni” daily newspaper named her as the Leader of the Year 2014 of the Bieruń-Lędziny country where she comes from. She is passionate about travelling. A pet lover, she is a committed supporter of shelters for dogs • and cats.

polish market

A CITIZEN OF THE WORLD?

PERHAPS.

A POLE? FIRST AND FOREMOST. Ewa Denikiewicz-Piacentile talks to Ewelina Janczylik-Foryś.

You are involved across a spectrum of roles. How do you reconcile all these duties? With adequate experience and willingness to work, you can reconcile different roles. Perhaps I should give up something, but it is not in my nature. I am a positive person and I cannot say “no” to people. All my activities start as someone asks me for a favour and just I cannot refuse. Sometimes I do not want to refuse. I believe that if you get organised, you can do a lot. PM

Do you have a gradation of functions, or are they all equally important? First of all, I am the President of the International Institute of Polish Culture in Padua, which I established and I feel strong ties with. I give 100% of myself to it. Other functions that I hold are somehow related to that major one. Cultural issues overlap, so I can quite easily reconcile several functions. Since I moved to Italy many years ago, I have always felt Polish and have been active in supporting Polish culture. PM

Ewa Denikiewicz-Piacentile Vice-President of the Polish-American Chamber of Commerce of Florida and the Americas, President of International Institute of Polish Culture in Padua. For over 20 years, she has organised exhibitions of paintings, graphics and sculptures, as well as cultural events and concerts. In 2008, she founded the Associazione Italo-Polacca Padova, which runs a Polish school, promoting Polish history and offering Polish language courses for children and adults. In 2011, she founded the Unione delle Associazioni Italo-Polacche, aiming to provide support for the Polish diaspora in Italy in creating Saturday schools in Italy. Her long cooperation with Polish communities abroad was recognised in 2014, when she was appointed as Vice-President of the Polish-American Chamber of Commerce of Florida and the Americas. She is a founding member of Polish-American Foundation Plus Film Art Culture Media, set up in 2015 with a view to encourage cooperation in the field of cinema and knowledge sharing. Since 2015, she represents Italy in the Congress of Polonia Education.

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It is the mission of the Institute, right? The Institute promotes Poland not only in Italy, but also in the world. I live in Padua, the Italian city most historically linked to Poland. Polish accents are conspicuous, e.g. statues of Polish kings, coats of arms of Poles of noble birth. Two great Poles: Jan III Sobieski and Stefan Batory completed their studies in Padua. Zamoyski was the rector of the univercity of Padua. The Sala dei Quaranta (“The Hall of the Forty”) at the University of Padua is where we have portraits of 40 illustrious foreign students from all over Europe. Few people know that as many as seven of them are Poles. So I encourage Poles and the Polish community to come to Padua and delight in discovering our history. All Poles are impressed when I show them Padua and tell them about our common history. The world owes much to Poles, and to Polish scientists. It is a pity that so little is known about it, and it dosen’t have good promotion. PM

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BUSINESSWOMAN You founded the Associazione Italo-Polacca Padova, with the city’s first Polish school affiliated with it. Was it because you wanted to commemorate Polish history and national identity? The school was established in 2008 to foster the history of Poland and conduct Polish language courses for children and adults, including as part of Saturday school. I had great support from Polish consul in Milan at the time Adam Szymczyk. The fact is that children who come to Italy from Poland forget their mother tongue after a few years. I couldn’t understand it. I realize that the fault often lies with the parents that did not have enough time, but we also have many parents that care for their children’s Polish identity, do care about their country of origin, the culture and the history. That is why, I try to help them to have the opportunity to study in a Polish school, learn the Polish language and cultivate their national identity. PM

Young people source their historical knowledge from cinema. This year, the Polish-American Foundation Plus Film Art Culture Media was set up and you are involved. Yes. The name “Plus” is an acronym derived from the letters PL and the US, implying the Polish-American cooperation. At the same time, a plus means that together we can do something extra, something more. Cooperation is a perfect illustration of it. It is true that the foundation has only been put in place recently, but I am convinced that it will evolve in a right direction, promoting Polish history and culture in the world. PM

You are also Vice-President of the Polish-American Chamber of Commerce of Florida and the Americas. Do culture and economy have anything in common? Everything is connected . I have always appreciated the contribution of the Polish community to the Polish economic life. I have always felt strong affinity with Poland. I was born in Kraków. It is important that Poland be a respected partner in international relations. As a child, I lived in Africa. In the 1960s many Poles - doctors, engineers - worked in Africa, leaving behind a very good impression, their high professional level. Why shouldn’t we take advantage of it? Poland has a great potential. South America is a new, huge market. I would like PM

Stephen Mull, former Ambasador of the US in Poland and Ewa Piacentile

I ALWAYS THOUGHT THAT women CAN DO MORE. Polish companies to try to consider going in for it, taking the plunge. I do not want Poland to be marred by a crisis that Italy or Greece is now struggling with. I can already see the positive results of the Chamber’s activities. This translates into concrete decisions, because companies that participated in the Congress of Latin Chambers of Commerce and Industry CAMACOL in Miami (the largest annual forum of chambers of commerce, trade organizations and government agencies involved in the exchange of goods and services, as well as the expo of the largest companies in Latin America – ed.) six months ago, are now negotiating the terms of their contracts! How did it happen that you partnered with the Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors? I always thought that women can do more. Women have a great potential, they are enterprising, they run their own businesses. It shows how much women can actually be determined. I met Urszula Ciołeszyńska, President of the Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors, through Tadeusz Donocik. I immediately knew that I should get involved with them. PM

And how does it align with your acquired profession? You were trained as a medical doctor and doctor of dental surgery. I am still active and I work in this field. This is my most important activity and a passion at the same time. Now I am also about to start to work in Poland. I just cannot live without it. I deal with orthodontics and aesthetics. It is so exciting when I can advance things that seem impossible at first glance. For me, the most important thing is the satisfaction of the patient. I strive for perfection in this field. • PM

Ewa Piacentile at the meeting in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

polish market

AN EFFECTIVE

BUSINESS

Olga Grygier-Siddons, CEO, PwC in Central and Eastern Europe Our social norms and business reality are changing. At present, we are in the midst of a digital revolution. If businesses want to be competitive they have to base their success on diversity. Women have a huge potential, which should not be wasted or ignored. If properly harnessed and directed, it may guarantee market success for the firm.

here are still few women in business, especially in higher posts, though at the time when I started my career their number was just shamefully low. We are now seeing an upward trend. PwC has estimated that in 2040 women will account for 30% of newly appointed company heads. This is important because diversity is a great asset, though probably still not fully appreciated in Polish firms. Meanwhile, diversity among staff contributes significantly to enhancing innovation and creativity in the workplace. A combination of different cultures, experiences and types of emotional intelligence is an excellent foundation on which to build business value. The strength and wisdom of an effective leader consists of relying on diversity, noticing different points of view and developing talents at the company. Competence is the most important thing in effective management. It is best to cite here the very vivid metaphor of golf clubs. Depending on the situation, the golfer picks a different club, one which - as her knowledge and experience tells her – will work the best in the given circumstances. The same is the case with styles of leadership: different situations require different styles. Sometimes one has to seek consensus while another time, for example in a crisis situation, it is necessary to take a decision swiftly and accept full responsibility for it. Everyone, irrespective of one’s place in the organization or gender, should develop this valuable ability to “juggle” with styles of work, management and leadership. I worked for many years in Anglo-Saxon markets and can say there are considerable differences in management styles among

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countries. I have the impression that the leadership style established in Poland is quite directive. Staff members often perceive their boss as an all-knowing person who not only decides about the direction of the firm, but also deals with technical issues. This, in fact, means that the boss is expected to be an expert at everything and supervise everything. The distance between the boss and staff is huge and usually none of the sides tries to change that. In contrast, leaders in Anglo-Saxon markets adjust their management style more often to the specific situation. The world in which we function at present is less and less similar to the one of 20 years ago, for instance. The digital revolution has radically changed the way in which we work, establish relations or spend our leisure time. Communication has been transformed and new models of social services have appeared. As we reveal our personal data more and more often, we have to remember about new threats associated with cybercrime. Along with this global change, business paradigms have also been subject to modification. Today, the market needs a new model of leadership competence. A modern leader is a person aware that he or she cannot be an expert at everything and therefore needs trusted experts with various competencies, skills and experience. I am glad that women increasingly take part in creating strategies and are responsible for developing the potential of businesses. It is often women who shape diversified work environments, thanks to which business enters the next stage of development. •

Photo: Marcin Jamkowski / Adventure Pictures

LEADER

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BUSINESSWOMAN

BUSINESS IS NOT ONLY MEN’S WORLD Barbara Sissons, Member of the Board of Totalizator Sportowy, talks to “Polish Market”. What makes a woman successful as manager? Are there any decisive factors or characteristics? Let me start by saying that the most important thing is the very desire to achieve success. You can have the best education possible, attend business circles and even know them inside out, but without that desire, and sometimes even determination, you will not be successful. What characteristics are helpful? Industriousness, ability to concentrate and listen carefully, good time management, but also divided attention, conscientiousness (especially in finance), stress resistance, courage, assertiveness, self-discipline and efficiency in team management. Creativity is very useful, too. PM

Do you think that it is now easier for Polish women to succeed in business? It is an interesting question, but there is no single right answer to it. As we know, in the past there were no women in business at all. It was a men’s world. Today probably no one needs to be persuaded that women do well both in the beauty industry and in the heavy industry. If they cannot handle, it means that they are doing something they do not believe in or have no skills for. But the same is true of men. Let us remember that not every woman, just as not every man, has to be a president, a director or an owner. And are things easier for women now? Of course, because the chances for a career in business are gradually becoming PM

equal; because more and more women-managers with well-known names pave the way for other ladies. This is the natural way of things. I hope that nothing will change it. It is worth mentioning here another very important issue. For some time, Polish women have enjoyed ever stronger positions not only in domestic companies, but also in foreign corporations where success is not possible without excellent managerial skills, education, experience, good command of foreign languages and hard work. This is a very important signal – we are increasingly appreciated. Let us get back to what you said about the equalising opportunities and what it means in practice. Can we talk about the beginning of the end of the traditional perception of the role of women and men in the business world? In my opinion, we can talk about the beginning of the process. I do not think, however, that the traditional model will be completely eliminated in the future. But, not to leave you with such a negative message, I will add that you need to look at it more broadly. After all, not everyone has to deal with business, and certainly not everyone has to occupy the key managerial positions. PM

And now a fairly obvious question – what workplace for women is Totalizator Sportowy? The company operates in a very challenging environment...

This industry is not easy, indeed. It is a job for people who are responsible, conscientious, willing to develop. And women are so. What kind of workplace is Totalizator Sportowy? In short – a very good one. Women feel very well here, because their knowledge, experience and skills are appreciated. That is why, we are present at all levels of management. But there are also other advantages: ladies do not fear that on returning from a maternity leave, they will not be welcome. Let me add one more sentence regarding the lottery industry. In fact, I was many times asked if working in a company organising lotteries is difficult, different, specific… I always answer that every industry has its own specifics. Our customers can feel positive emotions, win a penny or a fortune, but also contribute to the development of sport and culture. It gives us all a lot of satisfaction and joy. Finally, what would you advise young women who want to make a career in business? I would tell them to draw lessons from failures, but never take them to heart, and persist in pursuing a goal. It is important to always be sure of your personal value, to invest in knowledge and gain experience. Let’s also remember one thing - do not be afraid to take up profes• sional challenges! PM

polish market

INNOVATION AND ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES IN

POMERANIAN SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONE Teresa Kamińska, President of the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone What was the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone’s contribution to the Global Entrepreneurship Week? In the Kujawsko-Pomorskie Region, a series of events were organised within the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone (PSEZ) as part of this year’s Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW). These were study visits for young people from technical schools to plants located in PSEZ subzones: UMC Poland Sp. z o.o., Apator SA and Candle Factory Mueller SA (Łysomice subzone), Mapei Polska Sp. z o.o. (Barcin subzone), Metalbark Sp. z o.o. Sp.k. (Bydgoszcz subzone), WIKA Polska Sp. z o.o. and SGF Sp.k. (Włocławek subzone). During the meetings, students had the opportunity to learn about the leading companies operating in the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, confront their ideas about working in a given industry with reality, and talk about apprenticeships and job opportunities. PSEZ entrepreneurs rely on young, ambitious and educated people. Graduates of technical schools and universities can count on jobs such as: welder, CNC machine operator, programmer, assembler of steel structures, construction technician, logistics technician, technologist, etc. In the Pomorskie Region, the most important GEW-related activity was the Venture Day conference, designed as a platform connecting young entrepreneurs with institutions that can support them in further development. A key element of this year’s Venture Day was a meeting between the creators of innovative medical, IT and energy projects with investors, including Venture Capital funds and companies: Philips, Samsung, Energa, Orange. The event was held under the patronage of the National Centre for Research and Development. Entrepreneurship is an ability to identify needs, to improve ideas, which is why we strive to listen to investors, we are happy to cooperate on PM

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innovative ideas, and we are revitalising the region in such a way as to make a skillful use of what we already have. What are the conclusions of the International Pomerania Climate Summit in Gdynia? Organised by the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Gdańsk and the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, the Pomerania Climate Summit in Gdynia proved that we are ready to meet the challenges that Europe is facing in the context of climate change. One way to protect the Earth from the consequences of the greenhouse effect is the use of modern technologies in the maritime economy, provided however that the engagement effort goes beyond the EU countries. The conclusions of the Pomerania Climate Summit were communicated to the participants of the World Climate Summit COP 21 in Paris in the form of an appeal. It is worth noting that participants of the Pomerania Climate Summit find it of paramount importance to prevent the escape of industry outside the European Union and to equitably - regardless of the country of origin of the shipowner - sort out the issue of reducing carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide emissions coming from international shipping. PM

What about the Designers’ Park in Gdynia? The setting up of the Designers’ Park within the PSEZ came as a result of the revitalisation of another fragment of the former Gdynia Shipyard. The renovated building with an area of about 5,600 sqm was furnished and equipped with new prototype workshops and design studios suitable for the so-called clean production of electronics, automation, robotics, engineering and industrial design. Provisions were also made for office space for designers and architects. Young designers now have a comfort of doing tests, research PM

and making improvements to technologies that are developed in the Pomeranian Science and Technology Park in Gdynia and the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone. The Designers’ Park is a place for professionals from many disciplines who wish to develop their technological projects. We aim to create a new quality of products and services, thus increasing the importance of innovation and advanced technologies as a factor determining redevelopment of the post-shipyard area and elsewhere across the country. Plans for 2016? Each economic zone in Poland has a particular vision of its future and sets itself development directions accordingly. In making plans for the future, the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone relies very much on the maritime economy. It is the only industry that has been developing so dynamically recently, with the highest innovation rates, and has been included in the national smart specialisation programme. The most important project of the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone, which will be launched in 2016, involves revitalisation of the former Gdańsk Shipyard. In May 2015, PSEZ came into possession of 23.3261 hectares of post-shipyard area on the so-called Ostrów Island. In early October, the government decided to include the land within the borders of PSEZ. After clearing it of mortgages and repaying creditors, PSEZ started working out the development plan of the area. We intend to upgrade infrastructure, including roads, modernise and partially demolish buildings, secure investors who will create new jobs. It is the second shipyard project – after the Baltic Port of New Technologies in Gdynia – carried out by the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone. • PM

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BUSINESSWOMAN

MY EXCLUSIVE “KNOW HOW” IN MAKING VALUABLE CONTACTS Diana Cichy, Director of CICHE IT&I, talks to ”Polish Market”. Photo: Rafał Niedzielski, www.niedzielski.tv

The company CICHE International Trade & Investment Co. Ltd. is a platform for contacts between Poland and China. How did you start working with Chinese representatives? In 2008 I moved to China to be a volunteer for the Beijing Summer Olympics. I didn’t know the Mandarin language at the time and so I signed up to the language school in Beijing in January 2008. My dream to work for the Olympics didn’t come true, instead I joined a Microsoft team testing Windows 7. That time I realised China was an emerging market giving many possibilities for international business development even for young professionals. At that time I was still a young graduate! Chinese culture also impressed me a lot and I quickly made my decision to stay, pick up the language and use the wide opportunities China offered. I can say I was in the right place at the right time. I had a positive attitude to China and I felt good there. I was social very active, and established new Chinese and Polish contacts during the international meetings organized by the Chinese or events in the Polish Embassy in Beijing. My father is a businessman and he also kept me occupied with searching for new business ideas and exploring new opportunities. We are from the Silesia region in Poland, the coal mining area; it was naturally the first sector to start with. Even if I had arrived with a million dollars of capital to spend in China it would not help me establishing business contacts because in China you first need to become friends with the Chinese. I met a few Chinese people who worked within the coal mining industry. I also linked with the Trade & Investment Promotion Section at the Polish Embassy in Beijing, as a consequence I closely cooperated with the counsellor Mr Robert Góralczyk during promotion events, seminars, and fairs. This is how business is done in China. It’s called guanxi, and it means relationship or connection.You meet a person who is in a good relationship with another person who is within the same industry and then that person connects the next person. It takes time, many meetings, a lot of food and wine consumed, and many songs sung in karaoke together. The Chinese needed to accept me first as a person then I no PM

longer had to search for business. It’s actually the Chinese who connect me with people. This is my exclusive “know how” in making valuable contacts. You are Director of CICHE IT&I. How did your Chinese partners respond to cooperating with a very young woman that held such a high position? Yes, I am the director of the company but I must say I attended business meetings with my father in the beginning, as he is General Manager of the company. Usually, people saw my father and myself together at meetings. It was at the time when we were making those initial connections that his presence and mine were very solid. I felt confident and therefore I never felt a strange reaction to the fact I’m a female entrepreneur. I think people were amazed to learn I own a company in Hong Kong and this also helped. It was indeed a tough school for me, i had to learn quickly how to negotiate with Chinese counterparts. PM

CICHE IT&I from the very beginning has been connected with the wider range of the mining industry. Do you think there is a great demand for Polish machinery? Which companies do the best sell? There is great demand for Polish machinery in China. Polish mining equipment is well known worldwide for its highly developed technology and innovative products. Polish and Chinese coal mines have to deal with hazardous environments such as methane gas, deep mine, humidity; hence solutions that pass safety certification in Poland can be used in China, too. To date two Polish factories have created joint ventures with factories in China: Fasing Group producing chains and Kopex Group producing shearers. Other companies also sell monorails, air-coolers, roof supports, engines and so on. PM

Do you see any chance to establish contacts in new sectors of the industry? The vision for my company is to develop cooperation with China and other emerging countries in other industry sectors as well. In particular PM

we have plans in the food industry. We have a network of local buyers and are currently working on it. Also knowing that Chinese are becoming richer, not only the western food has future in China but also Polish luxury goods, such as clothes and furniture present an opportunity for my business. I have just had a Chinese delegation interested in investing in Poland in the green power energy sector. How do you rate the visit of President of Poland Andrzej Duda in China? Have you established new and promising contacts? Unfortunately, I could not be present at the Polish President’s visit to China. At the time I was attending the 2015 Women’s Entrepreneurship Day in the UN headquarters, New York, as a representative of the Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors. I am planning to co-organise next year WED events in Poland and abroad. However, the General Manager of CICHE IT&I was attending all meetings of the delegation with the Polish President in China. We believe this trip created great prospects for the future Polish-China cooperation. As the political support for business with China is a crucial factor, President Duda’s last visit to China is expected to have paved the way to even greater cooperation in different industry sectors. There are still political efforts that must be put in place, for example to lift the existing bans on importing Polish products. The Chinese President Xi Jingping was very grateful seeing Mr Duda in China within his first months of presidency. Business is closely connected to Government in China, so, consequently, we can start to see huge traffic of Polish products to China. I expect more exporting opportunities for Polish producers to arise in the near future, and I will be able to provide my best services for them. Anyone wishing to cooperate between Poland and China, or other emerging markets should contact me! During previous trips CICHE IT&I representatives established many promising contacts and with time will show how fast we can become close friends with new associates. • PM

polish market

WOMAN

INSTITUTION Prof. Danuta Ciechańska, Director of the Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres

he has graduated from the Faculty of Food Chemistry (now Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Sciences), Łódź University of Technology, where she earned a PhD degree in 1996. In 2013, she was awarded a postdoctoral degree at the Faculty of Material Technologies and Textile Design, Łódź University of Technology. Since 1990, she has been with the Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres. In 2002-2005, she served as Scientific Secretary, and since 2005 she has been Director of the Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres. She has over 25 years of experience in the implementation and management of national and international research projects, as well as tasks ordered directly by industrial partners in areas such as materials science, biotechnology, chemical technology, processing of polymers and textiles. She also has experience in running research laboratories accredited by the PCA and the OECD. She has authored or co-authored more than 100 publications in scientific journals, and 32 patents and patent applications. In the years 1998-2014, her publications were cited 179 times, including 166 publications without self-citations, while her Hirsch index (a measure of the citation impact of the publications of a scientist or scholar) was 6, according to the Web of Science database. She was involved, both as manager and operator, in the implementation of 24 domestic and 11 international research projects, financed, among others, under the Operational Programme ‘Innovative Economy’ and EU framework programmes. She was the coordinator of the ordered research project “Biodegradable nonwoven fabric intended for use in medicine, agriculture and technology”, and the foresight project “Modern technologies for textile use. A chance for Poland.” She participated in the implementation of technologies and research procedures in domestic and foreign companies, among others, in the launch of production of loudspeakers with membranes

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made of modified bacterial cellulose with Tonsil SA, in the launch of production of the biomedical chitosan preparation with a US company, in the launch of production of Tromboguard haemostatic dressing with Tricomed SA. The results of her research were presented at more than 150 conferences and symposiums in Poland and abroad. She was awarded medals and diplomas for her inventions. In 2000, she received the Young Scientist Award from the Presidium of the Łódź Branch of Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN) and Rectors of Universities in Łódź for her research achievements in the field of engineering. In 2002, she won the Silver Cross of Merit for her scientific activity and international cooperation, and in 2012 - the Gold Cross of Merit for the development of industrial biotechnology. In 2013, she received an award at the EU-Woman Inventor and Innovator Network Stockholm, Sweden, a congress for creative, imaginative, innovative and entrepreneurial women. In 2014, she was conferred the Pearl of Innovation - Progress 2014 by the “Polish Market” economic magazine and the Central Council of Research Institutes in the category of scientific personality. In 2015, she was presented with the title of Silver Engineer of 2014 by the “Przegląd Techniczny” magazine in the category of science. She is vice-president of the European Polysaccharide Network of Excellence (EPNOE), vice-president of the Polish Chitin Society, board member of the Gold Engineer Club and the Polish Chamber of Commerce for High Technology. She is an expert with government’s bodies, the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) and the National Science Centre (NCN), regional institutions and the European Commission. She is the coordinator of the Supra-regional Centre for Science and Industry (Bio)-Polymers – Materials – Technology for Economy (POLINTEGRA). In her leisure time, she goes to opera, theatre and fashion shows. She spends holidays

in the “Polish Alps” (the Tatra Mountains) and at the Baltic Sea. •

Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres The Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres in Łódź is a leader in integrating science and business in an effort to pursue the country’s economic development in the field of increasing the competitiveness and innovation of the Polish economy through mutual cooperation and joint concept of modernisation of impact processes and improvement of mutual support effectiveness. The cooperation between science and business is aimed to intensify the coordinated efforts towards the development and commercialisation of new technologies, as well as the creation of joint innovation projects, which will form the basis of modern technological solutions and contribute to the development of the Polish economy by stepping up commercial R&D performed under the Horizon 2020 Programme. The Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres seeks to strengthen its competitiveness domestically and abroad through transferring innovative technology and product solutions and by providing high-quality research and analysis in terms of development of regional and trans-regional specialisation. The development of new research directions will enhance its innovation and competitiveness on the domestic and international markets. The concepts and projects carried out at the Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres are the result of the implementation of the multiannual research. In 2014, the European Polysaccharide Network of Excellence (EPNOE) signed a declaration of cooperation with the Supra-Regional Centre for Science and Industry POLINTEGRA, coordinated by the Institute of Biopolymers and Chemical Fibres. POLINTEGRA is made up of 37 scientific bodies and 31 companies. In 2015, POLINTEGRA partnered with EPNOE, BioEconomy Cluster (Germany) and Céréales Vallée (France).

special edition

BUSINESSWOMAN

ENGINEERING STUDIES ARE NOT THE STUDIES FOR THE CHOSEN FEW Prof. Magdalena Wyrwicka, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering Management, Poznań University of Technology, talks with Marcin Haber. Technological studies and the engineer’s profession have long been seen as masculine. Has this changed today? I believe that today’s engineer thinks systemic, takes into account environmental factors and local opportunities. The masculine image of engineer is primarily related to professions, such as designer, constructor, or others that involve creating something completely new. In these jobs men dominate, indeed. However, there are many new engineering professions that deal with technology or in-depth research and analysis that focus on “how is it done?” and not only on how something should look like in terms of concept or design. In my opinion, women are successful in these jobs. From the perspective of my university, women prevail among chemists, architects and in management majors. PM

So you are suggesting that women are very good at things where you need to take a more general look rather than focus on specifics? I think so. Women have analytical skills. They pay attention to details and perhaps it is precisely why they sometimes find it difficult to put together something as a whole, but once you show them that whole, they will be able to point at important details, go down to the operational level so as to put the icing on the cake.

show that engineering studies are not the studies for the chosen few. When I was going to study at the mechanical engineering department, I also had doubts whether, as a high-school girl graduate, I will manage. Subjects such as the strength of materials and gears scared me a little, but I think that if you are curious and persuaded that if one person came up with something, then the other is able to understand and further improve it, then all tasks and projects are feasible. The essence of the campaign is for young women not to fall into stereotyped way of thinking, but to ask themselves the question: “Am I curious to know how a bus is built, or how a metal cast is made?, or else how to programme a robot? Or perhaps it does not interest me at all…” I think that this kind of reflection is extremely important and it should be made in advance to make sure you will not say: “It was not a good choice” when it is already a done deal.

The Poznań University of Technology, including your Faculty of Engineering Management, participates of the campaign “Girls, go to technical universities!”. How do you assess it and how does it actually translate into the number of future female students? Since the launch of the initiative, the number of women who enroll for engineering studies has actually increased. Surveys, which have been conducted on a year-to-year comparative basis, show that more and more women are interested in studying at the Poznań University of Technology (since 2009, there has been an increase of 38.5%). In my opinion, this campaign is primarily intended to PM

Which fields of study have seen the largest increase in female students? First of all, laboratory fields, such as the already mentioned chemistry, but also those associated with organisation and management. In these fields, women constitute up to 50% of all students. Architecture is also popular, mainly due to the fact that women are interested in design and applied arts. Many women are now interested in logistics, safety engineering; they want to work in occupational health and safety services, warn against a variety of threats, care for the quality of the workplace environment. I believe that there is room for women in the world of technology. A complementary perspective is needed here. Even the fields that were once regarded as very masculine, like mechanical engineering, transportation, electrical engineering, telecommunications, automation and robotics, are becoming increasingly popular with women. This is probably because of the changes occurring in these professions due to technological progress. With the use of modern technologies, machines and tools, they are no longer synonymous with hard physical work. PM

Women often see it as a challenge to graduate in such a “masculine” field of study. In order to attract candidates amid population decline, universities must provide some added value to stand out from each other. What is it that the Poznań University of Technology offers to candidates? Our main advantage is a very low unemployment rate among graduates. Most of the students of the Poznań University of Technology already have a job by graduation date. This is currently the biggest incentive for people wondering about the choice of university. We also strive not to specialise in very narrow fields so that graduates have a large selection of jobs in which he or she will be able to work. After a short adaptation to the conditions of a specific institution, graduates of the Poznań University of Technology are able to take on a variety of tasks, as they have quite a broad spectrum of vocational training, including in terms of the so-called soft skills. • PM

polish market

YOU CAN FULFILL YOURSELF BOTH IN FAMILY AND IN PROFESSIONAL

LIFE

Monika Szczerbak, President of the Sol Financial Services Polska

n reading the above sentence, people usually ask: “Can you reconcile raising five children with professional ambitions?” The answer is not simple. But without going into details, I say: “Yes, provided that you have support and understanding from your loved ones.” And it is important not to get lost somewhere in-between, to maintain a balance between the role of mother and wife and the role of professionally fulfilled woman, even if “fulfilled” can be interpreted in a variety of ways. You can fulfill yourself both in family and in professional life; you can have delicious preserves, a perfectly kept house and interesting job at the same time. So it is in my case. The family is my top priority, but I also remember about my professional development. Since I had my first contact with accounting, it has been my passion. As I spotted a gap in the market and demand for accounting services, I decided with my husband to respond to it and make use of the knowledge I gained in my time as researcher, combining it with the extensive finance experience of my husband. The beginnings were not easy. The firm had to work its way through to be competitive, choose the management solutions that would guarantee a maximum effectiveness. Longlasting talks, meetings with experts, implementation of a quality management system, investment in human capital – all this was systematically bringing the expected results. Consequently, we could start expanding and improving the quality of services provided. The result is that SFS now offers professional accounting, human resources and payroll administration, audit, business consulting, expertise and proficiency in solving all kinds of formal and legal problems faced by entrepreneurs. With thorough knowledge of accounting and tax law, as well as Polish economic realities, SFS advises foreign clients, helping them find optimal solutions. Although lecturing and running a business is extremely time-and-energy consuming, I like what I do and do not feel tired. Therefore, I strongly encourage other people, especially women, to fulfill their dreams, to start their own firms. Time is always good, you just have to find your market niche. There are slots in every industry. It is up to you to spot one at the right

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time. Small and medium-sized businesses are the strength of the Polish economy. They are self-confident and positive about the future despite passing difficulties. Work is important to me, but it is not the meaning of my life. I love travelling with my family, endless conversations, buzz and laughter. I do not waste time. I still have so many things to do. Waiting in my drawer is a concept of the book I would like to publish in 2016. I also have big plans for strategic changes in my firm. Even the smallest organisational misstep can be extremely costly. That is why, I strive to perfection in what I do, to share my knowledge and inspire students to entrepreneurship, to make SFS an ideal place for the whole team to work and develop, and to have my children, especially the oldest daughters, draw moral, spiritual, scientific and business patterns from my achievements. In conclusion, let me add: I am going through life with the feeling that I still have to do more, and that is my compass.

Monika Szczerbak – PhD in economics, lecturer of financial and management accounting at the University of Technology and Economics (UTH) in Warsaw, specialist for internal control and audit, a member of the International Network of Accountants and Auditors. Co-founder and long-standing president of the Club of Entrepreneurs and Experts affiliated with the Polish Economic Society (PTE), expert of the Business Boutique Foundation, member of Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship Ambassadors, graduate of the Lomonosov Moscow State University, graduate of the Warsaw University of Technology’s Business School, President of Sol Financial Services (SFS), a business advisory firm providing accounting, tax and legal services to businesses, not-for-profit organizations, embassies, chambers of commerce and high-net-worth individuals. Co-author of books and author of articles. She is particularly interested in research aimed at identifying opportunities and barriers to conducting business, including family enterprises. Mother of four daughters and one son. She does not make a choice between family and career. Her life credo is “I always have time for my wonderful husband and wonderful • children.”

special edition

BUSINESSWOMAN

THE WOMAN

WHO PROMOTES INVESTMENTS IN POLAND Jolanta Tourel, President of the World Trade Center Warsaw Organization

WTC - MISSION The World Trade Center Warsaw is a member of the global, prestigious World Trade Centers Association with headquarters in WTC New York. It is an apolitical organization that cooperates closely with the governmental ministries and agencies which are dedicated to the promotion of trade and exports. The WTC Warsaw supports the efforts of the city of Warsaw to be recognized as one of Europe’s most important capitals for business and commerce. The WTC Warsaw is not competing with other business organizations but it assists, cooperates and complements them by offering a different set of services and possibilities not available elsewhere. The WTC Warsaw is also a member of the international Trade Point Federation, and enjoys the possibility of using both networks of global contacts to support Warsaw’s and Poland’s business community. The WTC Warsaw is a recognized and respected symbol of local focused economic strength for its excellent services and quality operations.

WTC - SERVICES WTC Warsaw has been a member of the WTC Association since 1990 and of the World Trade Point Federation since 2000. Both organizations are non-governmental, established to promote trade, stability and peace, by assisting companies from around the globe to conduct business and have better information and support.

The WTC Warsaw services are reciprocal to members of all the World Trade Centers, from more than 100 countries and 350 major cities. They organise business missions receive incoming delegations and actively participate in Polish official delegations and international business forums.

WTC - AMBASSADOR CLUB The World Trade Center Warsaw in cooperation with the Polish Chamber of Commerce have established the Ambassador Club, at the famous Bristol Hotel. The Mission of this new club is to foster economic ties, cultural links, and friendship, by bringing together foreign ambassadors with Polish guests from the world of politics, culture, media, sport and business. This is the only prestigious forum of its kind in Poland for informal high level networking. By invitation only. • www.wtcwarsaw.org

Jolanta Tourel Since 1990, Jolanta has been President of the World Trade Center in Warsaw. She is a full member of the global WTC Association headquartered in New York, an organisation devoted to world prosperity and peace trough trade. She is Vice-President of the board of the Blue City shopping mall. She is involved in the promotion of investments to Poland, international trade, and real estate developments. She enjoys theatre, classical music and art. Married with one daughter. polish market

INNOVATIVE PROJECT

Aleksandra and Wanda Wegener

WANDA WEGENER Wanda Wegener is a prime example of how effective therapeutic programs based on working with the subconsciousness can be. 25 years ago she suddenly had a severe stroke. An immediate surgery performed in Germany saved her life but she was told that she would be paralyzed for the rest of her life. She refused to accept this and while lying in bed she experimented with visual techniques. Thanks to this she made a full recovery within 2 years. Based on her own experiences she has developed her own techniques and therapeutic programs helping others repair their lives and their health. For the past 20 years she has passed on her knowledge to participants of her workshops, who – after experiencing success themselves – asked her to prepare therapeutic tools for their

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pets. Due to the effectiveness of the treatment and the improved behaviour, health and overall life of the pets the QuanPet device was developed.

ALEKSANDRA WEGENER She runs Awangarda, a consultancy, in Poland and in Britain. A lawyer, certified trainer, consultant and business strategist, she used to be an expert with the Polish Parliament and now pursues a PhD degree in Law. She is a co-author of the book “Public Administration.” Working with psychologist Wanda Wegener, who has developed an innovative method of using one’s own strengths to grow business, she advises her clients, including

special edition

BUSINESSWOMAN

FROM POLISH WOMEN

the largest global corporations on how to act effectively, safely and progressively.

QUANPET It is a mobile, miniature, electronic device that clips onto the collar of your dog, cat, horse or any other beloved animal. It features a built-in recorder with therapeutic programs. It is turned on and off through a phone application designed particularly for people who love animals just like you. Is your pet anxious or aggressive? Do they suffer while you are gone for long periods of time? Many pet owners have experienced these problems just like you. We have a solution for you because we have QuanPet. The ANXIETY program allows your dog, cat or horse to hear a special soothing transmission enhancing the feeling of safety.

The AGGRESSION program sends a special transmission calming down your beloved pet. The HEALTH program helps your dogs, cats or horses in the recovery process by listening to a special therapeutic recording. The LONGING program allows your dog or cat to hear an unique recording providing comfort and peace while you are away. Thanks to a ‘repeat’ function your animal can listen to those programs longer which enables them to achieve an essential change in their behaviours and moods over the course of 3 weeks. We also offer a QuanPet specially designed for horses with a program called DEPRESSION that includes a special therapeutic recording which has a very positive effect on their mood and emotions. When you buy QuanPet for your four-legged friend you get all the four applications. And you dramatically improve the quality of their lives. Now YOU can have it, too. •

polish market

HEALTH COMES FIRST

Prof. Marzena Dominiak, President and Owner of privte clinic, oral surgeon, dentist, scientist

he is a graduate of dentistry from the Wrocław Medical University and a 2nd degree specialist in dental surgery. She was awarded professorship in 2015. Since 2008, she has headed the Department of Oral Surgery Wrocław Medical University. Since January 2012, she has been president of the Lower Silesian Branch of the Polish Dental Association; since 2014 - a member of the Scientific Council of the Polish Society of Laser Dentistry and since 2014 - a Lower Silesian Regional Dental Surgery Specialist. In 2010-2012, she was a member of the international implant research centre (Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-University Bonn, Germany, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-the University of Greifswald, Germany; Dentaurum ®, Germany), conducting research titled: “Evaluation and featuring the structure of bone tissue after implant insertion with the application with the Finite Elements Method (FEM).” Since 2012, she has been a member of the international dental implant research centre (Endowed Chair of Oral Technology, University of Bonn, Germany; Department of Dental Surgery, Wrocław Medical University) for implantology and bone remodeling around the implants. Author of more than 200 full-text publications, book chapters and/or abstracts published in magazines and seminar materials in Polish and English, she also edited and/or co-edited 5 books in Polish and English. She managed and co-managed a total of 38 research projects, including one EU project and 12 international scientific projects. She is a co-author of the patent RP P-381204 “The culture of primary human fibroblasts.” As a result of her research, an innovative method has been developed of morphologic evaluation of alveolar bone in the anterior part of the mandible. Currently,

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research is being completed on the world’s only proven collagen membrane for tissue regeneration, as well as three-dimensional bone blocks for the regeneration of jawbone. She has delivered more than 150 speeches in Polish and English. She was an organiser, co-organiser and/or moderator of international and national conferences. She conducted numerous training courses for the Postgraduate Education Department of Medicine and Dentistry in Wrocław, CMKP and medical companies (MIP-Pharma, 3I Biomet, Quintessence Polska, Geistlich ). She is president of the National

Scientific Committee of the World Dental Federation FDI, which will hold a meeting in Poland in 2016. She holds more than 150 training certificates in the fields of implantology, tissue regeneration and periodontology, from renowned centres in Poland and abroad (Switzerland, Germany, United States, Italy). She is a supervisor of 4 completed PhD theses and 5 in progress; supervisor of 4 completed specialisations in dental surgery and 3 in progress; reviewer of many master’s theses, PhD dissertations and publications in Polish and international journals; member of scientific councils of dental societies and scientific journals in Poland. She was presented with numerous national and international awards in recognition of her scientific and educational work, including “Innovation Dentistry Award”, 2015; “Bronze Cross of Merit”, 2015 and “Bronze Medal for Long Service”, 2010. Member of OSIS-EDI (National Association of Dental Implantology) and EAO (European Association of Osseointegration), PTS (Polish Dental Society), PACMFS (Polish Association for CranioMaxillofacial Surgery, Oral Surgery and Implantology) and PTSL (Polish Society of Laser Dentistry). Since 1997, she has run a private dental clinic Duo-med in Wrocław, which was ranked in 2010 among the 10 best dental clinics in Poland in a survey by the “Dobre Wnętrze” magazine. Prof. Dominiak specialises in the comprehensive and top-class surgery of the alveolar bone, using the entire knowledge she has gained during her scientific career. In her dental practice, she has also conducts educational courses and scientific projects, national and international, including European. Since 2013, she has been an Ambassador of the Polish Network of Women Entrepreneurship. •

special edition

BUSINESSWOMAN

NY change SHOULD BE MADE slowly

Agata Jasiczek, MD, owner of AA s.c. Private Dental Clinic and Euro Beauty Warszawa

y firm has been on the market since 1992. I am still active as a dentist, because this is my primary specialization. Since 1992, I have run my own dental clinic at 19 WaĹ&#x201A;brzyska Street, and since 2011 also at 222/1u GĂłrczewska Street. The Clinic of Dr. Agata Jasiczek offers comprehensive dental care, meeting the highest standards of the European Union, as well as services in aesthetic medicine, permanent makeup, dermatology, cosmetology, massage, endermology and Endermolift. I am a dentist specialising in prosthodontics and implantology, and I continue to develop myself in this field. In addition, I offer aesthetic medicine treatments and permanent makeup. I also run training in needle mesotherapy and fillers. I have been dealing with aesthetic medicine for ten years. I am constantly expanding my knowledge and skills and I am an active member of my professional community, as confirmed by numerous certificates and diplomas. One of my most important assets is individual approach to every patient, which I consider something extremely important in my profession. My basic principle, much appreciated by my patients, is that any change should be made slowly, step by step. It is not that ladies come and have all possible treatments done at once. We try to do it in small steps, so that patients feel and look better, but that they also remain themselves as opposed to changing their appearance drastically. I think the aesthetic medicine does perfectly match my original profession and can well be applied in dentistry. Owing to my determination, persistence in the pursuit of excellence, I am where I am and I managed to branch out into a new business line, starting my second firm Euro Beauty Warszawa. I am strong with ten years of experience now. I can boast a number of undeniable successes, but above all, a lot of satisfied patients, something that gives me personally a great sense of satisfaction. After ten years of working in aesthetic medicine, I now run training courses in aesthetic medicine for doctors. In doing so, I combine two of my specialties - dentistry and aesthetic medicine - showing the doctors I train that the aesthetic medicine is a perfect match for dentistry. This is mainly because not everything can be done using dental procedures, not requiring a large surgical intervention. Sometimes the malocclusion is so serious that it requires a major bone remodeling and patients prefer to avoid it, as it is a too drastic operation. Then we can do as much as possible conservatively, and try to remove the rest of the inconvenience and facial distorâ&#x20AC;˘ tion through aesthetic medicine treatments.

polish market

QUALITY FIRST

Anna Rulkiewicz, President of Lux Med talks to „Polish Market”.

How can we influence the quality of healthcare? We should focus primarily on the effectiveness of treatment. And good management in a co-ordinated care model is conducive to this. To make a long story short, in healthcare it is necessary to pay more attention to the quality criteria, that is the effects of treatment. This should be supported by innovations, which bring patients closer to healthcare. Not without a reason LUX MED has been ranked on the 16th in the list of the most innovative companies in Poland. We’re doing really a lot in this field. We have been successfully involved in teleradiology for 5 years, which allows us to make approximately 200,000 descriptions of tests per year. Our patients suffering from chronic diseases can already obtain a prescription without the need for a complete on-site appointment. We enable chats with nurses and physicians as well as online enquiries for the primary doctor right after the appointment. We are also planning to implement videoconsultations to develop the so-called second opinion teleconsultations.

What does it mean? We integrate funding and provision within one entity, which gives a really good oversight of a patient’s journey. As for coordination, please note that we offer outpatient, inpatient, diagnostic imaging, rehabilitation and long term services. Coming back to your previous question we have a constant direction – coordinated care at every stage of treatment and prevention. Since I became LUX MED president we have successfully completed 24 acquisitions. As a result, we have consolidated the outpatient market on an unprecedented scale in Poland. Now we follow the same path in diagnostic imaging and we already have one of the biggest networks in our country. That brings natural synergies for the patients and for the business, as we are opening diagnostic facilities primarily in the cities where we already run outpatient sites. Today we have seven hospitals, which offer, among others, highly specialised oncology, endoscopy and orthopaedic services. We are being more and more engaged in providing services at the reference level.

Innovations are the key? That’s one of the points, but coordination of services is even more important. What’s more, at LUX MED we place huge emphasis on the development of medical personnel. We organise training courses or even post-graduate studies, enabling our nurses to have very high competencies. For years we have been organising annual all-day courses for physicians and nurses called Academies. They attract several hundred participants at a time. This year we’ve hosted even the nurses from UK and New Zealand. We want to increase the role of nurses in treatment and care, especially in the case of patients with chronic illnesses, since they are well prepared for this already. We should also think of increasing the role of other medical employees, but always remembering about medical safety of patients. Many of our solutions would also be useful at public establishments and we are open to sharing them.

The coordinated model requires well-developed infrastructure. That’s inevitable. Still, infrastructure is one point, but effective and friendly organization of services is the other. We’re working on a model, where a patient is fully taken care of and he’s got a sort of guide that helps him not to get lost in the extensive network of services. That’s what we currently put all our efforts into. •

LUX MED has recently acquired some hospitals. Is this a new direction? I wouldn’t say that this is a new direction. What we aim at is permanent development in the integrated model of coordinated healthcare. PM

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Anna Rulkiewicz For many years she held executive positions in insurance companies. In LUX MED since 2001 - initially as a member of the board, sales and marketing director. In 2007, she was appointed president of the company. She graduated from the Mikołaj Kopernik University in Toruń and completed post-graduate studies at the Polish-French Insurance Institute at the French Institute. She is also President of the Association of Private Employers of Medicine. In June 2013 she was appointed as a Member of the Supervisory Board of Bank Handlowy SA.

special edition

BUSINESSWOMAN

Health above all I

Beata Drzazga, President of BetaMed SA

n a quest to expand, Beata Drzazga launched, in July 2014, the part A of a new BetaMed Medical Active Care Clinic in Chorzów, which includes:

- Care and Treatment Centre for Mechanically Ventilated Children and Youth (under contract with NFZ) – 24-hour care for minor patients requiring medical equipment such as ventilators, oxygen concentrators, etc.; - Mechanical Ventilation Department for Adults (private services) - specialised health programmes tailor-made to the health status and needs of patients; - Care and Treatment Centre (under the contract with NFZ) - treatment, rehabilitation, nursing care and psychotherapy, round-the-clock care; - General Rehabilitation Department for Adults (private services) - specialised health programmes tailor-made to the health status and needs of patients; - private daytime care - for elderly and disabled people who might need emergency care and who want to spend time with people of similar age; - Outpatient Rehabilitation Centre (under the contract with NFZ) – a wide range of rehabilitation treatments:, physiotherapy, cryotherapy and hydrotherapy; - Outpatient Rehabilitation Centre (private services) - Innovative point-of-care diagnostic devices and a wide range of rehabilitation treatments.

Clinic. There will be new wards and clinics, as well as lecture halls and conference rooms, and aesthetic medicine services will be provided. Beata Drzazga wants to boost the cultural and recreational services for the elderly, and especially encourage them to live an active lifestyle. She is furthermore planning to open a club & café for local residents, with a wide range of events and activities offered in the field of health, beauty, fashion, etc. The project is aimed at making seniors active so that they can enjoy every moment of their lives and preserve health and fitness as long as possible. Beata Drzazga has always been committed to ensuring the highest quality standards of medical services and patient care, as confirmed by numerous certificates and awards. BetaMed S.A. has been certified to ISO 9001:2000 and to ISO 27001: 2013 Information Security Management System, and is successfully re-certified every year. The firm and its owner have also been awarded many prizes, including : the “Teraz Polska” Promotional Emblem, Silesian Business Caesar Statuette with a Diamond, “Company with the Future” title, Golden Laurel of Skills and Competence in the category “Enterprising Woman”, Golden Badge of Merit for the Development of Silesia, Golden Certificate of Reliability, “Manager of the Year 2014” title, “Focus on Quality in Health Care” certificate, European Medal BCC, “Businesswoman of the Year 2014” title, “Health Market Manager” title and many others. Beata Drzazga is also a fashion passionate and owns Dono da Scheggia, a high-street dress shop for fastidious and elegant women. It offers

collections of brands coming from Milan, London and Paris, exclusive Casadei shoes, and Gemma evening gowns. Dono da Scheggia also organises fashion shows and participates in events such as Silesia Fashion Day. Beata Drzazga often sits on juries for young designers’ competitions. She has funded a trip to Milan for the winner of this year’s edition of “Young Wave” (Polish: Młoda Fala). Beata Drzazga continues to improve her qualifications through participating in conferences and in trainings in Poland and abroad. After graduating in human resource management, she enrolled for postgraduate studies in healthcare management and European integration. She also completed a two-year course in geriatrics and threeyear PhD studies (viva is pending), and she is now doing MBA studies in Warsaw. •

HEALTH In the near future, Beata Drzazga plans to open parts B and C of the BetaMed Medical Active Care

Beata Drzazga – founder, owner and president of BetaMed SA, a private firm with a headcount of nearly 3,000 employees, operating 84 branches in 11 regions of Poland. It has been in existence for 14 years now and is Poland’s largest healthcare unit, providing long-term nursing home care for elderly, chronically sick or disabled people. From its very beginnings, the firm has been developing dynamically both in Silesia and in other regions of the country. It specialises in providing nursing care as part of the contract with the Polish National Health Fund (NFZ) and long-term care for mechanically ventilated patients. polish market

INVESTMENTS

OUT OF PASSION FOR ART

Dorota Tworek, CEO, FONTIA Hotel Bristol ****Art & Medical SPA

hen you talk with Dorota Tworek you can not suspect she has an engineering degree and runs her own building company. Right at the beginning of the conversation she mentions so many areas of interest and activity that one can hardly remember them all. Together with her husband she has been running Dorbud SA, one of the biggest building companies in the Świętokrzyskie province, out of passion for art they have established the New Art Space Foundation, she manages at the same time several big investment projects, is the boss of the Bristol**** Art & Medical SPA in Busko-Zdrój, spends her leisure time taking part in various art and charity projects. She has turned her passion for art into her chief asset, made out of it the value added to various investments connected with art. In September 2014 she marked on the map of the famous BuskoZdrój health resort a new hotel, Bristol**** Art and Medical SPA being an extension of the historical Bristol villa from the end of the 19th century. There are no impossible missions for Dorota Tworek – she proves that even very ambitious goals, can be achieved. As an engineer, she thinks pragmatically focusing on realistic actions and measurable effects, while an artist living inside her prompts her which way to go, which direction to choose to create something unique. The Bristol Hotel, like her owner, defines new standards among hotels. It offers to the guests luxurious interiors enriched by noble mood created by more than 200 works of art. The modern medical centre provides unique treatments based on sulphide water, the natural resources of Busko-Zdrój, as well as individual rehabilitation and kinesitherapy supported by state-of-the-art technologies.

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Natural, luxurious cosmetics are used for spa and wellness treatments helping you to get vitality and beauty back. There are many attractions in the Bristol****Art & Medical SPA, so let’s mention a few. This is the only hotel in Poland where the air is being ionized, so both rooms and hotel spaces are friendly for persons suffering from allergies. The swimming pool, with water purified by nanosilver, a natural germicide, has already a group of regular visitors. This is a very new technology and only a few swimming pools in Poland use it, but being ambitious means that each element of the hotel must be of top quality. The antigravity treadmill based on the technology invented by NASA is a modern device which relieves the body weight up to 80% giving a feeling of weightlessness. It is ideal for patients with lesions across all joints of the lower limbs: the hip, knee and ankle. There are many exercises which can be done only with the help this kind of treadmill – without it they are practically impossible. Artetherapy, or healing with art, is an original programme of therapeutic workshop which helps to restore the peace and harmony. Art is a powerful healer, no doubt. A combination of a study, fireplace room and library is a unique solution for an excellent space for work, meeting and conferences. The terrace on the roof is a fantastic venue for music events of all kinds, for fashion shows and other attractions. The list can be much longer, but this is not the point. Guests are the point, their comfort and satisfaction. Each year the New Art Space Foundation publishes an artist’s calendar. Dorota Tworek and her husband choose an artist and order a set of works, not interfering at all in the artist’s vision. The art is to evoke emotions, so it can happen that her opinion differs form the one of her husband. The

calendar has its place in the Bristol Hotel, a wall in the lobby where 12 works are hung – the work referring to the current month is displayed over the fireplace. The works from the former editions can be found in various parts of the hotel. The hotel itself and the garden around it are the space to present the works created for the “Art in the public space” project. For seven years the couple have been the initiators, organisers and patrons of the art exhibitions in the Artist Square in Kielce. The installations built by the invited artists (Leon Tarasewicz and Robert Kuśmirowski among them) attracted both the local inhabitants and tourists. When asked about new ideas, Dorota Tworek takes a deep breath to mention the ones planned for the nearest future and those being already on the go. In any activity, no matter professional or social or artistic, she is involved full force and this is the source of great satisfaction to her. She doesn’t belabour her defeats, doesn’t look back. The most important thing is to go ahead, to wid• en the horizons, to create new projects.

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BUSINESSWOMAN

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SENSITIVE TO

ECOLOGY Beata Pawłowska, Managing Director at Oriflame Poland Sp. z o.o., talks to „Polish Market”.

Oriflame was established in Sweden by two brothers and a friend of theirs in 1967. After these 48 years on the market, is the company still a family business, cherishing its original values, or is it already a typical corporation? The company has grown substantially since its foundation. We publish catalogues in 35 languages, we have 3.6 million consultants, in 2017 Oriflame will celebrate its fifty years of existence, and in 2016 – twenty five years of presence in Poland. Oriflame is a big corporation when it comes to business structures, but the spirit of the company has not changed, our values – Spirit, Passion and Togetherness – are extremely important and still hold on, and our founders do care about human relations within Oriflame – we meet, we talk, we go together for seminars. After all, it is on these values that our success depends, so we cherish them. Our values are what we live on, and our people and consultants are their guardians. Oriflame’s brand promise is “Your Dreams – Our Inspiration”: we do everything to make our consultants’ dreams come true, small ones, about earnings, and big ones, about long journeys or building their own large-scale business. PM

I read that Oriflame’s belief is that corporations have a moral mission to accomplish. Could you say something more about this

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mission? Is it a matter of sustainable development? Yes, I think so. And it is very important for us. First of all, we think about women. We want them to develop, to be independent and self-confident, to be able to combine professional work with the roles of mothers and wives. We let them fulfill themselves in many fields. We are also open to women facing discrimination on the labour market, I mean the women aged over 50, whom we are activating professionally. These ladies represent more than 20% of our consultants. The same applies to residents of small towns and villages, regardless of education. All you need to start your business is enthusiasm. We are also a kind of micro-entrepreneurship incubator. To start your business with us, you do not need your own capital, or special education, as we provide all the necessary tools, including training. And it is micro-entrepreneurship that forms the basis of Poland’s economy. Importantly, with Oriflame, people can work where they live - in small towns, or villages, without having to move to cities. This activates people living in small towns and rural areas and helps them find a job and a passion. As many as 24% of our consultants are people under 30. Our mission is also to check the outflow of young people abroad; we strive to keep them in Poland and provide them with means of livelihood. The business model we propose fits perfectly

with the expectations of young people, with their dreams of independence, running their own business, earning money. Young people can learn business with Oriflame when still in their school and college years, so they are well-prepared once they enter the labour market. It often happens that the experience is so positive that they choose to stay with us, which makes us very happy. What is Oriflame’s approach to sustainable development? As for the idea of sustainable development, Oriflame has always been a responsible company, committed to environment protection. Sustainable development is part of our core business, which is why we strive to be ever more efficient and innovative. Our long-term sustainability strategy is based on three pillars: Successful People – creating opportunities for the people we interact with; Great Products – creating products that bring more beauty, wellbeing and confidence to the lives of millions of people; Thriving Planet – reducing the environmental footprint. We are one of the world’s first cosmetics manufacturers to use natural ingredients. We take great care to ensure that the materials we use are sourced with respect for the best practices and we strive to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We have launched the world’s first foaming product containing segregated sustainable palm PM

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BUSINESSWOMAN oil, certified by RSPO (Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil). We are committed to using biodegradable materials and relevant investments are made. However, we do not have 100% organic and biodegradable materials. As a Swedish company, we are extremely sensitive to ecology. Honesty, responsibility and respect are the key words for us. Do you think ecology means less profit? “Ecological” does not necessarily mean “expensive”. There are several reasons why the respect for nature pays off, both to businesses and consumers. Environmentally-friendly companies are rated higher by the market and customers, enjoy greater prestige and trust. Consequently, Oriflame, with its environmental awareness, has an asset, a competitive advantage that attracts investors. Our cosmetics have been awarded by the Cosmetic Executive Women; Oriflame is a partner of the Rainforest Alliance, and has been recognised as a Climate Change Strategy Leader by the Carbon Disclosure Project. So our care for the environment pays dividends. Sustainability also means effectiveness. Reducing the negative impact on the environment can actually bring savings. At Oriflame, we keep working through the issue of packaging. We want it to be designed to best fit in containers and trucks, so as to stick to the lowest possible number of trucks, and therefore cut down on exhaust gases and costs. Let me give you some hard data: PM

with a 50% increase in cargo, we managed to save EUR 5 million between 2010 and 2014! Are your cosmetics produced in Poland or is the Polish branch of Oriflame in charge of selling them only? Our cosmetics are, of course, manufactured in Poland. Our factory is one of Oriflame’s five sites in the world. It is a big, very modern plant, producing cosmetics for skin and body care and make-up. We employ 350 people who are experts in their fields, and our products meet the highest international standards. Quality is extremely important for us. Therefore, very strict standards are applied at every stage of the production process, starting from the moment of testing components. But Poland is not only Oriflame’s manufacturing location. It is also one of the company’s primary markets, which is why Warsaw took over some corporate functions. Warsaw’s regional office for Central Europe and Africa is a place where over a hundred people are working on a strategy and development directions, where plans are made and very important decisions are taken. Oriflame’s Global Logistics Centre, from where our products are sent outside Europe, is located in Piaseczno near Warsaw. PM

These days, innovation can be traced as a trend in virtually every field of human life. Does a cosmetics company use new technologies, too?

Of course, the beauty industry cannot develop without innovations and new technologies. Our advanced formulas are developed and are constantly improved in the Global Research and Development Centre in Dublin, Ireland, and breakthrough, often patented, technologies are developed by our scientists at the Institute for Skin Research in Stockholm, Sweden. We are also working with independent experts who are world-class leaders in the field of cosmetics. We keep seeking technological perfection to create innovative, high-quality products matching the latest trends and requirements of customers. Our goal and mission is to develop technologies presenting absolutely top levels of quality and efficiency. Where are new technologies and formulas born? Who is behind them? In addition to research units, of which Dublin’s one alone counts over 100 scientists, the company operates the Centre for Research on Healthy Lifestyle in Igelosa, Sweden. We work with the Karolinska Institute, one of Europe’s best dermatological institutes. Each of these facilities employs top-notch professionals - scientists, researchers, technicians. And it is in their brilliant minds that innovative ideas and breakthrough technologies are born. We can boast of using over 1,600 well-tested ingredients and having achieved 30 patents recently. What guarantees the quality of our products is in-depth expertise, cutting-edge technologies, drawing both on nature and science, and a constant search for • innovation. PM

2 016 G L O B A L S U M M I T OF WOMEN IN WARSAW

he 2016 Global Summit of Women will be held on 9-11 June in Warsaw. The decision was made by the International Planning Committee of the Global Summit of Women. The venue was proposed by the Congress of Women. The Global Summit of Women, dubbed the women’s Davos, is the largest and most important economic forum for women. Organised for 24 years, every time in a different country, it brings together global female decision-makers, politicians, CEOs and NGO leaders. This year’s summit, held in Paris, was attended by 1,100 women from 80 countries, who discussed the role of women in economic and social transformations. The Congress of Women agreed Warsaw’s candidature both with the Polish government and the municipal authorities. I think that the organisation of such an important event in Poland will be a great opportunity to promote our

country internationally and an important symbol. The Global Summit of Women is a unique opportunity to meet the greatest women from the world of politics, business, culture and media from around the world. That is why it has been attended, for several years now, by representatives of the Congress of Women - the largest grassroots women’s movement in Poland. Participating in its subsequent editions, we are able to present our Polish and feminine achievements, but also draw on the experience of women from around the world. At this year’s Global Summit of Women in Paris Poland was represented by a 14-strong official delegation headed by Agnieszka KozłowskaRajewicz, the outgoing Government Commissioner for Equal Treatment, now an MEP. The Polish delegation also included, Małgorzata Omilanowska, minister of culture, Prof. Magdalena Środa, ethicist, philosopher, minister

of education, science and sports in the Cabinet of Shadows of the Congress of Women, Dorota Warakomska, journalist and writer, president of the Congress of Women Association, Monika Ksieniewicz, deputy director of the office of the Commissioner for Equal Treatment, Dominika Bettman, Chief Financial Officer at Siemens Polska, Krystyna Boczkowska, president of Bosch Polska, Beata Gessel Kalinowska vel Kalisz, Managing Partner at Gessel i Wspólnicy, Katarzyna Majewska, Managing Director of PZU SA, Małgorzata Nowak-Niedźwiecka, president of Poldent, Bogusława Matuszewska, former president of PGE, and Joanna Bochniarz, president of the EFC foundation. The previous editions of the Global Summit of Women were held in, among others, Malaysia (2013), Greece (2012), Turkey (2011), China (2010) and Chile (2009). •

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VALUES GIVE

MEANING TO LIFE Alicja Wojciechowska, founder of Alles, a Polish lingerie manufacturer, talks to ”Polish Market”. Alles inspires women not only in Poland but also abroad. The company holds several brands: Mama by Alles, Medibra by Alles and Glamour, which are produced based on the latest fashion trends, using superior technologies. Alles is a family business, guided by such values as honesty, responsibility and respect, which means that the company is perceived as a luxury brand. Its owners believe that success is a journey, and not a destination. And they never forget about what is most important on the way to success: respect for people, the use of the latest technologies and matching the needs of customers, leading them to opening the new Alles shops.

The company is about to celebrate its 25 years. Are there any reflections you would like to share about it? Transforming a small manufactory into a leading company on the lingerie market is a success story for owners, employees and business partners. We are now present in many countries around the world. We are opening new shops, improving production, repositioning the Alles brand into higher segments of the market; we are creating rewarding jobs, enabling employee development. The most important reflection is that, despite the fact that the market is constantly changing its face, especially after the economic transformation, Alles is reinforcing its position, challenging itself, aims as high as possible, confident in success, because dreams and determination are its allies. PM

What are your business secrets that brought you to the ranking of the best lingerie brands? There are a number of factors impacting the ranking of the best lingerie brands. We are not interested in survival, but in development. Besides creativity and intuition, what counts in fashion is dressmaking skills and knowledge of trends. The materials we use are of the highest quality. While drawing conclusions from the observation of customer behaviours, we are reaching out for sales forecasting knowledge and creating customer PM

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needs based on market surveys. We are now opening the third shop to offer our customers underwear meeting their needs in terms of quality and functionality. In my opinion, only reliable and up-to-date knowledge will allow further brand development towards becoming a fashion creator. You are told to be a warm, unique, positive, inspiring and honest person... Is being in business detrimental to your personality? If fate gives you such personality traits, you should thank it and make good use of them. Everyone has his or her own idea of what is really important, but honesty, kindness, positive thinking are the qualities of people with values. My life has not always been colourful, but I am a happy wife, mother, grandmother, a person who will not do a thing without making the heart and the reason work together. Such a conjunction is a gift, although it is not always easy. For me, success is about building a healthy relationship between work and private life, and living in harmony with my values. You cannot afford losing them somewhere in the pursuit of success, because they are too precious. PM

What are the values guiding you in your life and in business?

Alles shop in the Manufaktura shopping centre in Łódź

Values give meaning to life. They are a driving force behind action. In my daily life, I do my best to share the good I have, to make sure my family is happy and healthy and smile to people, because it doubles my chances to work honestly and treat people with respect. I am convinced that the greatest form of gratitude is when the word “joy” turns into “thank you.” My personal maxim saved in my secret little notebook is: “I will do everything to make every day inspirational, active, positive for my family, friends, coworkers, for the Lord and with His help.” As Don Sibet once said: “What comes from the heart, touches the heart.” Is it worth living otherwise? What would be your message to our readers? As Albert Einstein put it: “Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile.” So I am trying to gracefully take everything that life brings and learn to accept it. I believe that the fate will reward me. In my opinion, time is the best adviser and judge. It is everyone’s obligation to make use of his or her talents. I wish you all to be an inspiration for others, I wish you determination in fulfilling your dreams, not least the largest ones, but those that give you joy. Do not forget to celebrate even the smallest events. • PM

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BUSINESSWOMAN

MOKATE’S

WOMEN Sylwia Mokrysz, Member of the Management Board of Mokate

t is safe to say that Teresa Mokrysz is the undisputed and most recognisable face of the company Mokate. But going back in history, it is men who had the decisive voice. It all began in 1900, as Josef Mokryš founded a family business - a shop with “colonial” goods in the Silesian town of Cieszyn (now within the borders of the Czech Republic). Twenty seven years later, his younger brother Alois followed in his footsepts and opened a similar shop in Goleszów. The firm was already known as “Mokrysz”. However, it was not until the 1990s, along with the political changes in Poland, that chances appeared for a dynamic development of the family business. In 1990, Kazimierz Mokrysz, a grandson of the original owner, made over the business to his wife. Teresa Mokrysz changed the name to MOKATE (an acronym of MOkryszKAzimierz-TEresa) and branched into coffee creamers. All this happened after moving to Ustroń. Soon, Mokate Cappuccino was launched, which still remains the undisputed market leader in its category. It was the proverbial “bull’s eye”. Teresa Mokrysz, who is behind Mokate’s success, is often portrayed in the media. In the 2011 special edition of “Polish Market” devoted to women-managers, Teresa Mokrysz told us about the important role that men, including her husband, play in the company: “From the very beginning, he was extremely supportive. Moreover, he took on his shoulders the most challenging tasks. It is thanks to his perseverance and ingenuity that production got started twenty years ago...” Teresa Mokrysz also appreciated the role of their children. “I must add that I can count on my children, too.

Sylwia and Adam are Board members and have already significant achievements to their credit.” Mokate remains a family business. Such companies usually operate based on three pillars: flexibility, fidelity to traditional values and close customer relationship. They are more economical, active in a couple of business lines, and generally they have a higher share of exports in total sales than “typical” companies. As a result, they create a sustainable and stable business model resistant to crises. And most importantly, consideration for future generations often takes precedence in a family business over profit as such. Adam Mokrysz, a Board member, is successfully building Mokate’s position globally. However, as this issue of “Polish Market” is dedicated to women, we will present you Sylwia Mokrysz. She graduated from the Faculty of Management at the University of Economics in Katowice and postgraduate studies in management at the Warsaw School of Economics. At the beginning of her career, still a student, she led Mokate’s foreign correspondence, translating papers into German, English and Russian. Then, she switched to marketing, co-creating one of the first Polish TV commercials under the slogan: “Mokate Cappuccino - a coffee star.” Sylwia Mokrysz is now working on a development strategy for Mokate tea. Championing innovative products, she is responsible for marketing and PR of the tea business line and Lavazza in Poland. She has initiated Mokate’s participation in the most prestigious cultural events in Poland. She is also involved in many social projects, including those promoting the role of women.

A Women’s Enterprise Ambassador, she is also a member of the Family Business Network and the Million Women Mentors. Summing up 2015, Sylwia Mokrysz says: “Mokate’s tea business line has had another successful year. The company has maintained its position as the second largest tea seller in Poland: the black tea ‘Minutka’ remains the country’s topselling tea, and LOYD brand’s portfolio has been enriched by some unusual items, including the Manuka honey flavour, or Tea&Wine - a flavour inspired by the taste of wine. We have also had a significant export success, constantly strengthening the position of our tea brands outside Poland, especially in the Balkans, in the Czech Republic and Slovakia and in the Baltic countries. The company’s never-changing feature is the strategy of qualitative advantages. Our tea blends are made from the absolutely best teas, which are carefully selected and undergo a multistage quality control process.” Over the years, Mokate has become a leader of the market of coffee, tea and semi-finished food products - in the latter category it is a major player on the European market. More than 50% of its production is exported to nearly 60 countries around the world. Mokate operates 9 plants located in Poland and Central and Eastern Europe, with a headcount of around 1,500 employees. The company is a perfect example of successful women: brave, tenacious, focused on innovation and modernity. An example often and deservedly posed as a model for all ladies interested in a professional career and development. •

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BASED IN A MODERN WORLD Sylwia Ładzińska, founder and co-owner of the companies MetalMaster and FLARIS

ylwia Ładzińska is a founder and one of the owners of the companies Metal-Master and Flaris, and the originator of the Flaris lar 1, a single-engine jet aircraft with a very lightweight, composite structure, which owes its performance to modern technology and exceptional aerodynamics. She has received the “Innovative Project in Aviation Industry” award from the Polish Enterprise Development Agency (PARP), as well as the titles: “Enterprise Leader of 2013” and “Best Innovation 2013/2014”. She also won the first place in the “Flying Eagles 2013” survey’s “Product of the Year” category for the concept and development of an innovative aircraft. The Flaris lar 1 is a single-engine jet aircraft with a very lightweight, composite structure. It ushers in a new category of small, lightweight jets, ideal to move quickly for any purpose. “The idea of a private jet came to my mind while in a traffic jam on a motorway in Germany. Everyday life requires mobility. You have to get quickly to a meeting with a client, a contractor or a business partner. Today, we are all mobile in a virtual sense, with smartphones and laptops, but physically we do not keep up with the virtual world. I think that the Flaris will popularise personal transportation,” Ładzińska says. Apart from a pilot, the Flaris can accommodate four passengers. “It is a small jet than can be used for business and family trips. It can take off almost from your house and land at small airfields close to your destination. We created it for businesspeople, doctors, engineers, managers who need to be mobile for their work,” she adds. The Flaris owes its performance to an extremely low take-off weight (1,500 kg), an advanced propulsion and an exceptional lift-todrag ratio (D=18). It is as much as one tonne lighter than VLJ-class planes, ushering in a new category of very light jets. Such a structure allowed to significantly reduce fuel consumption and thereby emissions, which makes the plane environmentally friendly. Low the fuel consumption keeps the trip cost down. It is estimated that fuel can be as cheap as PLN 0.20 per km per person, with 5 people on board. A small but comfortable car-like cockpit made it possible to minimise the size and weight of the plane, which has a positive effect on its performance.

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Urszula Ciołeszyńska and Sylwia Ładzińska

The plane has found recognition in numerous competitions and from many experts as extremely innovative. And what makes it innovative? “Basically everything: structure, properties, production technology. We worked out our own, original solutions rather than copying those already known,” argues Sylwia Ładzińska. The Flaris lar 1 is a product of Metal-Master. The company is a kind of incubator for structural and technological solutions, manufacturing aviation goods, designs prototypes, builds models and optimizses upgrades. Metal-Master is a company firmly based in a modern world. It was established in 2000 by Sylwia and Rafał Ładziński who from the beginning have opted for progress and innovation. The company successfully designs, produces and develops process lines used in manufacturing car parts for every European car maker. As much as 95% of its products are exported, mainly to Europe, Africa and Central America. Since 2009, Metal-Master has been on the project “Development and Implementation of a Small Business Jet PKWiU 30.30.33”, which is co-financed from the European Regional Development Fund under the Operational Programme Innovative Economy for 2007-2013, Measure 1.4: Support for targeted projects, Priority Axis 1: Research and development of new technologies, and Measure 4.1: Support results of R+D, Priority Axis 4: Investments in innovative undertakings. •

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BUSINESSWOMAN

POLISH GEMS Photo: dream-wallpaper.com

When we think about popular Polish athletes, such names as Małysz, Kubica Stoch or Sonik, come immediately to our mind. From time to time there are news in the media about Polish volleyball and handball players. But are these male athletes the only gems in Polish sports? Not at all. When listing the greatest names one should remember about Polish outstanding female athletes. They include Justyna Kowalczyk and Agnieszka Radwańska.

A FEMALE GLADIATOR

In Poland Justyna Kowalczyk, a cross-country skier, has earned an almost divine position for herself. Polish people, not only skiing fans, treat her in a special way. She has become an inspiration for many young athletes. The support and adoration she receives can be compared to the atmosphere created by ski-jumping fans around Adam Małysz when he was a top ski jumper for many seasons. The same is the case with Justyna Kowalczyk. For many years her sporting results have reflected the world’s highest level that she represents. She has stressed in many interviews that the key to her success is that she is an exceptionally dogged person and would try to reach a goal she has set herself at any cost. And regardless of the cost, she was determined to take part in the Olympic Games in Sochi. She came only sixth in the first event – a 15-kilometre skiathlon race. The main reason was that she fell when changing her skis after the first part of the race. After the race, on her official Twitter account Justyna revealed another reason behind her poorer performance – an X-ray of her foot showing that she competed in Sochi with a fractured foot bone. Experts say it is possible to compete with this kind of injury, but it definitely greatly affects the ability of the injured athlete. Justyna is one of the few female athletes who can count on their fans irrespective of the circumstances. Her well-established position and nice, though sometimes uncompromising, character mean that fans are exceptionally devoted to her. There are few athletes who receive comments of the kind: “Justyna, whether you win or not you

Agnieszka Radwańska

are still great for us.” We are looking forward to another great results this season.

WITH A RACQUET AND MILLIONS

Another Polish sports icon is a female tennis player Agnieszka Radwańska. She is a gem among Polish tennis players – none of them has won as many titles in prestigious international tournaments. She is ranked among top female tennis players and has reached the highest place in WTA rankings of all Polish tennis players ever. The career of the 26-year-old athlete began in 2005. Soon after receiving the status of professional player, she won her first big tournament, becoming a Wimbledon junior champion. Another great success in her career was the junior French Open title in 2006. This is where her road to winning millions in prize money began. It is estimated that Radwańska, having won 13 WTA singles tournaments, and several doubles and smaller tournaments, has already earned over USD14 million. This is of course the best result ever achieved by a Polish tennis player. Agnieszka Radwańska began the 2014 season with the second place in the Hopman Cup mixed doubles tournament. Her partner was Grzegorz Panfil. They won all matches in their road to the final but in the last one fell to a French pair. On January 13-25, she took part in the prestigious Australian Open tournament where she managed to make it to the semi-finals for the first time in her career. On the way up, she defeated Victoria Azarenka, the defender of the title, but failed to reach the final. In 2013, Radwańska was ranked fourth

in the “Forbes” league table of the most valuable stars of Polish show business. The table shows how much individual celebrities are worth for advertisers. Agnieszka’s value was set at PLN764,000. She ranked behind football player Robert Lewandowski, actor Marek Kondrat and social campaigner Jerzy Owsiak.

WHAT NEXT?

Poland has had outstanding female athletes in many sports. The women mentioned above are the best proof. But what about the future? Agnieszka Radwańska is 26. Her career will last another 10 years at the most. Justyna Kowalczyk said the Olympic Games in Sochi were her last ones, suggesting that she was going to end her career within the next four years. Unfortunately, the two have no successors. When Adam Małysz retired the void he left was filled by young ski jumpers, including the gold medallist of Sochi. But the situation is quite unlikely to repeat itself in the case of the two female athletes. Our hopes should be pinned on better training. Poland should give preference to the several sports in which Polish athletes have been greatly successful and invest a lot in training children. One of the sports is shooting, with much success achieved in it by Renata Mauer, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and three-time world champion. It is also worth mentioning swimming and fencing, at which Polish women are increasing good. With a population of over 38 million, Poland surely has sporting gems. One only needs to find and polish them. •

polish market

mat. Kayax

Prof. Alicja Chybicka

Małgorzata Walewska

Urszula Dudziak

WOMEN WITH Pearls

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Irena Koźmińska

Maryla Rodowicz

Krystyna Janda

It is already for the tenth time that the Honorary Pearls of “Polish Market”, awarded to the most outstanding personalities and institutions in the fields of economy, culture, science, social values and patriotism, whose achievements, experience, prestige and undisputed personal qualities allow to recognise them as ambassadors of the highest Polish values, were presented during the Gala of the Pearls of the Polish Economy on 6 November 2015.

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he Honorary Pearls are awarded by a Jury composed of individuals enjoying great authority and recognition: Prof. Jerzy Buzek, Member of the European Parliament; Tadeusz Donocik, President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Katowice; Grażyna Jaskuła, Vice-President of Oficyna Wydawnicza Rynek Polski the publisher of “Polish Market”; Prof. Janusz Lipkowski, President of the Jury; Prof. Ksawery Piwocki, Former Rector of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw; Prof. Andrzej Rottermund, Director of the Royal Castle in Warsaw; Adam Szejnfeld, Member of the European Parliament; Janusz Steinhoff, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy in the Jerzy Buzek government (1997-2001), Prof. Andrzej Wiszniewski, Former Minister of Science and Higher Education; Krystyna Woźniak-Trzosek, President of Oficyna Wydawnicza Rynek Polski and Editor-in-Chief of “Polish Market.” In the years 2006-2015, the Honorary Pearls were awarded to the following 14 women: in the category of culture - Urszula Dudziak, Małgorzata Walewska, Anna Maria Jopek, Krystyna Janda and Maryla Rodowicz; in the category of science (industrial design) - Czesława Frejlich and Ewa Gołębiowska; in the category of science - Alicja Chybicka and Maria Siemionow; in the category of social values’ promotion - Janina Ochojska, Bożena Kazanowska, Bożena Walter (and TVN Foundation “You Are Not Alone”), Małgorzata Żak (and Polsat Foundation) and Irena Koźmińska. Maciej Proliński takes you through the profiles of the winners from the years 2006-2015. Urszula DUDZIAK is the first lady of Polish jazz. She always adds a unique element in the collective work of the band. And she worked, in the studio and on the stage, with artists like Herbie Hancock, Marcus Miller, Bobby McFerrin, Krzysztof Komeda, Michał Urbaniak. She was a soloist with Gil Evans’s orchestra. She recorded about 50 albums. When she started touring, it was said that she sang as if “she was continuously smiling.” And this is until today the essence of her performance. A scene is a sacred place for her. “Wszystko gra” is her last year’s excellent new album, which consists of compositions and arrangements of pianist Jan Smoczyński. Jazz is mixed here with quite perky and lively music from around the world. Everything is transparent here like in Mozart’s music. The primacy of melody makes you quickly memorise the song, and within a few minutes, you can capture the incredible joy of that art in its final, though so

greatly improvised, shape. The sounds of this album offers a sheer pleasure. This precision combined with swinging freedom! These are beautiful unisons and compositions, arranged with great flair and immediately perceptible space. Małgorzata WALEWSKA is considered one of the foremost mezzo-sopranos of our times, acclaimed in operas around the world. She graduated from the Fryderyk Chopin Music Academy in Warsaw in the class of Prof. Halina Słonicka. She participated in many international competitions: in 1992 she won the first prize in the Alfredo Kraus Competition in Las Palmas and two best mezzo-soprano prizes in the Stanisław Moniuszko International Competition in Warsaw. She was also a finalist of the Belvedere International Singing Competition in Vienna and the Luciano Pavarotti Competition in Philadelphia. While still a student in 1991, she sang Asa in Paderewski’s “Manru” at the Teatr Wielki - Polish National Opera. In 2006, she made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York as Dalila in “Samson and Dalila” (with José Cura as Samson). In 1999, the British magazine “The Time” called Walewska one of the “bright stars who will lead Poland into the next millennium.” In 2014, she was appointed as Artistic Director of the Ada Sari International Festival and Competition of Vocal Arts. Anna Maria JOPEK is one of the most important Polish jazz singers and one of the most charming ambassadors of Polish jazz in the world. Her first album - “Ale jestem” - was released almost 20 years ago, namely in 1997. The music and colourful, stylistically diverse arrangements by Mateusz and Marcin Pospieszalski, as well as a distinct, individual style of Anna Maria, made her debut a well-deserved success. Since that time, she collaborated with the major figures of Polish and world jazz: Branford Marsalis, Richard Bona, Tomasz Stańko, Leszek Możdżer, Henryk Miśkiewicz, Marek Napiórkowski and the above mentioned Pospieszalski brothers. In 2002, Anna Maria Jopek carried out a common project - an album and concerts - with Pat Metheny, the world’s greatest jazz guitarist. It was one of the most important projects in the history of Polish jazz, and Polish music at all so far. Krystyna JANDA is no doubt one of the busiest institutions of Polish theatre and film. Actress, director, and for almost a decade also head of Polonia Theatre, a private venture combining the audience success with the artistic one. “Theatre seems today one of the cleanest, in terms of

ideas, happiest and safest places in the world. A place where people under the miraculous agreement, which have some enter the stage and others listen to them and watch, still wonder about the major concepts of humanity: love, morality, truth, friendship, humanity,” says Janda, who from the inception of her foundation fantastically enriches the capital’s cultural offer. Robin Hawdon, one of the most popular writers of English comedies and farces, wrote especially for Krystyna Janda “Weekend with R.” staged with great success in Warsaw. Thanks to Janda, a creator of important stage events, we could see in theatre and with her participation such plays as: Chekhov’s “32 Faints” directed by Andrzej Domalik, “Danuta W.” directed by Janusz Zaorski based on a sensational book by Danuta Wałęsowa. And she directed by herself “Loves of a Blonde,” a story taken from the famous film by Miloš Forman and an oratorio based on the “Dairy of the Warsaw Uprising” by Miron Białoszewski. The actress does not neglect cinema either. Unquestionably, her greatest film achievements invariably include “Interrogation” by Ryszard Bugajski for which she received the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival, and a double, moving and so painfully “not acting-like” role in “Sweet Rush” by Andrzej Wajda.

MARYLA RODOWICZ is an icon of the Polish musical scene. She has about 2,000 songs and 30 albums in her catalogue. She has never stopped to catch her breath for several decades. The greatest masters of Polish song have written for her Agnieszka Osiecka, Ernest Bryll and Jonasz Kofta, and she has worked with such prominent composers as Katarzyna Gaertner and Seweryn Krajewski. A total of 15 million albums of Maryla Rodowicz have been sold to date. She has toured all over the world – in Europe, Russia, America, Australia and Asia. She won many awards and took part in many international festivals, e.g. in Oklahoma, or Los Angeles. What do we appreciate most about her? Her repertoire, of course: thrilling and moving songs - you can hardly find among them something you would not want to listen to, something you would not want to come back to - deep lyrics and enjoyable, captivating melody. And, last but not least, her amazing vocals. Strong, full of energy, her very own timbre. “This award is a surprise. Never in my life would I expect to receive the Pearl of ‘Polish Market’! My career started in 1967 when I won the first prize at the Student’s Song Festival in Kraków. I believe that this Pearl will propel me into another 50 years of my career,” she told us in 2013. polish market

artists and designers to the leading design events in the world, and enabling the industrial implementation of the achievements of our designers – that she was granted the award.

Transplantation, Oncology and Haematology, Wrocław Medical University. As an outstanding student, she was proposed an individual plan of studies under the guidance of Prof. Janina Bogusławska-Jaworska. At that time the professor was laying foundations for the development of paediatric oncology in Wrocław. Alicja Chybicka has been head of the clinic since 2000 and president of the Polish Paediatric Society since 2007. She not only fights for children’s health and life, but is also a friend to their parents. She always stands by her patients. She deals mainly with haematology, oncology and bone marrow transplantation. “Having the honour to treat children in our clinic, I have always been of the opinion that it is them who are the most important and that no one should tell me that money is more important than their life and health. I would like every person who decides to study medicine not to look at its financial aspects. It is the patient that has to be the centre of attention. Everything should be subordinated to their needs and not the other way round. Not to money, graphs or business.

Prof. Czesława Frejlich

Prof. Alicja CHYBICKA is Head of the Department and Clinic of Paediatric Bone Marrow

Ewa GOŁĘBIOWSKA is the originator and, since 2005, director of the Silesian Castle of Art and Enterprise in Cieszyn. In the years 20052007, she was a coordinator of “Silesian Design Network”, the first comprehensive programme for the promotion and implementation of design in Poland. The programme, considered to be the best example of implementation of regional innovation strategies, brought a marked improvement in the use of design by businesses and local governments not only in Silesia. The castle itself is a successful example of revitalisation. Within a few years, it has become a popular and highly regarded meeting place for design and business communities, inspiring the development of similar initiatives elsewhere in Poland. The castle was a venue for dozens of exhibitions, symposia, meetings and workshops. Students of the

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The treatment standards we offer our young patients at our clinic do not differ from those at the best European centres,” she told us in 2014. Prof. Maria SIEMIONOW is a Polish transplant surgeon who works in the US. She completed medical studies at the Academy of Medical Sciences in Poznań. After emigrating to the United States, she was offered a scholarship and specialised in hand surgery. In 2008, a team of doctors led by Prof. Siemionow conducted the first successful face transplant in the United States. In a 22-hour procedure, 46-year-old Connie Culp,

Prof. Maria Siemionow

Academies of Fine Arts from all over Poland were involved in these projects, and some of their designs found interest from manufacturers. The activity of the Cieszyn Castle helped many Polish schools to establish foreign contacts-both educational and industrial. The commitment and efforts of Ewa Gołębiowska towards ensuring the modern development of Poland, as well as organic work, so needed today, invariably arouse admiration and respect.

Janina Ochojska

Prof. Czesława FREJLICH is a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. Until 2000, she was an active industrial and functional graphics designer. She also excels in ergonomic design. She has authored a number of publications on design and ergonomics. Her greatest achievement in the field recognized by our distinction is the initiative started in 2011 to open and write for “2+3D”, the best Polish design quarterly. This is her personal initiative: she raised funds, found editors (herself being the chief editor), and organises many associated events. And it was for all that work - spreading information and bringing

who was shot by her husband, had approx. 80% of her face transplanted from a dead donor. The transplantation involved the reconstruction of the face including bone, cartilage and vascular tissues. The US media hailed it as the most revolutionary surgery in recent decades, and Maria Siemionow’s name was cited in the major world media, and she herself went down in the history of medicine. Prof. Siemionow is now working on new therapies supporting transplants so that patients after an organ transplant do not have to take immunosuppressant (anti-rejection) drugs in the future. Janina OCHOJSKA is Poland’s best known humanitarian activist. She studied astronomy at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. After graduation, she worked in the Polish Academy of Sciences’ Laboratory of Astrophysics in Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomy Centre in Toruń. As a student, she was active in the Academic Chaplaincy of Jesuits in Toruń, and in 1976 joined the opposition and was involved in the creation of the

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BUSINESSWOMAN Solidarity trade union in Toruń. In 1984, she went to France for a surgery and there she encountered the idea of humanitarian aid. As a volunteer, she worked for the charity “EquiLibre” looking for contacts and coordinating assistance to Poland. In 1989, she was one of the founders of the Polish branch of “EquiLibre.” In 1994, she founded the Polish Humanitarian Action, where she has served as President of the Board ever since. In 2004, “Polityka” weekly placed her seventh in the ranking of the most influential women in Poland. She is disabled since early childhood. Through her perseverance and kindness, she became known and admired throughout the country and around the world. Bożena KAZANOWSKA is a sociotherapist from the Centre for Blind and Visually-Impaired Children in Lublin and founder of the Polish Touch and Feel Book Library, a unique institution offering tactile books for children. The library has its premises in Lublin, and the books are lent and sent free of charge to blind and visually-impaired children, and also children who are unable to leave the confines of their homes over the country. Tactile illustrations are produced on-site and handmade by Bożena Kazanowska and cooperating volunteers. All those involved in the project are working on a pro bono basis. The establishment of the library marked a breakthrough in access to literature for children with visual problems, bringing an absolutely new quality to the lives of many children and their parents.

Bożena WALTER is a graduate of the Faculty of Oriental Studies of the Jagiellonian University, and the Extramural Higher Vocational School of TV Production in Łódź. She started her career in the Polish Television (TVP) in the 1970s; she was a co-host and a co-author of popular TV programme “Studio 2”. It was on her initiative that the TVN Foundation “You Are Not Alone” was established by a TV station TVN in 2001. Bożena Walter served as its president. “The TVN Foundation has a power, which is access to television. All we need to do is to reliably describe things and humbly ask viewers to send money, that is SMS text messages,” she says. The foundation supports a number of projects related to health care, life quality and education. It lends support to people suffering from serious and incurable illness and in need of expensive medical treatment; funds therapies and grants social pensions; helps hospitals, orphanages and rehabilitation centres. Małgorzata ŻAK former President of the Polsat Foundation, graduated from the Faculty of Economic, University of Maria Curie-Skłodowska in Lublin and the Faculty of Journalism and Political Science, University of Warsaw. She is the founder of the Polsat Foundation, a nationwide TV foundation, aimed at helping people with disabilities as well as sick children and their parents. She served as president of the foundation until 2012. The Polsat Foundation has created a system of rapid and effective response to assistance requests. Information received from parents is

verified and applications are processed according to established criteria. The money is spent on treatments, surgeries, therapies and rehabilitation. The campaign “We Are For Children” is the most recognisable project of the foundation. The campaign aims to raise funds for the treatment and rehabilitation of children-beneficiaries of the Polsat Foundation. Irena KOŹMIŃSKA has for years been a promoter of readership among children and adolescents in Poland. She is the founder and president of the Foundation “ABCXXI - All of Poland Reads to Kids”; in 2001 she initiated the public campaign “All of Poland Reads to Kids”, aimed in particular to encourage parents, teachers and other adults to devote at least 20 minutes a day to reading to children. “The campaign ‘All of Poland Reads to Kids’ was inspired by the words of Jim Trelease, the US-born author of ‘ReadAloud Handbook’: “A nation that does not read much does not know much. And a nation that does not know much is more likely to make poor choices in the home, the marketplace, the jury box and the voting booth. Uneducated majority can outvote the educated minority – it is a very dangerous aspect of democracy.” The study by IPSOS dated 2011 confirmed the effectiveness of our campaign: 54% of parents reported that they read to their children. Other children, if they are not read to at home or in kindergarten, unfortunately start school without being quite prepared in terms of good language knowledge and thinking skills. That is why we keep reminding about reading!,” she told us in 2015. •

Royal Castle in Warsaw, the Gala of the Pearls of the Polish Economy, 2008. From left: Janusz Steinhoff, Bożena Walter, Bożena Płatos, Małgorzata Walewska, Prof. Norman Davies, Prof. Jan Lubiński

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WATCH OUT!

A TALENT

Photo: Agnieszka Charuba

ON THE HORIZON

I write, so I am not left with nothing... In 2011, Oficyna Wydawnicza Rynek Polski Sp. z o.o. released the literary debut of Alicja Wolniewicz – “Psia Planeta” (Dog Planet). Alicja, then 12-year-old, recounted in her novel the adventures of a little girl on a planet inhabited by dogs. The young author drew inspiration from the classics of Jan Brzechwa. In November 2015, during the 21st edition of the Theatre Festival organised by the Jan Kochanowski High School in Warsaw, Alicja (a second year student of that school) won the prize in the category of “The Best Theatre Screenplay” for the monodrama “Attic”. We follow Alicja’s blossoming career and we keep our fingers crossed. The imagination, common sense and hard work (of herself and her parents) should be seen as a promise that she may stir things up in Polish literature in the future...

licja, now a teenager, has been writing since she was seven. “It is like it was always in me. I started with short stories. They were coming out somehow naturally... Then, I felt like writing longer forms. This was the case of “Dog Planet” for example. Now I am focused on theatre and drama. I attend the Theatre Centre “U Machulskich”, which continues the tradition of the legendary Theatre Centre at the Ochota Theatre, created by Jan and Halina Machulski, where actors such as Piotr Adamczyk, or Agnieszka Grochowska made their first steps as actors. The place is designed for artistically gifted teenagers aged between 13 and 18 who are at a point of shaping their personalities. We learn different aspects of acting - drama, dance and music. And we are working together on our own performances. It is very important for me and I really get a lot out of these classes. I want to work with an actor in the creation process to get a smack of a person’s skills to be able to use them on stage later,” she says. The Jan Kochanowski High School Theatre Festival is one of the largest such events in Warsaw. The festival is organised by the students of

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Maciej Proliński

the Jan Kochanowski High School, and dramas making part of the contest are staged by young people from all over Warsaw. The festival is supported by headmasters and teachers of Warsaw high schools and drama teachers. The event plays an important role in education and teaching, and nurtures interests and talents. In her award-winning monodrama “Attic”, Alicja poses a fundamental question about the human culture and the role of an artist in the modern world. “This is a story about an artist finding his way around as human and as a social creature. The attic referred to in the play’s title is the highest place you can get, a place where you are a kind of “above society”, and there is no one else... The silent “Attic” is also a narrative about discovering art inside yourself. My friend Klaudia Bukato, who plays a role in the drama, gets herself dirty with paint bit by bit, daubs herself more and more the way that by the end of the monodrama she is wet painted to the last inch... ‘How white is your mind?’ – the audience ask at some point. So the play is about me, Klaudia and the people who see their future with art. Being artists, despite the probably inevitable solitude, is something uniting. For me, the greatest thing

about the art is that you can escape from the real world. I write, so I am not left with nothing. Even if people do not read my stories, or plays, I can still continue to cultivate my skills. ‘Writing for the drawer’ is the worst option, though. I draw a lot from people, process it by myself and I have my text uttered by an actor, and moreover, I can quite quickly see the reaction to that text. What a feeling! I also draw on the literature: Jean-Paul Sartre, Marek Hłasko, or Dorota Masłowska. They are definitely my favourite authors, whose prose is somehow forming me,” says Alicja. She does have an unquestionable ardour for writing, so I asked about her artistic plans. “I am eager to study screenwriting at the State Higher School of Film, Television and Theatre in Łódź. This is a legendary establishment, with comprehensive approach to education and excellent teachers, who influence your perception of artistic professions, but also the world as a whole. But there competition is fierce. It is not easy to get there. We will see. I have to pass my high-school leaving exams first. And it is com• ing soon!”

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BUSINESSWOMAN

CORIN a woman for women

orin was established in 1996 in Pabianice in the Łódź region - a textile hub of Poland. “When we started out, we did not expect that our products would meet with so much interest from customers almost all over the world, says Barbara Hanczka, the firm’s co-owner, who is also the chief designer, responsible for selecting and matching fabrics used in the Corin lingerie. “Starting a company was my and my husband’s common idea; we created it together from scratch. At the beginning - in 1996 it was a small local company; now it employs over 50 people and exports account for more than 70% of our sales” adds Barbara Hanczka. The company endeavours to create lingerie combining convenience and comfort with an alluring exclusivity that stimulates the senses. What distinguishes Corin’s lingerie is a very high quality of fabrics and workmanship, and strongly rooted French traditions. The brand’s owners have long cooperated with French lingerie designers and manufacturers who assist them in creating models and oversee the work of the team led by Barbara Hanczka. The company’s design department is a veritable mine of ideas! Working there requires creativity, a sense of taste and understanding of women’s needs. No one understands a woman better than another woman! Hence the various models, structures, fabrics. Lingerie is after all the layer of clothing worn closest to the body. “The components (laces, textiles, embroidery) we use come from the best suppliers in Europe. With the exceptional selection of garnishments, our bras are not only elegant and light, but also perfectly support the breasts and give them a suitable shape. Corin’s unique line includes a growing range of bras for plumptious ladies, with cup sizes C, D, E, F, G, H, I to JI. It is a ‘sexy plus’ lingerie line, gaining more and more popularity on all markets,” says Barbara Hanczka. Corin regularly presents its latest collections at the most important international lingerie trade fairs, successfully selling them around the world. From the very beginning of its existence, Corin has met the world lingerie standards, meaning that its production is divided

Barbara Hanczka, co-owner of Corin and the chief designer into two collections - Classic and Fashion. The Classic Collection covers the models that have already passed a kind of a test with customers and have deserved to be part of the firm’s continuous production. These are classic and timeless models, both in terms of design and the range of colours (white, cream, black). They are available throughout the year, and even for many seasons. The Fashion Collections, which are presented twice a year, or every season (spring-summer and autumn-winter), leave more room for experimentation with colour, material (lace, new fabrics, accessories), and structure. Fashion reigns supreme here – “Yes, there is fashion in lingerie, too,” Barbara Hanczka nods, smiling. For example, the leading colour of the Corin springsummer 2016 collection is a warm and subtle shade of vanilla, with a full range of garnishments such as bows, trinkets and embroidery with floral fantasies, a touch of gold, chocolate, beige. The fabrics also differ in texture (smooth and textured) and colour (single-colour or patterned, single-colour, or embroidered in contrasting colours). Corin’s production is addressed to women who appreciate comfort and charm, quality and elegance. Corin is one of the leaders of the lingerie market, with a firmly established position in Poland and a steadily strengthening one in Europe and beyond. Its ideal bras are designed based on an innovative technology, developed as a result of research conducted in cooperation with the Łódź University of Technology and the Polish Mother Health Centre in Łódź. The cup is optimally shaped so as to cause no strains, it is safe for health and comfortable to wear. Corin is probably the world’s first and only company to have ordered such innovative health-friendly research for the sake of women’s health. A special episode of the British TV series “How do they do it” (section 16, series 11), showing how Corin makes its perfect bras, is now aired on Discovery Channel in over 200 countries around the world. For the latest collections of Corin’s underwear, check our website www.corin.eu. •

polish market

GOSIA BACZYŃSKA ANARCHITECT OF POLISH

FASHION CONSISTENT CAREER

The journalists who know her call her “the tsarina of fashion.” She is a member of the generation who started their professional life in the 1990s, a turning point in Poland’s history. Twenty years later, it is Gosia who makes history - a history of beauty, history of Polish fashion. The Gosia Baczyńska label, build consistently for 18 years now, is the most prestigious and reputable fashion brand on the Polish luxury market. In 2013, Gosia Baczyńska became the first Polish fashion designer to be asked to take part in an official prêt-à-porter show of the Paris Fashion Week, the most important and most prestigious fashion fair in the world. The fair brings together the world’s fashion industry and international elites. Being present at Paris Fashion Week means joining the elite club of the world’s 100 best designers. It was an unprecedented distinction on the Polish fashion market and a passport to international expansion. The designer has already shown a few collections in Paris. The first one, “I Feel Love,” for spring/summer 2014, was presented at the famous Palais de Tokyo, a venue for the Paris Fashion Week, a meeting place for influential people from the fashion industry and the biggest international centre of contemporary art in Europe. Her further shows were held at the Hôtel de Monaco, which is the residence of the Polish ambassador to France, École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts and other places. She is now preparing her latest collection, which will premiere in Paris in late February and early March.

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The power and uniqueness of Gosia Baczyńska’s designs is due, among others, to the highest quality of the fabrics she uses, which come from the best French and Italian producers, and her unusual artistic vision. These exceptional features have been noticed for years by stylists and editors of the influential Polish and international media. Her creations have featured on the covers of the most prestigious magazines. The presence of Gosia Baczyńska’s outfits in a prestigious magazine, like for example “Numéro”, alongside Chanel and Céline designs means that the biggest fashion houses have naturally accepted the Gosia Baczyńska label as a member of this very exclusive and elitist club. This is a signal for the industry and consumers that the three labels are from the same group – a group of the world’s 100 best designers.

GOSIA BACZYŃSKA – AN INFLUENTIAL WOMAN She has featured three times on the list of the 50 most influential women in Poland according to “Home & Market” magazine – in 2005, 2007 and 2014. In the latest poll, she was ranked in 23rd place, ahead of Agnieszka Holland and Nina Terentiew. • Designer of the Year title from the Polish edition of “Elle” magazine (three times - 2004, 2005, 2014) • Designer of the Year award from “Exklusiv” magazine (2005)

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BUSINESSWOMAN

Thanks to her carefully selected collaborators and business partners, Gosia Baczyńska’s shows are an unusual experience and are always rated among the most prestigious events in the calendar of cultural events in Poland and abroad. Those invited to the shows and events are always a select group of people who are strongly associated with culture, art and even politics, like for example Polish Ambassador to France Tomasz Orłowski, PR Director at the fashion house Hermès Ina Delcourt, world-famous stage designer Boris Kudlička, Waldemar Dąbrowski, Dorota Masłowska, Krzysztof Materna, Tomasz Ossoliński, Małgorzata Kożuchowska, Małgorzata Szumowska, Mariusz Treliński, Anja Rubik, contributor

to “International Herald Tribune” Liza Foreman, Małgorzata Bela, Grażyna Torbicka and Monika Olejnik.

GOSIA BACZYŃSKA CROSSES THE BOUNDARIES OF FASHION Gosia Baczyńska has designed costumes for operas “La Traviata” directed by Mariusz Treliński and “Ivona, Princes of Burgundia” directed by Marek Weiss-Grzesiński, and ballet “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” choreographed by Izadora Weiss.

GOSIA BACZYŃSKA ATELIER AND CONCEPT STORE – A UNIQUE PLACE AT THE HEART OF WARSAW’S PRAGA DISTRICT

Zofia Gołubiew - photo: Piotr Pękala for Art&Business.

• Golden Icon award from A4 magazine (2006) • Fashion Excellence title from “Twój Styl” magazine (twice – 2008, 2011) • Fashion Oscar award from the Polish edition of “Fashion Magazine” (2008) • Luxury Brand of the Year in the Fashion category (2011) • Golden Logo Poland 2015 in the Culture category (Dec. 2, 2015) – an award granted to outstanding persons and institutions for promoting Poland at home and abroad. Among those who have already won the award are former President of Poland Lech Wałęsa, Prof. Michał Kleiber, Leszek Możdżer, Urszula Dudziak, Andrzej Seweryn and Czesław Lang.

The three-storey atelier combined with a luxury concept store is located at 6 Floriańska Street. It is an important address on the map of Polish fashion and design. It is a venue for prestigious business and social meetings, private shows and cultural events. The artist designed the space herself, showing extraordinary talent for interior design and decoration. According to the latest KPMG report “Luxury Market in Poland, Edition 2015,” the Gosia Baczyńska label is in fourth place among the premium and luxury brands in Poland. •

Maciej Proliński polish market

PERFECTION IN EVERY INCH Joanna Wiktoria Grabowska and Agnieszka Charuba, owners of Godai Studio, talk to “Polish Market”. When was Godai Studio set up? JG: Godai Studio is the result of an extraordinary female cooperation. The idea for that female model was born almost five years ago, when we felt a strong need to create together and we dreamt of a layout studio.

Godai Studio - why such a name? JG: The name of Godai Studio refers to the East Asian traditions that are close to us and is a combination of all five elements: Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, Energy. This means a perfect harmony. This harmony is reflected in the art we create.

So the business that you have is simply a fulfillment of your dreams, right? ACh: Yes, it is true. We decided to unite our passions, strengths and individual experiences. Each of us brought something else, each of us “smuggled” part of herself, her female and male nature. We gave ourselves to our works, using a degree in architecture, musicology, photographic school, graphic courses, in brief - a multimedia creative workshop. Since then, we have successfully been working on layouts of letters, albums and books; carrying out corporate visual identity projects; producing promotional printed and online materials.

You said that you carry out visual identity projects ... ACh: We know from experience the importance of a unique, consistent image, and graphic form used to express what is meant to be identified with it. We are working out a message between the client and consumers. This can be a logo, but also an extensive business portrait or the entire advertising campaign. We start off with market studies, we sound out the competition and eventually seek to determine UNIQUENESS. With our minds wide open, we design, experiment with forms and colours, looking for inspiration in that very moment of life.

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BUSINESSWOMAN I noticed that your portfolio also includes DTP. It is a kind of art, isn’t it? JG: In the language of graphic designers, DTP stands for desktop publishing, which in practice means making a layout. The most important is maximum precision. We are working on text parts, but we are attentive to empty spaces, too. We strive to achieve a harmony and a perfect composition. Typography should be given due respect. We can compromise with an “orphan”, but never with a “widow”. PM

Sounds intriguing. What does it mean? ACh: “Orphans” and “widows” are common denominations of typographic errors. The difference is that a “widow” is the last line of a text separated from the rest of the paragraph and stranded at the top of the next page, and an “orphan” is the first line of a text that gets cut off dangling at the bottom of a page. We are committed to represent top quality in terms of aesthetics, meet all the necessary standards, including for the printing purpose, because it is what determines in the first place whether the work was well done. PM

What is your inspiration? JG: Everything. We are inspired by image. Each of its forms. We create it, and we love this moment. PM

Agnieszka Charuba

WE ARE INSPIRED BY IMAGE. EACH OF ITS FORMS. WE CREATE IT, AND WE love THIS MOMENT. What projects do you have in the pipeline? ACh: I do not put on limits; each order is treated with great care. Our portfolio includes both minor and complex visual identity projects ordered by individual customers and companies, as well as albums, books and advertising campaigns. Sometimes, we happen to use our own photographs. Now, we are working on an extensive project of a unique book-diary-album with elements of poetry and our own photos. Also, from the very beginning, we have been working with “Polish Market”. This magazine promotes Poland abroad, proudly presents the achievements of the Polish economy, Polish science and Polish culture. Sometimes I even laugh that Godai Studio makes its contribution to the positive image of Poland. The magazine is, by the way, headed by an outstanding woman - president of the publishing house and editor-in-chief Krystyna Woźniak-Trzosek. PM

There is power in women... JG: Of course. We run Godai Studio in the spirit of partnership and mutual respect. We have the same approach in relation to our customers. It is essential about our work that we fully

Joanna Wiktoria Grabowska

complement each other at every stage of the creative process. After a couple of years of business experience, we can realise the importance of communication between people. We meet various women who have a passion and a need to develop, but they often lack the courage and confidence to fulfill themselves professionally. Many times, we talked about the “female energy” that cannot be replaced. We are happy to share our knowledge and skills with other women, to motivate them when necessary, and we are always pleased if they are successful. We believe there is an enormous power in women, and together we can only unleash it... •

www.godai.pl polish market

WOMEN TALK ABOUT THE CHALLENGES OF CONTEMPORARY EUROPE On 23-29 November 2015, women’s presence in the Polish media was stronger than usual. It was the second edition of the WellKnown Women Experts’ Week. During the three days a number of debates were held at the PAP’s Press Centre, featuring women representing institutions and companies, among others: the National Bank of Poland, Ministry of Administration and Digitisation, Ministry of Economy, Oriflame and Pramerica. Maciej Proliński

ell-Known Women Experts is a campaign intended to increase the participation of women in TV news and current affairs programmes, especially those concerning the economy, in strategic economic conferences reported by the Polish and foreign media. The beneficiaries of these actions are not only female experts from various research institutions, consulting firms, public administration, but also women serving on boards of directors and supervisory boards of companies, particularly in the key areas such as energy, finance, or new technologies. Greater visibility of women in public debate will raise its substantial quality, culture, and will also be an encouragement for young people in the pursuit of professional development and career advancement. One of the main elements of the campaign is an interactive database of women experts that can be used free of charge by news programme hosts, journalists and conference organisers to access a comprehensive list of specialists in various scientific, administrative and economic fields. On 25 November 2015, PAP’s Press Centre hosted a panel discussion: “Cooperation of business leaders in view of the challenges of modern Europe”, featuring Beata Pawłowska from Oriflame, Aneta Podyma from Pramerica, Beata Leszczyńska from MEDI-system and Joanna Pruszyńska-Witkowska from Headlines Porter Novelli. “One of the key challenges facing Polish companies and institutions is increasing employee engagement and young generation management. The lack of employee engagement, in combination with an aging population, means that companies will find it increasingly difficult to acquire good employees, to win them over,” said Aneta Podyma, President of Pramerica Życie. Participants drew attention to the fact that one of the solutions is to build relationships with college students and high school students. It will benefit the entire economy, as young people will be

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able to verify whether they have chosen the right field of study and gain practical skills even before entering the job market. A means to achieve this can be internships, programmes combining work and studies, assistance from institutions working with young people to help them choose a career path, and supporting entrepreneurship. Joanna Pruszyńska-Witkowska, one of the initiators of the Well-Known Women Experts campaign and president of Porter Novelli Headlines, cited as an example initiatives from the IT industry. “By 2020, EU will be short of 825 thousand IT professionals, a demand that should be responded to by companies and colleges strengthening their cooperation. On the other hand, there are initiatives by individual companies, such as Samsung’s Coding School or Cisco Academy, where emphasis is put on very specific skills,” said PruszyńskaWitkowska. One way to find one’s bearings on the labour market, regardless of age and education, is microentrepreneurship. “In my company alone, as many as 100 thousand people work on such terms! They earn, develop, attend a series of trainings organised for them. These are people from the age of 16 to seniors. It is up to them to choose whether they work two hours a day or eight hours, one day a week or five days, making it possible to adjust workload with one’s possibilities and various social and family duties. Many of these people eventually scale their business, hire coworkers. The problem is that micro-entrepreneurs like them are treated the same as companies. Operating on a small scale, it is often difficult to generate approx. PLN 1,100 in return on sales to cover the social insurance contribution alone. It kills micro-enterprises!,” said Beata Pawłowska, managing director of Oriflame Cosmetics. Participants of the debate also highlighted the obstacles faced by women on their way to career success. Although in many sectors women account for more than half of the headcount, they are still a

minority in senior positions. “Meanwhile, the different point of view, skills and qualities women bring to management are very important for companies. There is a large unused potential in people aged over 50, particularly in women,” said Beata Pawłowska. “A lot of women give up work because of family duties. 80% of those looking after dependent persons are women. They bring up children and then take care of the elderly. We need institutions to relieve them so that they can choose whether they want to look after others or work professionally,” added Beata Leszczyńska, President of MEDI-system. Anna Szymańska-Klich, President of the Institute of Strategic Studies, agreed with that opinion by saying that many women-mothers of grownup children find themselves obliged to take care of their grandchildren and seniors due to a lack of institutional assistance to families. Poland begins to lose its competitive advantages on the European market. Workforce outflow and mismatch between the education system and the needs of the labour market, insufficient investment in talents and population aging are the most important issues that should be addressed. Another conclusion of the debate is that it is necessary to make better use of social capital that we have, and invest in the future, rather than putting out fires by giving money to one or another social group. An important role in shaping these developments should fall to business leaders and academics, including of course women. But it is necessary to take interministerial and inter-institutional steps, embracing business, the education system, public administration and NGOs. We will then be able to better deal with problems such as demography, by activating people aged 65+ and providing vaster employment opportunities for young people. Participants of the conference expressed the view that through such initiatives the voice of women will become more visible and audible from year to year, and the Well-Known Women Experts’ Week will bring fruit in our daily lives. •

54 polish marketspecial edition 2015