Team name: One Step Ahead

Selected EE countries: Slovenia, the Czech Republic

Team members: Josephine Kittner (team

leader), Bogdan Andrei

Nationality of

team members: Germany, Romania

THE FUTURE OF WORK

General situation

EE countries are characterized by having different levels of

development, therefore they have high level of inequality

The Russian Federation, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia,

Hungary, Turkey & Ukraine are the most developed states, having

mostly positive growth rates which are characterized as high

developed countries by World Bank

Developed EE countries are mainly concentrated in the textile industry,

automobile production, agriculture and generally in manufacturing

In some EE countries energy has an important place on the agenda,

especially due to the environmental challenges (ex: Ukraine)–

opportunity for future industry vs. threat for population and economy

through high costs

In genera, EE countries are heading towards greater division between

the emerging economies and those which are developing much slower

THE EE MARKET AND ITS PERSPECTIVES

Exper t ise

Wi l l ingness to

learn

High

educat ional

level

Good soc ia l

s t ructures

High

understanding

of CSR

H igh potent ia l

WHY

CHOOSE SL

AND CZ?

The chosen countries:

Slovenia and the Czech Republic

Most companies small to medium-sized, / Major role of SME sector in the economy

Most important industries: Services, IT, automobile manufacturing, telecommunications

Slovenia and the Czech Republic have very high number of mean years of schooling academic elite/high performance potential

Slovenia‘s gross domestic expenditure on R&D is above EU average (ranks 4th of EU in 2010, OECD ranking) high will ingness to advance and innovate

Ex: Slovenia won Most Innovative Brand 2012 award for high quality and design

Both countries could recover quickly from the economic crisis, Czech Republic ( -0,3% GDP growth rate in Q3 2012) could recover slightly better than Slovenia ( -0,6% in Q3 2012)

Online survey via Stellar Survey

Participation of 70 persons from all over Europe (Bachelor and Master students, Graduates)

Focus of questions: general trends of EE countries, potential industries, classification of most important EE countries with regards to expected development

The majority of the interviewees (37%) think that the IT industry wil l be the most important in 2022

50% think that EE could become more competitive than Western Europe and East Asia

40% consider “engineer” to be the most wanted profession in 2022

The online survey confirmed our assumption of concentrating on the IT sector in the Czech Republic

It equally reflects the high importance of the energy industry which we mentioned before and considered too vague

3 countr ies wi th

h ighest

expectat ions to

grow:

Czech Republ ic ,

Croat ia & S lovenia

3 most impor tant

pi l lars :

Proper ty r ights ,

f reedom f rom

corrupt ion & f iscal

f reedom

3 most compet i t ive

industr ies in EE :

Ser v ices & IT,

Energy, Tour ism

KEY

POINTS

AND

RESULTS

Why choose the IT industry?

1. Gain export strength and a competitive advantage compared to

other European countries through knowledge and expertise;

through higher exports foreign currencies flows into the economy

2. Facilitates job creation and the reduction of the unemployment

rate, especially for young people;

3. Builds itself on an already developed industry, through the

exploitation of the high educational level in both countries

prevention of emigration of valuable human capital

4. Promotes Foreign Direct Investment which is the key to success

as it facil itates growth and expansion, makes firms more

competitive, and equally enhances the whole economy

5. High focus on services and markets outside EU

THE CHOSEN INDUSTRY: IT

Via the realization of the new industry (IT branch) in Slovenia

and the Czech Republic, the two countries will get closer

structure wise

idea of following the same management style in the two

countries, having the same corporate structure and language

(English)

Promote growth easily by creating a pool of ideas and talents

whilst fol lowing equal structures

Strong cooperation as a cluster concept between them, that will

give the opportunity to share services in weaker regions and

enhance regional competitiveness high working together in

R&D department as being essential

CLUSTER BUILDING

General features:

Size: medium-sized company with up to 250 employees in both

countries

Company type: Slovenian Limited Liability Company (due to lower

corporate income taxes in Slovenia)

Means of financing: venture capital and foreign investors (minimum

needed 7.500€ due to company type)

Products: services and IT products such as software, electronic

hardware, service and planning systems, electronic offices

Most important department: Finance due to constant need for

investments in innovation, research, technology, logistics and

marketing

COMPANY PROFILE

Other company features:

Use expertise and investment in R&D to develop new products and

attract new clients, the CR and SL working closely together having

the same long-term goals

English as corporate language to simplify access for foreign

employees (integration programs for employees, language courses)

Strong CSR policy regime

Application of Scandinavian management style:

flat hierarchy and high transparency

high employee motivation via paid vacations, secure contracts,

creation of long-term relationships with employees, special work

incentives and workshops, promotion options even on small

levels, integration of every employee in the working process

A QUESTION OF STYLE AND THE KEY TO

SUCCESS

1. phase: Creation of unified company image and understanding;

internal network between Slovenia and the Czech

Republic – overcome language barriers by special

teaching systems, deepen cluster

2. phase: high corporation with EU countries as soon as possible,

attracts EU companies to co-operate closely, intend to

attract foreign graduates by social management style

and English as corporate language, focus on export of

high quality IT products

3. phase: open up to international markets, create a brandmark

and customer awareness in a global sense

(INTERNATIONAL) NETWORK CREATION