No. 46 Spring 2014

Łódź special:Marek Belka: Łódź is a city with character

Łódź special:Marek Belka: Łódź is a city with character

Unilever’s managing director Harm GoossensNPCC rolls out new website

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Bulletin Spring 2014

Harm Goossens: „The Poles have caught up enormously

in only one generation”.

Christine Colijn: “You can’t operate in the current market the same

way as ten years ago. You need to invest in your network and continuously set up new contacts”.

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4 NPCC word of the Chairman

5 CHAMBER CALENDAR

6 INTERVIEW Harm Goossens, managing director of Unilever Central and Eastern Europe

10 CHAMBER EVENTS What has the chamber been up to recently?

12 Interview with NBP President Marek Belka

16 InterviewwithJasjavanderVeenandSławomirKarasiński,

regionalboardmembersoftheNPCCinŁódź

18 ŁódźmayorHannaZdanowska:

„IappreciatetheinitiativeoftheNPCCinŁódźverymuch”.

20 NEWS FROM OUR MEMBERS

22 COLUMN Guido Vreuls

23 NEW MEMBERS OF THE CHAMBER

24 EMBASSy PAGE

25 COLUMN PawelP.MlickiPh.D.

26 COLUMN RemcovanderKroft

27 COLUMN Huub Droogh

28 INTERVIEW Christine Colijn, new chairperson in the Wielkopolska region

30 COLUMN Staf Beems

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Łódź special: Interview with NBP president Marek Belka, the

mayor of Łódź Hanna Zdanowska and regional NPCC board members Jasja van der Veen and Sławomir Karasiński.

12Łódź special

Łódź special

Łódź special

Łódź special

Activities of the Netherlands - Polish Chamber of Commerce

4 March Business Drink in Warsaw Sponsored by KLM Location: Hotel Hilton, Grzybowska street 63, Warsaw Time: 18.00 – 21:00

5 March Business Drink in Poznań Sponsored by PNO Location: Concordia Design, Zwieżyniecka street 3, Poznań Time: 18.00 – 20.00

6 March Speed Business Mixer in Łódź Location: Grohman’s factory, Tymienieckiego Street 22/23, Łódź Time: 17.00 – 20.30.

11 March KPMG/NPCC on EU Grants Location: KPMG headquarters, Chłodna street 51, 16th floor, Warsaw Time: 9.00 – 11.00

11 March IGCC forum Breakfast about EU and NATO anniversaries Location: More information will be announced via our website and newsletter

24 March Company visit to McDonald’s Location: Warsaw More information will be announced via our

website.

26 March Business Drink for Dutch entrepreneurs at Embassy of the Netherlands in Warsaw Location: Residence of Ambassador of the Netherlands, Kawalerii street 8, Warsaw Time: 17.00 – 18.30.

Chamber agenda

NPCC Word of the Chairman

Publisher: The Netherlands - Polish Chamber of Commerce

Managing Editor: Elro van den Burg

Columnists: Huub Droogh Paweł P. Mlicki Staf Beems Remco van der Kroft Guido Vreuls

Photos: Elro van den Burg NBP

Advertisement management: The Netherlands - Polish Chamber of Commerce

Contact: www.nlchamber.com.pl office@nlchamber.com.pl +48 22 279 46 47

Bulletin is the quarterly magazine of the Netherlands - Polish Chamber of Commerce. It aims to provide a selection of important and relevant information about the chamber and on bilateral business relations and activities between the Netherlands and Poland. Go to our website www.nlchamber.com.pl to find previous issues of our bulletin. Please email any of your comments to office@nlchamber.com.pl.

Dear members and friends of the Chamber,

We started 2014 on a positive note. The economy is recovering from its slow-down in 2013 and we are seeing an increasing number of Dutch companies exploring business opportunities in Poland. As recent research by the chamber and other institutions has shown, more and more companies are investing in Poland because of its rapidly developing domestic market, and cost advantages are becoming less relevant. Another interesting development that we have seen over the past few years is the different development within the country. The importance of Warsaw, as the capital of Poland, is growing. At the same time, the improving infrastructure is opening up other cities in Poland as well, as they are coming closer to the capital. Poznań is now only 3 hours from Warsaw by car, while Łódź takes only 90 minutes. This proximity is one of the reasons why we are paying attention to Łódź in this bulletin. You will read that our local board is very active under the stewardship of Jasja van der Veen and Sławomir

Karasiński. You will also find an interview with Marek Belka about his hometown Łódź and with the mayor of Łódź, Hanna Zdanowska, about developments in the city.

If you think that we are only focused on Warsaw and Łódź, you are mistaken. The opening of the New Year in Poznań was an event worth mentioning. The network meeting had some distinguished speakers like deputy mayor Tomasz Kayser and the Netherlands ambassador Paul Bekkers. During the well attended evening event, there was a good discussion on the challenges that entrepreneurs face while doing business. The long time required to buy land and receive building permits is an impediment worth noting. On a more positive note, big companies such as Amazon and Volkswagen have big plans to build factories, bucking the aforementioned trend that market size rather than labour cost advantages are now the prime driver for investment in Poland. As you can see, Poland has lots to offer Dutch investors.

What is in store for the coming months? After many requests from our members, we are planning a company visit to McDonald’s, and we will be organising more visits to interesting companies in the coming year. A bit further away is our annual flagship event, Rijsttafel. It will be held in autumn this year. We have also improved our website nlchamber.com.pl and it now provides new opportunities for our members to showcase their activities, vacancies and special offers.

We formally elected our new board members during the general members’ meeting on 4 February. In previous bulletins, I already introduced to you Tjeerd Bosklopper and Stefan van Herpen as new board members. Marcin Klammer, CEO of Arcadis, has also joined our board. Welcome! Because of the new structure of the chamber, Elro van den Burg, our director, will become an executive board member.

This leaves me to wish you happy reading of the bulletin.Geert Embrechts,

Chairman of the Netherlands – Polish Chamber of Commerce

OUR MAIN SPONSORS

1 April Business Drink in Warsaw Sponsored by Arval Location: Hotel Hilton, Grzybowska street 63, Warsaw Time: 18.00 – 21.00.

April IGCC Breakfast meeting with Member of European Parliament

Location: Warsaw More information will be announced via our

website.

April Wine inspiration and tasting evening in Poznań

Location: Poznań More information will be announced via our

website.

15 April Speed Business Mixer in Warsaw Location: Winkolekcja,

Okulska street 7, Warsaw Time: 18.30 – 20.30

27 April King’s day Event in Poznań Location: More information will be announced via our

website.

May Summer Picnic in Warsaw Location: Warsaw More information will be announced via our

website.

3 June Business Drink and Annual Members Meeting in Warsaw

Location: Hotel Hilton, Grzybowska street 63, Warsaw Time: 18.00 – 21.00

Autumn Charity Rijsttafel Ball Location: Hotel Hilton,

Grzybowska street 63, Warsaw Time: 18.00 – 2.00

12 September Oktoberfest Location: Arsenał Miejski Wrocław,

Cieszyńskiego street 9, Wrocław Time: 18.30 – 24.00

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Harm Goossens: “Unilever sees big growth opportunities in Poland.”

Unilever has a considerable history in Poland. Before the Second World War the company was the co-owner of few factories that produced products under brand names such as Radion, Ceres and Vim. The company officially came back to Poland in 1991 and since then Unilever’s products are ever more popular. Bulletin sat down with Harm Goossens, CEO of Unilever for Poland and the CEE region, to discuss the FMCG market in Poland.

You must be proud that Unilever has such a long history in this country?

HG: “There are two things that I especially like about our company in Poland. We have a long history in this country and as a result customers have become used to our brands and view them like they were own local Polish brands. For instance Lipton tea some time ago was named the second strongest brand in Poland after WOŚP (Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity) and our local brands like Amino or Tortex are also very popular. The other element that I find very special about our company is the fact that many of the people that are working with us have been working for the company since the beginning. The success of the company is really their own success.“

Can you tell us more about how your operations in Poland are organised?

“Currently Unilever has four factories in Poland. We have a factory in Banino near Gdańsk where ice-cream is produced, while in Bydgoszcz we produce home & personal care products under brands like Dove, Sunsilk, Timotei and Domestos. This factory has recently been modernized for a cost of over EUR 32 million. It is worldwide one of the fastest growing factories for these types of products. In Katowice margarine and tea are being produced and in Poznań we have our savoury & dressings factory where we produce i.e. well known Polish brand - Amino. In addition, Unilever has a warehousing and distribution Centre in Piotrków Trybunalski,

a research and development center in Poznań and an operational center in Katowice. The company employs more than 3,500 people in Poland.

Our supply chain is centrally managed from our main office in Switzerland. In the CEE region for which I am responsible, we have a total of nine factories and these are all strategically very important for Unilever in Europe. They produce around 40% - 60% for our region and the rest of the production is used for export. For example in Katowice we have set up a huge operational hub and hired 400 extra people to work in the supply chain area. Together with our investments in the other factories in Poland, this shows that we are investing substantially in our infrastructure in Poland.”

What are your growth expectations for your market in Poland?

“Whenever I talk to bankers or economists, they are all very optimistic about Poland. They mention the GDP growth and the influx from EU structural funds. That’s true but I also see that people have less money to spend and therefore behave differently – they are carefully planning their expenses and shopping smarter. But here are opportunities for us in many segments. When I talk to our customers or with our employees in the office, many of them talk about the crisis. Obviously things are not as good as a few years ago. Until 2008 we had the idea that everything you touched in Poland would turn into gold. That has changed, but there is no reason to be negative. In my previous job I travelled a lot to southern Europe, and there I saw a real crisis. However I don’t see that here. I am very positive about the prospects for the Polish market.

In Poland we are gaining market share and there are many opportunities to make our business grow faster than in other parts of Europe. We operate in markets where some of our product have a relatively low penetration rate compared to Western Europe. Furthermore I see a lot of opportunities in this region in countries such as Croatia, Montenegro, the former Yugoslavia, the Baltics, but also in Poland itself.

There is a lot of experience within Unilever which we bring in from our other countries. This helps us to develop the right marketing in Poland. And of course each market has its own specifics.

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Poland for instance, has the world’s biggest penetration of toilet rim blocks which are used while flushing the toilets. However, the penetration of such products in a country like Romania is still very low. As you can imagine, we have completely different strategies for those products in those two countries.”

From your perspective, in what way does the average Pole differ from the average Dutch person?

“Obviously the average Pole as an example for whole Poland doesn’t exist, because people in Warsaw are different from people in the rural areas. If you only take food industry. Poles in the rural areas haven’t changed that much since 10 years ago compared to people in the cities. They still invest much more time in the preparation of food. That makes this country very typical, because in countries like the UK or the Netherlands, there is not so much difference between the rural area and the city.”

Can you say something about the market for ice-cream in Poland?“There is something special about ice-cream in Poland. Dessert is very important in Poland, but most often cake is served as a dessert. So there is definitely a chance for ice-cream. For instance if you look at a country like Sweden, or the Netherlands and Germany they eat a lot more ice-cream. But also impulse purchases of ice can grow much higher. It is still difficult to buy a Magnum ice-cream in some places in Warsaw. There is a lot of potential to change that. From our experience in other markets, we know how to win in this category. We did it in Western Europe and it should be possible in Poland and other CEE countries too.”

Compared to ten years ago, the shop shelves look dramatically different. Can we still expect any radical changes in the coming period in Poland?

“We are always looking at all potential opportunities for further development in all categories. For example many Polish people still

do cook from scratch which is not so popular in Western Europe. People Soup is an excellent example. When I asked around in our office, I noticed that almost everyone still makes their own soup.

I know that there are few people in the Netherlands that still make their own soup. In the office we talk a lot about cultural differences. From conversations I have had with Poles, and what we have researched with Unilever, I have learned that these people have spent their youth in completely different circumstances than we did in the Western world. However when you look at their children, they are at the exact same level. The Poles have caught up enormously in only one generation. And these are changes that took us in the Netherlands about two or three generations.”

In your role you are responsible for the complete CEE region. How would you compare Poland with other countries in the region?

“When people come over from Western Europe, I always start my presentation in the same way. I show them the map of CEE. To outsiders this is unknown territory, with countries that look very similar. And then I start at the top and mention that Estonia borders Finland and Albania borders Greece. This is when people start to feel the type of differences between the countries in this region. So this is a very diverse market. However if you want to make an effective strategy, you have to focus on the similarities.

You find that brands like Axe and Dove that work in countries like China, Russia and Taiwan, can also work in Poland. So we focus on the similarities, but whenever the differences are really relevant we look for different options. Especially in food the differences are relevant. We know that almost everyone eats soup. But then you see that in different countries people make soup at different times and prepare them in a different way. I find it very interesting to come up with solutions for all those different markets that we focus on.”

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Our representation in the Wielkopolska region made a brilliant start to 2014 with a business drink on 21 January at the Mercure hotel. The event was attended by 60 people, which showed that more and more members of the NPCC are finding their way to the business drinks in Poznań.

Participants listened to speeches by Tomasz Kayser, deputy mayor of Poznań, Dutch

ambassador Paul Bekkers and NPCC chairman Geert Embrechts. We celebrated the presence of many eminent guests, including Ewald Raben, entrepreneur of the year in 2012.

During the evening, outgoing chairman Theo Tiegelaar handed over his position to Christine Colijn, the new chairperson of

the Wielkopolska department of the NPCC, presented the plans and the calendar for 2014 in Poznań. Christine Colijn: “We have started the new year with a new and enthusiastic board. The high turnout is a great support for our chapter and motivates us even more to present an outstanding line-up of events in this region”.

Chamber news and events

Inspiring opening of the business year in Poznań

Thursday 20 February local members of the NPCC in Wielkopolska were invited to present themselves during a meeting of the Wielkopolski Klub Kapitału (WKK).

WKK is an employers’ organisation for large investors, only inviting entrepreneurs with a proven track record.

At present, WKK has over 130 members who are owners or managers of 250 Polish as well as foreign enterprises, employing in total approximately 30,000 people.

During the meeting Christine Colijn, the new chairperson of the Wielkopolska chapter of the NPCC, and Theo Tiegelaar, the previous chairman, presented the history and activities of the NPCC, but also informed the audience

about some key facts and figures regarding the Netherlands. The current economic policy of the Netherlands was also explained, highlighting three top sectors: horticulture

and agri & food, water management and high-tech industry. Whereas there are long standing relationships between Holland and Wielkopolska (during the 16th century, the so-called Olędrzy settled west of Poznań in Nowy Tomyśl), it was emphasised that trade relations should be intensified.

The WKK and the NPCC, together with the newly appointed consul and the embassy, should join forces to stimulate trade and business in both directions.

Marek Kaszewski, local board member of the NPCC in Poznań, who is the liaison between WKK and the NPCC, stated that the trade potential, expertise and capabilities of both countries could result in trade missions in both directions.

NPCC intensifies ties with employers’ organisation WKK in Poznań

Theo Tiegelaar (left) and Marek Kaszewski present the Chamber to the guests

of the seminar.

The Netherlands - Polish Chamber of Commerce has rolled out a completely redesigned website nlchamber.com.pl to help promote its members and to keep the business community up to date with events and information about doing business in Poland.

The chamber has been in existence for more than fifteen years, helping to support businesses in many different ways. The new website will support the chamber in being a natural point of contact for businesses looking to expand and grow as well as for businesses just starting up in Poland.

The new website includes the following enhancements:

• Membership page: a completely restyled membership directory, which is searchable by business name, industry category or region. Every member now has the opportunity to showcase their business to a greater extent, with the ability to display their company logo along with their company description.

• Events calendar: an online events calendar has been placed at the centre of the site allowing visitors to stay up to date more easily with upcoming events, seminars and other important functions.

• Member discount platform: the chamber has improved the member-to-member discount page. You are recommended to send in your own offers for the page. Please inform the chamber office at office@nlchamber.com.pl about the discount you want to post on the site.

• Enhanced information & links section:

an enhanced hub of information and resources businesses to learn more and access resources such as websites and reports related to doing business in Poland.

• Regional information: on the new website each of the chamber’s regions has a dedicated page to show the activities of our regional departments.

• Job offers: in this section, you can find a suitable employer or Dutch speaking job seeker. If you are a chamber member and would like to post your job openings, please email the details to us, or contact us if you want to put your CV online.

Don’t hesitate to contact the chamber with your remarks.

You can contact us at office@nlchamber.com.pl or at 22 2794647.

Visit the new website today at nlchamber.com.pl.

NPCC rolls out new website

Chairwoman Christine Colijn introduces new regional boardmember Marek Kaszewski.

Ambassador Paul Bekkers of the Netherlands Embassy in Poland.

Deputy Mayor Tomasz Kayser presents the key arguments to do business in Poznań

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Just days before we interview the head of the Polish central bank, Marek Belka receives the award ‘Citizen of Łódź for the past 20 years’. All the more reason for Jasja van der Veen, Sławomir Karasiński and Elro van den Burg to discuss with him the challenges that Łódź is facing today.

“Congratulations on your award ‘Citizen of Łódź for the past 20 years’. Could you describe for us the character of the people in Łódź?”

“If we look at the historical origins of Łódź, it is a city that is the product of four cultures and which was built in the first half of the 19th century by the decree of Russian tsar. In the early days of the city, weavers from Saxony were invited to settle and given some privileges. Also Jewish business people, both from Saxony and Russia came here for the fantastic business environment and they built the city from

scratch. It is from this period that the word ‘Lodzermensch’ comes, namely a person who is very attached to our city. It was almost a philosophical name for a person who was active in business, who was open to new ideas and eager to take a risk. The whole myth of Łódź was brought to life by director Andrzej Wajda in his famous film “Promised Land”. On the eve of the Second World War, Łódź was

a city almost about the same size as today, with 10% Germans and 20-25% Jewish and with visible minorities from Russia, China, Armenia and so on. I still remember in my early days, when I was in high school, I had a classmate with a Chinese name, coming from a Chinese family who settled in Łódź in the late 19th century. The history of Łódź is an international open place for cultures and regions; you still have traces of this.

Then came the war; the Litzmannstadt ghetto, which was one of the most horrible places on earth. After that the post-war development came, which was dominated by the textile industry producing traditionally for the East. When the Soviet Union collapsed, Łódź was certainly one of the cities in Poland that was hit by the transition the worst.

And we’re still struggling with it. If you look at Łódź today, you see that many things have changed. It’s building a fast train connection with Warsaw and also the local government is investing

in revitalizing the city. However, Łódź is still redefining itself as a city. One of the weaknesses but also its strengths is the proximity of Warsaw. On one hand, it is a problem because a lot of talented people move to Warsaw. On the other hand, it makes Łódź an attractive place to outsource different services.”

“Nowadays you can find many BPO centres in Łódź. Is this a good industry to focus on for Łódź?”

“You should probably also ask the local government, but in my opinion it should be our ambition to move up a level, to companies where jobs are better paid and more demanding. The problem for Łódź is that it produces so many university graduates. It is one of the biggest and most vibrant academic centers in Poland. The problem is that there aren’t enough better paid jobs for these people. So if they stay then they get jobs that do not meet their aspirations. That is a problem for the authorities in Łódź and I think we should be more selective in attracting investors.

One could say that not every investor on whom privileges are lavished is equally welcome. In my opinion, Łódź faces a big challenge now; the first is to complete all the investments that will help the city to interact as a whole instead of being consisted of attractive but separated islands; it should be linked together. And on the other hand you have to search for better investors, better jobs. BPOs are great but we should consciously go into mid-office services.”

“Is it not also a matter of changing the image of city?”

“This is indeed very important. You attract investors not only by fiscal privileges, but also you have to offer them a place with character and Łódź has that character. Łódź is probably even more attractive and genuine than Warsaw. But, of course, Warsaw has the benefit of being a metropolis. Łódź, however, has a soul; there is no place like Piotrkowska Street. The problem is how to make it attractive? 10 years ago, young people were coming to Łódź to spend a weekend; why can’t we get back to this? Why not present Łódź as a place with character? You have to actively add services like schools for foreign children, provide customised services like fast regional train connections. I know some people who work in Łódź and travel from Germany by private planes. Maybe something like this should be promoted.

Something else worth mentioning is that Łódź is trying to become the host of Expo 2022. The theme of that event is the revitalization of city centers. There is no better place to host this expo given that Łódź can show its own successful revitalization of the city center. Łódź has already gained a lot as far as highway infrastructure is concerned. In the city we have currently several islands that have been developed but the problem is in consistency in implementing all the plans. It is not without problems, we know that there are delays, but slippages in that business are a norm.

The challenge is in combining all those plans and making the connections and developing the city as a whole.”

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“It should be our ambition to move up a level, to companies where jobs are better paid and more demanding.”

Marek Belka: Łódź is a city with character!

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“If we look at the number of inhabitants, this should decline from 730,000 today to 600,000 in 2030. This can have great implications for the local government budget. Shouldn’t there be some kind of support from the government for this?”

“It is a trend which is quite typical, not only for Łódź but also for other cities in Poland, when people are moving out of the cities to the suburbs. Every weekend, especially when the weather is better, I ride my bicycle around in the Łódź area with a friend looking for places we have never been to. We often ride past construction sites. And believe me, most of the houses we see are not small, also not compared to any Dutch standard.

So people are moving out from cities to these kind of places. It is a problem for the city and we could address this issue by revitalizing the centre of Łódź. One of the constraints is that we have inherited a dramatically difficult structure of ownership in the centre of Łódź.

As a result, Piotrkowska street is populated by some dwellers who own nothing there and it is very difficult to change anything for the better in this area. If poll tax is introduced, this would enable wealthy people to stay in the city centre. Without this tax on real estate, there is no incentive for poor people to move out. I’m sorry that it sounds so cynical and cruel, but this is how it works all over the world. This would revive that neighborhood. Young people are happy to live in those areas where they have access to good restaurants, theaters, and their friends who also live in those areas.

There is one more thing I would like to add here. I remember I was in Holland in 1972 for the first time as a student and one day I visited the Museum Boymans van Beuningen in Rotterdam. I was on a rock bottom budget with a back pack, the museum was completely empty and I was approached by a clerk from the museum who asked me where I was from.

I answered that I was from Łódź. To that guy Łódź was the most important place in Poland. Why? Because of the museum of Modern Art in Łódź. The real connoisseurs know that this is probably one of the most interesting museums in Poland, and we have other places like that, such as Teatr Jaracza, which is one of the absolute top Polish drama theaters. Do the people of Łódź know about it? Some, not many. And keeping the quality of a city high is also about fighting to keep the horrible graffiti made by football fans off the walls of Łódź. It’s shameful for Poland and dealing with it is very important.”

“In the nineteen eighties and nineties, the Netherlands had similar problems with people leaving the cities. To keep them there, the government allowed large amounts of new houses to be built in specific areas. Wouldn’t a more centralised policy applied by the government be the best solution for Łódź?”

“Of course there are certain funds and European programs to co-finance the revitalization of city centres. I’m sure that people in Łódź know how to use them and this is obviously not a waste of money. In Łódź we need a city centre where people can meet. My children pay taxes in Łódź, but live in Warsaw.

But when they spend weekends in Łódź and go with friends to restaurants, discos and pubs, they go to Piotrkowska or nearby. They would never go to shopping centres. We have too many of them; we need European style small boutiques. I’m an economist, but I don’t believe in this. We should not follow Americans, but rather the French, the Dutch or the Germans.”

“What is your favourite memory from Łódź?”

“First of all, most of my memories are from Łódź, since I was born in this city. I have spent my childhood here, and that is where I still live. In my youth I lived there with my parents and my grandparents in the same house. My primary school was quite far away and we had to walk to school every day. We never got back on time since me and my younger brother used to play football after school on the meadows near the river Ner. We used to play football sometimes until nine in the evening.

One year we had a strange winter with a lot of rain that caused the meadows to be flooded and finally frozen. In one day, we got, in the best Dutch tradition, a 10 km ice skating rink. Everyone came to play hockey and skate. Unfortunately, I jumped and fell and hurt my eyebrow badly. I was covered with blood on my face. You can still see the scar above my eye. I was around 9 years old and I came back home and my mother and grandmother took care of me. That is my memory of me being a victim of the biggest skating adventure in Łódź.”

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From left to right: Regional boardmember in Lódź Jasja van der Veen, President Marek Belka of the NBP and Regional boardmember in Lódź Sławomir Karasiński.

NPCC’s new regional board members with a passion for LódźCan you tell us what there is to like about Łódź from an entrepreneurial point of view?

SK: „Łódź is a city that is rapidly changing. There are many important investments taking place and as a result Łódź has turned into the biggest construction site in Poland.”

JvdV: „If you say Łódź, you say textile which had its heydays at the beginning of the previous century, when large fortunes were made. Communism effectively killed this entrepreneurial succes after the WWII. However, you can see that all the buildings in the center are industrial.

If they are renovated, they could be used as office space. Piotrkowska Street in the center of Łódź is now getting back its old style. I think it would have been very nice to live in Łódź in 1910-1920 when there

was a lot going on. Hopefully some of it will come back and after the economic growth of Wrocław and Kraków, now could be the time in Poland for Łódź!”

SK: „What I would also like to mention is that people are well educated. The number of higher education institutions is high, but also the quality is very good. If you take for instance the law faculty at the University of Łódź, it is rated the second best law faculty in Poland.”

JvdV: „Indeed you see that a lot of people studying in Łódź; however, after their studies they move to Warsaw to find a job. They commute all the time, the Monday morning and Friday afternoon trains are full, but these people would prefer to work in Łódź. Nowadays we see that business is coming back; companies are recognising that in Łódź you can pay a lower salary and have lower office costs with the same quality as in Warsaw.”

Jasja van der Veen – board member

„My first visit to Poland was in 1993. When I was a student, I wrote my thesis introducing Chocomel and Fristi for Nutricia in Poland. I came back in 1998 and started working for a Dutch direct marketing company. Later I specialised in the call centre business when I started to work for Dimar in 2001, which I currently fully own. In 2007 I moved to Łódź because a client asked me to build a call centre there, selling insurances. At first I was commuting every week; however, gradually I moved both my business and my private life to Łódź.”

Sławek Karasiński – board member „I am a lawyer and I have run my own law firm since 2003 based on my educational background in Poland and the Netherlands. I spent almost two years studying different areas of law in the Netherlands in the cities Den Haag, Nijmegen and Leiden. I decided to study in the Netherlands because of the quality and openness of law professors and their international approach. It was also very nice to live in an open society like the Netherlands. Currently, in Poland I operate a regional law firm with offices in Łódź and Warsaw. We deal mostly with tax and business law and we have 35 staff. We are currently the biggest regional law firm in the Łódź region.”

If we look at the companies that are located here such as Infosys, Indesit, Bosch, Siemens, ING, Samsung, Raben and Fujitsu, one of the successes of Łódź is its economic zone.

SK: „The Łódź economic zone is indeed very successful, not only compared to other Polish economic zones but also worldwide. The Financial Times put us within the first 10 special economic zones in the world, and you have to take into account all the Chinese and Arabian zones, which also offer incentives for businesses.”

How is that situation in general? Marek Belka already told us that the city should focus on quality companies that can offer higher salaries in order to keep good staff in Łódź. Does the local government have some kind of strategy?

SK: „One of the city’s strategies is the creative industry. Łódź is also famous for its film school, which is probably the most famous in Eastern Europe or even in the whole of Europe. The success of this sector has sparked the emergence of different companies that are connected to this industry like the production of computer games.

The city is thinking about providing incentives for software producers based on utilizing knowledge from content coming from the production of films fashion and art industry. There is also a focus on fashion with the Łódź fashion week that takes place twice a year and which is the biggest fashion event in Poland.”

JvdV: „There is still some textile here, such as Polish brands Monnari, Kastor and Vistula as well as Wólczanka in the Łódź area. They are here because of their heritage, and level of education (there is still a textile academy). In the building where I we are located, on the ground floor there are still ladies sewing and producing clothes.”

Both of you are entrepreneurs who have invested in Łódź. You are both very positive. However, during the meeting with President Belka we heard that many people are leaving Łódź and construction projects might not be finished. What are the challenges for the coming years?

JvdV: „The local government has made a good start with infrastructure. The railway station is currently under construction and the highway is ready, which is a major step. Now it’s time to focus on business.

In my opinion, over the past few years Łódź has been trying to find the right focus: whether to be city of culture or to focus on entertainment, or only as a commuter city for Warsaw. I think it is time they make the decision to focus on business growth.”

And what is your opinion of the mayor Hanna Zdanowska?

JvdV: „It is difficult to say since Hanna Zdanowska has only just started. She inherited a city that was in a poor condition, and the inhabitants of Łódź are frustrated after previous mayors who didn’t perform very well.

Therefore, people are skeptical about how she will manage. However, I see that things are changing, and I see that she is really doing her best.”

You are both board members for the NPCC for the new chapter that has been established in Łódź. What are the plans for the coming year?

JvdV: „First of all to identify the Dutch companies here. The central word regarding events is co-operation. Łódź is at present not a huge Dutch economical hub; there are around 25 companies with Dutch origins altogether in the Łódż area.

Some of the better known are Philips, Infosys (working for Philips as world-wide BPO center), Axell, Alrec, De Heus, Enkev, Kersten Europe, Cobouw, Ocmer and Tomtom. So we have to work with other chambers, consulates and other organisations to promote doing business with each other.”

What type of events will you be organising here?

SK: „The goal is to slowly but steadily start activities and to do this with the help of other chambers, to organise more international mixers, and meetings and so on. I think that to start with we would like to have 2-3 events per year and for each event to be successful.

There are fewer people here of Dutch origin than in cities like Kraków or Poznań. On the other hand Łódź is much closer to Warsaw so taking people to Warsaw events and vice versa can be a good solution to get a high turnout.”

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issue 46 Bulletin 19

Hanna Zdanowska, mayor of Łódź: “Investors should have a say in economic issues concerning the city”.

How do you view your own city from an investor’s perspective?

Hanna Zdanowska: In my opinion we should focus on the future, but it is also good to say a little about the past of the city. Łódź was created by entrepreneurs at a time when there was nothing but wilderness here. Therefore, creativity and entrepreneurship is in our genes. We are currently lagging a little behind other cities in Poland, and we haven’t kept up with the significant changes that Poland has gone through in the past decade.

However, we are currently catching up and I think that in a short while we might overtake other cities. We are located in the centre of Europe and at the moment we can profit from the transport connections in the city and in the surrounding area that have been built and that are constantly being improved.

One advantage of Łódź is its location but another is its educated people, isn’t it?

Exactly, this is the second advantage. Łódź is a city with tremendous intellectual and scientific potential, and most of all the enormous number of young people graduating in different disciplines and learning various foreign languages. We have for instance an interesting project called Młodzi w Łodzi - językowzięci whereby the city pays for young people to learn niche languages such as Norwegian, Danish, and Dutch. As part of this project, we support investors by giving them specialised staff with knowledge of unpopular languages.

Is that because you want to attract BPO centers to this region?

Yes, it is partly because of that. Of course, in the past we had a textile monoculture, which ended tragically because of the structural

transformation of the textile industry. It still exists as a light industry, but we decided that our city must be based on several pillars. Some of the industries that we are focusing on are BPO and IT as well as R&D.

We are also trying to attract more creative companies such as computer game producers to settle in Łódź because we see that we have a lot of potential in that area.

We have great IT specialists, art schools that educate designers and musicians who are involved in that kind of industry. Furthermore, we are constantly trying to convince universities that they should provide courses according to market demand.

You mentioned that Łódź is open for all entrepreneurs, but it still isn’t exactly clear what direction or specialisation the city itself has chosen.

In my opinion Łódź is a city for companies that are interested not only in simple operations. As I mentioned before, we are focusing on the creative sector as well as BPO, R&D and IT. These are not simply call centres, which we almost don’t have in Łódź anymore, but rather they offer specialised services where expertise, knowledge and creativity are crucial.

We also have a well-developed industry for the production of household goods. Besides, there is a large group of young entrepreneurs who start their own small businesses that operate in the creative sector like art, design and fashion, with a view to cooperating with industry.

Can you say more about how you developed this strategy?

We started with a report that was prepared for us by McKinsey, which said that Łódź needed to focus on the production of household

goods and business services like BPO or Shared Service Centres. At the same time companies like Dell, Fujtisu, Manta and many other high tech companies have set up in Łódź. We had to wait until a suitable infrastructure was created.

Roads, railways, cargo air services, and the only direct rail link with China in Poland were built. There is now an enormous logistics infrastructure around Łódź with huge logistics centres acting as a communication hub between east and west.

We don’t want to focus on one kind of industry because not everyone will educate themselves to work in highly specialised services. Besides, focusing on a monoculture would be pointless, as we have experienced that.

Looking at the example of Wrocław, which thrives at least partly due to its president Rafał Dutkiewicz, I know that you are still in your first term, but how do you see your role in the development of Łódź?

It is very difficult to compare Łódź with Wrocław in that respect. Wrocław has received a huge amount of money which supported the city’s reconstruction. Unfortunately, Łódź for many years was forgotten and had to struggle during the transformation in the early nineties.

To give you an example, we started the period of transformation with 35% unemployment, which was the highest among the major cities in Poland. This was a period in which whole families were without jobs. A part of our budget had to be spent to help unemployed people which couldn’t be used for investing in for instance the city’s infrastructure.

Can an investor that is for example facing a problem with a project contact your office directly for help to solve the problem?

Of course! I’d like to mention that we have set up an Investor Service Bureau, which is an office with trained staff that will guide an investor from the start of a project until its completion. We cooperate with the Special Economic Zone and we have set up an Entrepreneurship and Jobs Office that can recruit and train staff for several stages of a project.

And of course, I and my staff are available when any intervention is needed. For instance we can mediate in contacts with the Ministry of Economy. We regularly meet with and organise a number of events for potential investors. We also organise a number of business mixers, which helps entrepreneurs make contact with other business people and from the local government.

The NPCC is the first international chamber of commerce that has set up a circle in Lodz. What is your opinion about that?

I like this very much. Even more so because I know the world of chambers of commerce very well. For seven years I was the director of the Chamber of Commerce in Łódź. I know the world of business promotion and networking very well and wish you all the best with it.

During my time as director I accomplished many things for entrepreneurs and we activated a lot of businesses and also fought for specific business issues in the city. Companies are the largest tax generator in the city and therefore they should be rewarded and have a say in economic issues concerning the city.”

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Lódź Mayor Hanna Zdanowska: “Lódź was created by entrepreneurs and therefore creativity and entrepreneurship is in our genes.”

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In the summer of 2014 LOT Polish Airlines will launch a „second wave” of afternoon flights from Warsaw to Central and Eastern European destinations such as Moscow, Lviv, Odessa, Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn.

This means that new frequencies will emerge on these routes. Changes in the schedule for Western Europe affect Copenhagen (additional flights with the aircraft staying overnight 6 times a week).

There will be also additional frequencies to Amsterdam, Paris and Hamburg.

The additional wave of departures from and arrivals to the LOT hub in Warsaw allows transatlantic carriers and carriers from Beijing to offer transit passengers more convenient stopovers.

In the peak of the season, stopover opportunities for transfer passengers will increase by 40% a week.

Daily flights to Chicago, New York and Toronto will take place throughout the season in

a fixed afternoon schedule. Further afternoon flights will be launched in months with the greatest passengers demand (May-September).

LOT Polish Airlines increases European service

News from our members

Global consultancy firm Arcadis has won contracts in Poland for making two strategic flood risk management plans. One project concerns the Tuga river and the other the polder areas of the Żuławy delta between Gdańsk and Elbląg.

The projects are the first tenders by Polish water authorities related to the European Union floods directive that entered into force in 2007. This directive requires all member states to assess the danger of floods and to draw up risk maps and management plans. Both projects will be conducted by joint Dutch and Polish teams from Arcadis

More tenders expected

Poland is currently leading in Central Europe in compliancy with this directive. Similar tenders are expected in other Central and Eastern European countries as well.

The first Polish tenders for making these strategic flood risk management plans have now been won by Arcadis. According to the consultancy firm, this has strengthened its position in the growing market of Central European flood management.

Global expertise, local presence

Director Frank Goossensen, Arcadis Water Division, responsible for Europe: “This project shows the international competitiveness of the Dutch water sector. Many years of experience in the Netherlands with dyke reinforcement and creating room for rivers is now paying off on an international scale. Also, the earlier work of Arcadis in New Orleans and our current activities in New York are good examples of the breadth and depth of our expertise in this field. It illustrates the power of global expertise combined with a local presence”.

Arcadis wins contracts for strategic flood risk-management plans in Poland

Kochański Zięba Rapala & Partners law firm has advised the Griffin Group, a private equity fund, on the transaction for the acquisition from the Pramerica fund of Nordic Park, an A-class office complex located in Warsaw’s Powiśle district.

The value of the Nordic Park office complex transaction amounts to PLN 85 million. This represents yet another large transaction in which KZRP has advised to the benefit of the Griffin Group.

Recently KZRP advised the Griffin Group on matters including transactions relating to the acquisition of the office complexes: Philips House and Batory Building; the acquisition of a dozen or so hectares of land located in Bemowo for residential development (Nowe Bemowo housing development); the construction of a commercial-office center at ul. Emilii Plater in Warsaw (on the site of the former Meble Emilia store); re-financing of an investment at Wyspa Spichrzów in Gdansk and with regard to an investment at ul. 29 Listopada in the vicinity of Łazienki Park.

The beginning of the new year is marked by a more positive attitude among Polish workers. As the results of the latest Labour Market Monitor survey by the Randstad Research Institute reveal, in the last quarter we changed jobs less frequently and we were less worried about losing work in the near future.

We are also deeply convinced that there are job offers to choose from; however, our readiness to change employer has clearly decreased. Yet, calling it labour market euphoria would be saying too much: we do not believe that the situation will improve throughout the year and only one in every three employees is expecting a pay rise.

Labour market much steadier with a lower employee turnover rate

At the end of 2013 the pace of change in the labour market slowed down. During the fourth quarter, only 17% of Polish respondents (fewer than one in six) taking part in the Labour Market Monitor survey changed their job, i.e. 6% fewer than in the autumn and far fewer than throughout the entire previous year when the turnover ratio was as high as 25%. This means that the Polish labour market almost reached the European average of 16%, being at the same time one of Poland’s lowest levels recorded in all survey editions conducted so far.

Another positive aspect, in addition to the stable turnover ratio, is the fact that when changing job respondents were mainly motivated by a desire to have better conditions of employment (37%) or general dissatisfaction with their current employer

(30%). The need to find another job due to company restructuring was ranked only third (26%).

Prospects of stabilisation, much fewer concerns over keeping jobs

As far as the next half year period is concerned, Polish respondents feel much more secure about their workplace than they did in the autumn. While in the previous quarter more than every third respondent (36%) felt highly or moderately concerned about losing their job, at present only 27% of those surveyed feel that way.

The result for Poland is even better than the European average, which is currently 29%. Taking into account all fourteen editions of the Labour Market Monitor survey, a lower percentage of those concerned about losing their job was recorded only once in the second half of 2010.

Compared with other European countries, Polish respondents are also very optimistic about finding a new job. Two thirds (63%) think that should they be forced to seek a new job they will find employment that would be comparable to the previous one within 6 months at the longest. It should be mentioned here that among other European countries, only Swedish and Norwegian respondents had better results. The European average is much lower (currently 52%).

Resignation or realistic attitude? We do not expect and do not want changes

Employees’ long-term prognoses for 2014 are not euphoric. More than half (56%) of respondents think that Poland’s economic situation will not change in 2014. At the same time, respondents clearly have diverging opinions on trends in the Polish economy; 49% predict a downturn while 38% – an upturn. As far as employees’ workplace situation is concerned, only slightly more than one in every three respondents (36%) expects a pay rise compared with the previous year. More of them, but still less than a half (43%), expect a one-time bonus or other financial benefit.

KZRP law firm advises on the acquisition of Nordic Park

Randstad Survey: Employees less concerned

Polish speed skater Zbigniew Bródka became a sensation at the Olympic Games by winning the gold medal in the men’s 1500 speed skating and bronze in the speed skating pursuit. Also the woman team was very successfull by wining the silver medal in the speed skating pursuit. This skating success has never been matched in the Polish olympic history before.

The winning of the bronze, silver and golden medal was partly made possible due to the support of transport company Nijhof-Wassink for the Polish national skating team.

Nijhof-Wassink managing director Albert Hendrikse watched the race at home in the Netherlands. One day later, Hendrikse flew to Sochi to congratulate the Polish champion in person.

“We have been sponsoring the Polish skating team for seven years now and this is absolutely the

highlight of our cooperation. This is a great success for Poland and it is a tremendous support for Polish skating. Moreover, it is also fantastic for us as the sponsor of the whole team.”

What was the atmosphere like in the skating team when you were in Sochi?

The atmosphere was great and everybody was in euphoria. Bródka was also very happy and quite emotional during the ceremony. But that is nothing strange because it is the first gold skating medal in Polish history and that is fantastic.

How well do you know Bródka?

I have met him a few times, but we have the difficulty of the language barrier. It has been a long process for all the skaters. But over the years they have made a lot of progress. However, for those who have been focusing on Polish skating this success didn’t come

as a complete surprise. The Polish skaters have won medals in the past and Zbigniew is known as a strong competitor in speed skating.

Polish skating is difficult to compare to skating in the Netherlands, but what is the position of skating in Poland?

In the Netherlands there are several commercial teams. If you compare this with Zbigniew who works for the fire brigade… this already shows the difference. On the other hand, we can see that speed skating is developing in this country and that the results are closing in on the world’s top skaters.

The gold medal will be an enormous boost for skating in this country. Young people are triggered by the success of the top skaters. And if they are successful this will reflect on the young skaters.

What will happen with Bródka, will he be able to stay successful now he has won the gold medal?

It is difficult to predict. I have heard that he received a commission from the Polish government. It is difficult to say what will happen to the skating federation. We will definitely try to continue to support the skaters in Poland. Our contract with the federation ends after Sochi so we will have to see how this all develops.

And how important is this success for Nijhof-Wassink?

Yes, this is very nice. It is good for the brand awareness, also in Poland. There was only limited attention for our skating efforts in Poland before the Olympic Games, but that has definitely changed.

Our staff in Poland and in the Netherlands has celebrated the success and our office in the Netherlands certainly sympathised with the Polish successes.

Nijhof-Wassink partner in success Zbigniew Bródka

Albert Hendrikse (r) with golden medal winning speedskater Zbigniew Bródka

The new members of Netherlands - Polish Chamber of Commerce

Lely directs all its efforts towards creating a sustainable, profitable and enjoyable future in farming for its customers. Lely is the only company worldwide to supply the agricultural sector with a complete portfolio of products and services ranging from forage harvesting to automated feeding systems, barn cleaners and milking robots. Lely is also working on business concepts to ensure energy-neutral operations in the dairy sector. For many years, Lely has been the undisputed market leader in the sale and service of automated milking systems. The company has a strong position in forage harvesting products, and with over 60 years of acquired knowledge of the agricultural cycle Lely has an unrivalled position.

Lely East Sp. z o.o.ul. Toruńska 18, Ciele86-005 Białe BłotaT: +48523211100E: biuro@lely.comwww.lely.com

Lely East

Plasticon Poland S.A. located in Toruń is a leading provider of GRP (Glassfibre Reinforced Plastics) solutions for corrosion resistant tanks, apparatus and pipelines. For more than 40 years we have been supplying the Polish market with GRP products.

In 1994 we became a member of Plasticon Group operating from Oldenzaal, the Netherlands, which gave us an opportunity to acquire new technologies and to expand our product portfolio to satisfy increasing demand from our domestic clients, as well as to start close cooperation with multinationals like BASF, Bayer, Shell and Akzo Nobel.

The main markets we serve are power generation, chemical processing as well as metals and mining. The solutions we offer are characterised by a high price-performance ratio, which gives them significant potential to compete, for example, against stainless steel in the case of a combination of aggressive chemicals and high temperature.

The materials we process are light in weight and easy to maintain. One of our biggest achievements is various GRP chimneys for power plants in Bełchatów, Kozienice, Dolna Odra and Police, with chimney outlets at 200 meters above the ground.

Plasticon Poland S.A. works together with its customers to provide not only a broad range of corrosion resistant solutions but also to provide full service and maintenance support. Being a part of a multinational company gives us every day a fresh perspective on how to approach and help our clients in the most effective way. Plasticon Poland S.A.ul. Marii Skłodowskiej Curie 5987-100 ToruńT: 56 65 86 104E: plasticon@plasticon.com.plwww.plasticoncomposites.com

Plasticon Poland S.A.Pracownia Synergii is an emerging Polish 360 degrees agency. Our mission is to help tackle the challenges faced by our business partners on many different fields. We offer our support in a broad range of services stretching from simple promotion, like printing business cards, leaflets and brochures, the creation of visual identity systems, web pages and social media narratives, to copywriting, email marketing and comprehensive marketing strategies and campaigns. We are used to working in unknown fields.

Our coaching and training courses help our partners plan modifications in their companies. We help them find investors as well as get in touch with key players in the market and produce the desired effects for them in crisis situations. Therefore, we are increasingly competing with lobbyists and PR agencies. Our advantage is the synergy we can find between our activities, and which we are incessantly seeking. Our competitors talk about synergy. We create it.

Pracownia Synergii Sp. z o.o.Al. Niedpodległości 245/1702-009 WarsawT: 605 223 322E: biuro@pracowniasynergii.plwww.pracowniasynergii.pl

Pracownia Synergii

Fellinger Corporate Law is an Amsterdam-based law firm specializing in assisting our corporate clients. Fellinger Corporate Law is setting up a Polish Consulting Desk at our Amsterdam office, which aims to link Dutch business to Poland and Polish business to the Netherlands.

Fellinger Corporate LawKeizersgracht 621015 CS AmsterdamT +31(0)20-5207575E: jfellinger@fclaw.nlwww.fellingercorporatelaw.com

Fellinger Corporate Law

ANSEC specialists advise, design, launch and maintain advanced security systems based on the Gallagher platform. For 12 years the company has been installing access control systems, providing 24h service and maintenance of Gallagher systems, and currently integrating all building systems (XML, SQL, OPC), including lifts and IP cameras.

Additionally, ANSEC is able to solve complicated technical problems related to the modernisation and maintenance of old building systems and provide technical consulting and engineering support for perimeter security, e.g. the design of comprehensive security plans. ANSEC was founded in 2002 as a response to the needs of CARDAX Europe Ltd, now Gallagher Security (Europe) Ltd.

ANSECul. Krasnobrodzka 2 lok. 8403- 214 WarsawT: +48 (22) 2530584E: ansec@ansecgallagher.plwww.ansec.com.pl

Ansec

issue 46 Bulletin 23issue 46 Bulletin22

Column

Just as so many skating fans I was very glad to see our Polish skating talent Zbyszek Bródka finish the 1500 metres, with a golden medal! Over recent years, I have had the pleasure of following the development of Zbigniew as a speed skater closely. In 2010 I got to know Zbyszek through another ice skating talent sponsored by us: Aida Bella (currently a host for TVP). She tipped me off that Zbyszek wanted to make a switch from short track skating to long track and was in need of (financial) help.

During my first meeting with Zbyszek I actually knew immediately that he had the right mind-set to make a breakthrough. At that time Zbyszek had been the Polish short track champion several times, but understood that the long track speed skating could ultimately bring him more sporting and commercial success. The problem was that there was absolutely no media attention for speed skating in Poland at that time and there were hardly any facilities.

After a year of training and getting used to the new “klap” skate, Zbyszek and I met during a training camp in Zakopane. He told me that he was thinking about quitting. Although he wanted to realise his dream, his family and friends thought it was about time that he should find a decent job and build his future. During the conversation I managed to convince him of something that he himself actually already knew; he had to do what his heart told him, and that was definitely not stopping skating. After years of training twice a day Zbyszek was convinced that he could compete with the world’s best skaters. However, the lack of the right sporting climate in both the sports association and in his private environment created doubts. In retrospect, I must admit that I was angry at the time because I thought that our long investment was going down the drain. However, nothing could be further from the truth.

Zbyszek moved from Opole to Domaniewicze and started training on the outdoor track in Warsaw by himself. Luckily for him, and for Poland, he was offered a job with the local fire department. The chief commander understood that he was dealing with a great sporting talent and Zbyszek got the freedom to train and pursue his dream. Moving to Domaniewicze also brought Zbyszek close to his family; something that gave him the inner peace to continue preparing mentally.

In the following months, he moved slowly to the top of the world rankings. When I spoke to him again in early 2013 at a training camp in Berlin, he was just before his triumphs at 1500 metres. Zbyszek was very confident and clearly physically

well prepared. He had already achieved a few podium positions, but in Poland nobody had really taken notice.

We decided to go back into cooperation and Zbyszek joined our project X Dni do Sochi. In the weeks following, Zbyszek started in one World Cup event after another and I was at home working through Facebook, Twitter etc., trying to convince

Polish journalists that a new sports star is on the rise in Poland. Even personal phone calls to journalists on the sports desks of radio and TV stations did not help. Even when he won his first World Cup race, no one was interested.

When Zbyszek finally won the total World Cup 1500 metres at the end of last season Poland woke up and suddenly a star was born. What happened next everybody was able to follow in the press and now we Dutch can even watch speed skating through Polsat in Poland.

I am proud that I was able to contribute a little bit to the creation of a new Polish sports star and I hope that we can celebrate a lot of speed skating medals in the near future.

Sochi from up close!

Guido Vreuls

Managing director of OTTO Workforce in Central Europe and Masita sports wear in Poland

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One of the interesting and visible changes in the landscape of Polish cities over the past 25 years that can be attributed to the growing market economy has been an exponential increase in the number of modern office buildings. Their architectural design is often breath-taking; glass and steel tend to dominate as facade materials and the buildings meet the ecological demands of sustainable architecture.

It is not only what we see from the outside, however, that should draw our attention. If we visit offices in, say, the Służewiec Przemysłowy neighbourhood of the Mokotów district of Warsaw, which has probably become the biggest office area in Poland, we will see something characteristic in their interior design. Many companies have adopted an idea of the open plan office also called the office landscape. This concept was virtually unknown in Poland until 1989, but now it seems to be the most preferred design.

The idea was developed by the German company Quickborner Team at the end of the 1950s, and it claimed „to furnish people with the most effective, productive and pleasant working environments possible”. From Germany, the open office spread throughout Western Europe and beyond some 20 years later and „was intended to provide a more collaborative and humane work environment”.

Moreover, this concept was a way to introduce a democratic, egalitarian management style in which the prevailing hierarchy would not hamper the creation of ideas, but rather foster communication, solidarity and co-operation. And last but not least, it was less expensive and more flexible than traditional, closed, small-size offices. But does open plan really lead to all of these?

No! Except for the last argument, that it costs less per person and provides the employer with more ease of adaptability, scientific research does not support any of these predictions. Actually on the contrary, productivity, creativity, efficiency, interpersonal relations between colleagues, concentration

and motivation all suffer from the open office and, moreover, lead to lower job satisfaction and eventually to enhanced staff absenteeism and turnover.

What is essentially lacking in the open office space design due to the removal of physical borders is quiet and privacy. Clearly, auditory distractions such as chatting and gossiping in a big room as well as incoming text messages on mobile phones of colleagues impair performance and cause irritation. Visual distractions, but also the awareness that the entire time one can be seen by others, contribute further to annoyance and stress.

In Western Europe the open plan office was most popular some 25 years ago and nowadays it is hardly ever adopted in its pure form. Most designs currently offer a mix of solutions that acknowledge the fact that basically most employees prefer and are most effective in closed offices and that the need for privacy and age are positively correlated. Depending on the situation, employees can work in small cubicles, open space areas, private offices or group workstations. The question is when this approach will reach Poland?

Column

The open office or how to kill motivation, achievements and satisfaction

Paweł P. Mlicki Ph. D.

Deputy Director Dehora Consultancy Group

News & activities from the Dutch Embassy

In this section we inform you regularly about our activities. The following activities deserve your special attention.

CEO-meeting with Mrs AntoniszynWe would like to create opportunities for Dutch companies to interact directly with Polish decision makers on a governmental level. The CEOs of Dutch companies had the opportunity to share their experiences, both positive and more challenging, with vice-minister of Economic Affairs, Mrs Ilona Antoniszyn-Klik, during a luncheon hosted by Ambassador Bekkers on 22nd January 2014. Various issues related to the investment climate were put to the Minister. Some of them were given concrete follow-up.The Polish authorities intend to organise workshops with the involvement of Dutch experts to look for practical ways and means to improve the application of the procurement rules in Poland.

Poznań As an embassy we also aim to connect with the different Polish regions. The business-mixer of the Netherlands - Polish Chamber of Commerce in Poznań on 21st January was sponsored by the embassy. It was a great opportunity for Ambassador Bekkers to get acquainted with the business community in Poznań. During the meeting the honorary Consul Designate was informally introduced. Furthermore, during the month of March, together with Dutch companies we will participate in a series of lectures at the Dutch language department of the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. Students will be informed about the existing bilateral trade relations between the Netherlands and Poland, but certainly also about the potential to further increase trade. TOPSECTORENWe like to inform you about the latest activities related to the Topsectoren

Top sector Transport & LogisticsThe project for the development of intermodal transport between the Port of Rotterdam and Poland (Partners International Business PL-NL Rail) is developing very promisingly. The leader of the consortium – ERS Railways – is planning to expand connections to Warsaw and Wrocław in spring this year.

Top sector WaterThe consortium of four Dutch companies RDH, Arcadis, Deltares and Eurolandscape have received the go-ahead from Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland for the PIB project “Development of International Waterway E-40 (Gdańsk-Warsaw)”. PIB stands for Partners in International Business and is meant to support groups of companies and knowledge institutions to enter foreign markets. The abovementioned companies joined forces around issues concerning the revitalization of the Vistula and cities along this section of the river. The project will last 1.5 years.Next time we will inform you about the stops for the Water Roadshow to be organised this year.

Top sector AgroFoodStudents from Hogeschool Amsterdam are preparing market scans that focus on one of the Polish agricultural branches. It will give them the opportunity to learn how to gather useful information for the business community and the embassy is offering a platform for the exchange of experiences, knowledge and investments in new networks. This year we have taken an extra step forward: on 21st February ‘our’ students didn’t only look into trading possibilities on the Polish flower bulbs market but actually organised, in cooperation with their Polish counterparts from Koźminski University, a seminar combined with a matchmaking session for Dutch and Polish companies engaged in this field.

As an embassy we do our utmost to support entrepreneurs in doing business in Poland. Curious how we do this? Visit our website: www.nlembassy.pl, follow our activities on Facebook www.facebook.com/nlembassypl or just give us a phone call at + 48 22 559 12 00!

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Huub Droogh

Huub Droogh is an urbanist and president of RDH Architekci Urbanisci in Poznań.

Column

BLUB BLUB…BLUB…In my earlier columns I wrote about the rapid expansion of some urbanised areas in Poland. Most of the time these city expansions do not go smoothly, in accordance with the zoning master plan containing a well thought out urban structure as a base. Complexity of the ownership structure, diverse plot divisions, and existing building permits to erect constructions due to coincidental rights are just some of the examples that obstruct efficient city planning in Poland. Sometimes the result of this disorder is a charming, mixed collection of buildings and functions. More often the result is a complete urban mess.

From the positive point of view, you could claim that the specific Polish planning reality allows the rational planning that leads towards big monotone urban areas, like the Dutch VINEX districts, to be avoided. Honestly speaking, isn’t it one of the charms of Poland, these diverse and a little bit messed up areas, where you can find the marriage of skup palet with an expensive villa next to it? For most small towns and villages I’m willing to agree with such a positive statement. It is deep in human nature to erect your own home and small business without too many regulations. Often within the local context of the society you grew up in, surrounded by friends and relatives, especially on a plot that has been owned by the family for ages. It is the mirror of entrepreneurship leading towards a solid middle class, flexible to resisting the economic crisis and even strong enough to survive a war. What is the real value of aesthetics when it comes to organising a life?

However, there is also another face of spatial disorder. At the request of the city authorities our company surveyed in 2011 the urban structure for Łomianki, located in the Warsaw agglomeration. One of the outcomes was that real estate investments worth more than 1 billion zlotys were planned on very wet areas, with a flood risk up to 1:100. To make it clear, investments in these areas will be directly damaged in case of a flood comparable to that of 2010. For those who want to compare: in the Netherlands these kind of urbanised areas would have a flood risk in the range of 1:4000-1:10.000. The city authorities are aware of the risks of building in those areas, but they are not able to balance the rules and regulations of their spatial policy with social pressure. Landowners and developers are eager to develop and ‘cash in’ their properties.

Despite flooded gardens and cellars after a few days of rain, the pressure of some individuals was stronger than common sense…

These kinds of situations, like in Łomianki, are not rare in Poland, where, like in many other countries, water is starting to become a serious threat. Neglected maintenance of rivers during previous decades, fast urbanising areas with no proper drainage, a complicated structure of responsibilities for water management: it is a complex of reasons that has led to this situation.

However, step by step, times are changing. The cost and risk of a failing spatial policy is becoming increasingly visible for voters, and it is starting to influence politicians. The result of unplanned city expansion is not only an aesthetic urban mess. It also leads directly towards inefficient public infrastructure with unnecessary costs for the public budget. Traffic jams, lack of schools in the right places, unpaved roads, unpredictable development of the value of real estate, unnecessary environmental pollution. And now: the risk of flooding…

Just like in the Netherlands, in Poland water seems to be becoming one of those common enemies that encourage people to start cooperating with each other. In the same area I described above, 11 municipalities, three counties and the Mazovia Region recently signed a letter of intent to join their forces. In cooperation with another Dutch company we started the project: Linked by water, the aim of which is a common water policy supported by a coordinated spatial policy.

I expect that restrictions due to law and regulations will not be the most difficult part of the project. The fragmented Polish administration in charge of water and spatial planning is more difficult to handle. This administration encourages people to speak about my water, your road, their riverbanks, his canal… Water is, however, not impressed by administrative borders…It just chooses its own way. So the priority will be to cooperate, coordinate and communicate…Three Cs, which taken together are not a natural part of Polish DNA...

Blub…blub…blub… Who will drown first?

Column

During the last few weeks criminal law has been the subject of many talk shows on radio and TV as a result of the release from prison in early February of a certain Mariusz T.

Those who do not follow the Polish media may wonder who this person is. He received the death penalty in 1989 for the rape and murder of four boys.

A few months later after the first democratic elections in Poland the Polish Parliament wanted to make a real change with the totalitarian past and declared a general amnesty.

Those who had previously received the death penalty saw their penalty converted to the highest possible penalty at the time, which turned out to be 25 years and not life imprisonment. This was followed by 20 years of ignoring the fact that certain people who you really do not want walking the streets would have to be released in 2014.

Finally, late last year the Polish government realised they would have a problem and the decision was made to create a law allowing such dangerous people to remain locked up after the end of their penalty, much like the Dutch system of TBS allowing for forced treatment in closed psychiatric wards.

This law immediately received the nickname the Beast Law. Unfortunately the law was prepared in such haste that there are serious doubts about its constitutionality, but worst of all some civil servant forgot to submit the law on time to the Polish Journal of Laws, as a result of which it entered into force on January 21, 2014, not allowing enough time for a proper court decision to be made on whether to apply the law to T. or not.

In what appears to have been a pathetic attempt to save the day, prison guards found some alleged “child pornography” in his cell the day before his scheduled release on 11 February 2014. This was hailed as a great move by some; however, the

next day the prosecutor’s office discarded the prison guards’ findings, informing that none of the materials contained any content prohibited by law, and he was released leaving everybody hoping he will not repeat what he did.

One can’t help wonder whether the Polish criminal justice system has its priorities right. While people like T. walk around freely, you can end up in prison for honest mistakes in your tax declaration.

During recent years there have been cases of Polish businessmen being accused of tax fraud and kept on remand for three months (the most common reason for claims against Poland in Strasbourg), during which time their companies went bankrupt, hundreds of people lost their jobs, only to be cleared of all charges by the (working!) court system years later.

I also see an increasing number of foreigners who were in business in Poland sometimes more than ten years ago and are now being prosecuted for not having filed annual accounts.

Of course when you do business in Poland you have to abide by the law, but the time and effort put into these cases simply does not seem appropriate.

Poland also really likes to use European arrest warrants for petty cases. For example, you have a business in Poland and your bookkeeper messes up your social security payments, then you go back to the Netherlands, in the meantime there are allegations raised against you, they can’t find you and the Polish authorities issue a European arrest warrant, so all of a sudden you can’t fly to your vacation house in Marbella anymore for the fear of being arrested.

The moral of the story for those doing business in Poland is, make sure you have your company well organised and do not sign anything you don’t understand.

The curious case of Mariusz T.

Remco van der Kroft

Advocaat (Dutch licensed lawyer) and partner of Olczak-Klimek Van der Kroft Węgielek

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Get the connection

‘It is not about what you know but about who you know’

Christine Colijn, recently appointed chairperson of the NPCC in Poznań, is a networker par excellence. With a keen eye on mutual interests, she operates as a linking pin between countries, organisations and business clubs; in the end it is all about connecting people. Bulletin asked her about this passion for connection.

How did the Poland adventure started

“I’ve been living in Poland together with my husband Sebastiaan Hol for 11 years now. We started our business here with the

production of compost.

Once we were in Poland, we saw many opportunities for business development in completely different areas, and after exploring these opportunities we moved into the fashion business. That is how we became the representative of the O’Neill brand in Poland.

Once we were connected in the sports and leisure fashion business, we started our clothing and fashion company Lifestylesports, which we have today. We

represent Brunotti, Goldbergh, Canada Goose and CR7 in Poland.”

Entrepreneur in a fast changing country

“When we started out, we found Poland an interesting market to operate in. Poland is a fast developing country with a lot of energy to move forward. I love being a part of this transition. In this changing world, we learned how to connect to the Polish people and how to operate to be successful here.

Moreover, as Dutch entrepreneurs we have the advantage of experience from the Dutch market and this gives us a slight edge on the competition in Poland. For instance, we were one of the first in our market to do product placement in the Polish serial Rodzinka.pl and to get free publicity in magazines.”

The Dutch community in Poznań

“What I have noticed over the years as an active member of the community is that the members of the Dutch business club, which later became the NPCC, are very willing to help and refer work to each other. Although most Dutch companies that are active in Poznań have been present on the market for quite some time, they are still very willing to make new connections and take part in networking meetings. In the current market you cannot operate the same way as ten years ago.

And these entrepreneurs are aware of that. They want to continue to make new contacts and meet new people. Ten years ago for instance, it was already a big success when you were able to transport your goods into Poland. Today you can have your products transported within 10 hours from the Netherlands to Poland. Doing business in this country today requires entrepreneurs to have a completely different set of skills. You need to stay in close contact with your network. And I notice that the Polish government is very open to staying in contact with us.”

The NPCC in Poznań and the NPCC in Warsaw

“The NPCC is one organisation, however at the same time there is a difference between the member companies in the regions and in the capital. In Poznań, we have a few large companies as well as many medium-sized production companies, which is different to the situation in Warsaw.

However, over the years, the differences between the two cities have diminished. You only have to look at the driving distance between the two cities. It was also great to see that the board of Warsaw came to Poznań during our reception in January.

At the same time you can see that more and more members from Poznań are attending the business drinks in Warsaw. I am also very positive about the cooperation with the Dutch embassy in Poland.

The new consul Waldemar Koper will be able to help us make connections in our regions and I am looking forward to this next episode!”

„Doing business in this country today requires entrepreneurs to have a completely different set of skills. You need to stay in close contact with your network.”

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Column

Cultural differencesHaving been in Poland already for quite a long time, I am still surprised about cultural differences between this country and the Netherlands. Of course the most obvious one is that Poles speak another language and they have different roots.

And of course there are other platitudes; they drink (sometimes too much) vodka, all women are blond and elegant, men cannot drive a car and sons are spoiled by their mothers. Also, from the 1st of October all children have to wear a cap, whatever temperature it is.

But there are more differences. Take for instance the response to an advertisement for a position in your company. It looks as if everyone has been trained at school to write a CV. Almost every CV has the same lay out.

And a question for all readers: what is always written in a CV? Answer: I have a driving license. In Holland we take it for granted that an applicant has a driving license; here it is always mentioned.

What else is always in a CV? Permission to use the information contained in the CV with reference to the law of 29th of August and published in the legal code 2002... And what is always missing in an application? A motivation letter.

Let me ask you another question. Which product will you find in every shop in Poland: “Nie ma”. Whether you want to buy a book, CD or a suit. The chances are high that they will sell you “nie ma”. The next step: can I order it for you, is almost never taken. Enough about negative issues.

There are a lot of positive cultural differences, such as when you forget something and you return to the place where you started, then you have to sit down and count to ten. Don’t ask me why, but I guess that many of you know this experience.

The hospitality of our Polish friends always means a table full of everything. Even at home when my wife has prepared dinner I sometimes ask her whether she has invited the neighbours as well. Compare that to the Dutch mentality.

Coffee for your birthday and exactly enough pastries for everybody (meaning one). I remember a nice example at my grandmother’s house. When we were eating soup she first put the meatballs in the soup bowl, followed by the soup.

No discussion, everybody the same amount of meatballs. A good friend with Polish parents and a Dutch education always told me that he had difficulties in approaching Polish people. They expect us to be polite with Pan or Pani and we just approach people with their first name as if we have been friends for years.

Another positive feature is the famous extra chair during Christmas dinner. Another difference was highlighted when a Polish couple was invited to the wedding party of a Dutch friend in the Netherlands.

They were invited for the reception and were faced with peanuts, bitterballen and you had to wait for your drink. What a difference to a Polish wedding: half a litre vodka for every guest, beer, wine, tea and coffee; you name it and it is available.

In other words in case you complain about Polish culture, concentrate on the positive issues.

Look at the cemeteries on Sundays in Poland or even better on the 1st of November. You don’t see scenes like that in the Netherlands.

And another positive thing on that unique day is that the police control the traffic. For me it could be the 1st of November every day.

Staf Beems

CEO of Plasticon Poland and board member of the NPCC in Wrocław

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