The Pelješac Bridge saga continues, and deadlines for various parts of the job, be it on the bridge itself or on its required access roads, rather unsurprisingly see more and more extensions...

As Josip Bohutinski/VL/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 13th of March, 2019, the State Commission for the control of public procurement procedures (DKOM) has dismissed an appeal lodged by Varaždin's Colas to modify the tender documentation for the construction of Ston's bypass of Sparagovići - Papratno and Papratno - Doli.

As Večernji list reports, Colas actually only lodged an appeal one day before the expiry of the bidding deadline on February the 14th, 2019. DKOM assessed this appeal, deemed it to be unfair and subsequently rejected it. The tender for the construction of the Ston bypass road was announced on December the 3rd, 2018, with the deadline for the submission of bids for the job set for the 21st of January this year.

Due to the requirements of potential contractors requesting explanations of the tender documentation, the bidding deadline has been extended several times. The estimated value of the works for the construction of the Ston bypass road is 449.1 million kuna, and according to the tender documentation, the chosen contractor will have a deadline for completing the works, which is currently 30 months from the date of introduction to the job.

While Croatian roads (Hrvatske ceste) can be satisfied with DKOM's decision on the (very late in the day) Colas appeal for this part of Pelješac Bridge's access road, when it comes to the second part of the Pelješac Bridge access road, the Duboka-Sparagovići section, the commission's decision will have to be waited on once again. Namely, the decision for this access sectiont to be built by the Greek company J&P Avax has received an appeal from Aktor SA, another Greek company that participated in the tender, as well as Austria's Strabag. J&P Avax offered 464.9 million kuna without VAT to build the Duboka - Sparagovići road section. The estimated value of these works currently stands at 482 million kuna. Offers for these works were officially opened in June last year.

In addition to J&P Avax, the job of constructing twelve kilometres' worth of this section was desired by six other companies and consortia. In the selection decision, it was stated that J&P Avax's bid was, according to the selection criterion, rated the most economically advantageous. The Aktor SA offered 464.6 million kuna, and Austria's Strabag offered 478.3 million kuna. The lowest bid was offered by Integral engineering from neighbouring Bosnia and Herzegovina - 321.2 million kuna, but that was rejected for its unusually low price tag. Colas, the company to lodge an appeal, also had its offer of 52.5 million kuna rejected, and the China Road and Bridge Corporation were also rebuffed with their offer of 647.8 million kuna, because these offers exceed the estimated value of the works, and the Chinese didn't extend the validity of their offer. Offers were also submitted by the GP Krk association and Euro-asfalt from Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a 444.3 million kuna price tag.

The scheduled deadline for construction of the Duboka - Sparagovići road section currently stands at 33 months from the date of the contractor's introduction to the job. Given the fact that in such proceedings, DKOM requires two months to decide on an appeal, the beginning of construction of this section can likely be expected to begin sometime during the middle of this year and not before.

The bid for equipping and supplying the Duboka - Sparagovići section came to an end in February with three offers. The estimated value of these works stands at 38.2 million kuna, and all three bids received are well above this amount. Valard offered 52.9 million kuna, Dalekovod offered 57.3 million kuna, and Elektrocentar Petek offered a handsome 59.5 million kuna. Croatian roads have stated however that they will cancel this bid and announce a new one in which everything needed for the Duboka - Sparagovići section and the Ston bypass will be unified.

Croatian roads have also pointed out that the deadline for completing the entire Pelješac bridge project, meaning the bridge's actual construction and the construction of its access roads, is now January the 31st, 2022.

Make sure to follow our dedicated news and business pages for more information on the construction of Pelješac Bridge and much more.

Click here for the original article by Josip Bohutinski/VL on Poslovni Dnevnik

Data continues to show that beautiful Međimurje County is the most developed county of continental Croatia after the City of Zagreb, the only one over 50 percent more developed than the EU average.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 12th of March, 2019, this year, Međimurje is among the winners in the category of creating a favourable entrepreneurial environment, the efficiency of the public administration, incentives and investment in infrastructure through EU funds.

The award was presented by one of the most prestigious and highly respected business media outlets in the world, the Financial Times, as part of its fDI Magazine, a publication that analyses global business activities across the world.

To briefly recall, last year, Međimurje was recognised as one of the top ten regions in the European Union. This new award was based on the analysis of the European Statistical Office (EUROSTAT), the Central Bureau of Statistics and other competent public authorities. According to the Economic Power Index, Međimurje is one of just two counties that recorded a two-place shift, and the only county in continental Croatia which GDP was higher in 2014 than it was back in 2008, resulting in GDP growth of 2.8 percent.

According to some of the measured criteria of the role of public administration, Međimurje County has, among other things, the lowest public sector expenditure in Croatia, and according to the data of the Institute of Public Administration and the European Commission (EC), it also boasts the highest grade according to the criteria for transparency of Croatian local and regional self-government units.

Furthermore, the official statistics for the second year distinguish Međimurje County as the region which invested the most in education, and the high degree of use of EU funds in creating quality health care conditions, investment in infrastructure, culture, and the protection of natural values (resources) ​​has enabled Međimurje's transition to a group of above-average developed counties compared to the average in the Republic of Croatia.

In addition to all of the above, Međimurje's economy recorded an unemployment rate of five percent, the largest amount of exports in when compared to imports, export growth of 14 percent, employment growth of five percent, total income growth of 11.8 percent, while gross profit of the economy was higher by 9.2 percent, net profit was 13.2 percent higher, which in turn increased revenues by 11.8 percent.

The efficiency of Međimurje's public administration was assessed through the speed of issuing building permits, rational budget management, the role of the regional development agency, the county energy agency and the technology innovation centre. Investment in the knowledge centre was created by creating the prerequisites for start ups by building new premises worth 12 million kuna, withdrawing EU funds for the construction of the "Metalska jezgra" research centre (32 million kuna) and the centre for competence in nechanical engineering with a total value of 50 million kuna.

The award ceremony was held in France, and the following warm words were said about Međimurje:

"The key to your success is in the synergy of public administration, the private sector and the [local] population. Međimurje County has once more, in this way and with the obtaining of a new prestigious award, justified its title and its image as the most entrepreneurial county in Croatia. All this is a result of systematic work, a clear strategy and the proactive promotion of investment opportunities. For this year's choice, fDi Magazine has analysed data on economic potential, the working environment, cost efficiency, infrastructure and positive business environment(s) in as many as 112 locations,'' said the director of fDi Magazine, adding that, at this point, the most important economic and social issue is Brexit, where the Financial Times devotes a lot of attention to the analysis of the future of the European Union after Great Britain leaves (if it ever actually does, that is).

Sarah Russis, head of fDi Intelligence and GIS Planning, emphasised the role of digitalisation as an important link to the region's economic development and planned investment.

"We're aware that investors, entrepreneurs and public administration officials are doing demanding jobs, and therefore it's important to recognise and support every innovation, result, and effort invested in creating a positive entrepreneurial environment, and the incentives that facilitate the ease of day-to-day business."

''This is award is proof of a systematic and thoughtful strategy. Our goal is to attract value-added investments that lead to better working conditions. It's important to emphasise that many existing foreign investors have decided to expand their capacities and have confirmed that Međimurje is a location for long-term business success. Key activities that Međimurje County conducts are post-investment care, attracting new investment in key sectors, a marketing strategy for attracting FDI investments to Medjimurje County, and education for small and medium entrepreneurship. The Redea institute for public development is also a kind of "one stop shop" institution that monitors entrepreneurs through all administration challenges,'' stated Darko Radanović.

"This award is, above all, a recognition to all those who create added value and contribute the most to economic results. The residents of Međimurje are productive, valuable and resourceful, entrepreneurs are struggling in very challenging business conditions, mayors are successfully attracting money from EU funds, all based on a clear vision, a quality strategy and set goals. That has to be valued and I'm glad it was recognised by magazines like the Financial Times. But we're not going to stop there, we understand this as a challenge to be even better because, after Brexit, many investments will be redirected to other EU countries and we intend to use [that opportunity]. This resettlement process [of investment] has already begun, the potential of Međimurje has been recognised, which has been proven by a reward for the second year in a row, so, I hope that Croatia will model itself on other countries and jump on the train, recognise that this is a new moment and take advantage of its chance,'' said Medjimurje County Prefect Matija Posavec.

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As Marija Crnjak/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 12th of March, 2019, Croatia's hotel sector stagnated last year in terms of the number of new rooms and in the sense of the level of entry of foreign hotel brands. A lot of this, but of course not all of it, is because Croatia has deemed it more profitable to build and invest more in private accommodation, an often ''grey'' area of Croatia's tourism industry with much lower taxes and a very poor level of general regulation. The level of major investments in new hotel rooms has fallen significantly, the number of which grew by a mere one percent in one year.

Due to all the above mentioned conditions, the market is still dominated by local investors, quite a few new names have appeared on the scene in the last year, which are still to be properly positioned as hotel brands, according to the annual global report on hotel chains in 22 European countries, "European Chains & Hotels Report 2019" by the Horwath Consulting House HTL. In the Republic of Croatia, more than a quarter of these hotels, more specifically 186 of them, operate under 43 brands in total, of which 22 are local and 21 are international brands.

"High seasonality and an unfavourable environment for investors, especially with [granting the necessary] permits, are the main reason we're in 159th place on the Doing Business list, they're the biggest barriers for foreign investors, who find it difficult to decide on taking risks in developing projects in Croatia, although a few positive examples have occurred on the market which do lead to more optimism,'' stated Siniša Topalović from Horwath's Zagreb-based office.

Horwath's analysis, which is based on the numbers from Real Capital Analytic, only takes into account investments of more than 5 million dollars, reveals that investment in hotels in Croatia is down by as much as 90 percent, from 59 million euro to a mere 7 million euro.

''The growth of hotel brands in 2018 in Croatia (4 percent) should be observed through the proper placement of several local hotel names, and only time will reveal whether or not these names will be branded on the market,'' Topalović explained.

Additionally, although Croatia can be statistically put in a very good position in terms of the number of brands operating here, the market situation shows that the level of activity is lagging behind some countries which are considered to be weaker than Croatia. A good example of that is Serbia and its increasingly popular capital city of Belgrade, which has received 40 new hotels since 2014, with growth in the hotel sector in Belgrade mainly based on foreign investments and globally respected brands such as Crowne Plaza, Radisson Blu and Luxury Collection.

Although the RevPar (revenue per hotel room) rose by an average of 16 percent in Croatia in 2018, this year a slow down is expected, caused primarily by other Mediterranean countries which are recovering from their respective problems to return to the market (this includes longtime tourism kings like Turkey and Tunisia).

The main potential seems to lie outside of the height of the summer season. Along with Serbia, where further growth is expected in the hotel segment, Albania has some great potential for foreign investors, Albania currently has the smallest share of branded hotels per total number of rooms (2 percent), and Montenegro, Croatia's neighbour to the south, also offers investors fairly favourable investment conditions and is very active in encouraging a more luxurious tourist product for the country.

Greece, known for its numerous financial issues, has entered the world's top fifteen tourist destinations despite the country's somewhat infamous ups and downs, with 150 new luxury hotels ''born'' in Greece in 2018, becoming a destination in which more than one in five hotels is in the category of 4 or 5 stars. Last year, the largest amount of investments in hotels went from the United States across the Atlantic to Spain (2.1 billion euro), following came transactions from Israel to the United Kingdom totaling over one billion euro, French investors also invested 951 million euro into the United Kingdom.

Despite all of the potentially (and likely) damning economic risks from Brexit, one of the European continent's most powerful countries, the United Kingdom, had a total of nearly 4 billion euro in investment in its massive hotel business. In 22 countries from the Horwath analysis, there were a total of 146,600 hotels on the market last year with more than six million rooms, with an average of 61 rooms per hotel. The least-branded hotels had Albania, only 12, while France has 3885 hotels in the hotel chain.

Make sure to stay up to date with our dedicated business page for more on investment and doing business in Croatia.

Click here for the original article by Marija Crnjak for Poslovni Dnevnik

Through a project worth 45 million kuna and with welcome co-financing from the European Union, an innovative new product involving Slavonian oak doors is currently being developed in Vinkovci.

As Suzana Varosanec/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 11th of March, 2019, Vinkovci's Spačva wood industry, with its 865 employees, is going from strength to strength

Last year, the industry achieved fifteen percent higher revenues than it did back in 2017, and the same positive trend is set to continue throughout 2019. With a net profit of seven million kuna in 2017, Spačva's profit in 2018 was higher than fifteen million kuna.

A new phase of development, based on innovation and further competitiveness, has now been launched, and our struggle for raw material is going to lead us to the abandonment of the unlawful distribution of raw materials which is breaking the market and the transition to a market model,'' Spačva's Josip Faletar said, adding that the majority of the wood and the processing of it would be done in Slavonia, and in that case, the Vinkovci-based Spačva would employ 200 new workers in a boost to Slavonia's dwindling economy.

The company has been deprived of its old, burdensome commitments, and since last year it has been primarily focused on development projects, two of which are currently under way, and they're also preparing other new projects, which are of an innovative character and have been carefully developed in close cooperation with the scientific community.

The largest project in progress is worth 45 million kuna and is being co-financed by the EU, the project in question is the development of a new product made from sturdy Slavonian oak, which, with its charm, looks and high quality would likely easily conquer the demanding European market. This project has been in the works for four years now and is going according to plan, said Faletar, and along with experts from Spačva, a dozen scientists from the Zagreb and Osijek forestry faculties are also working hard on it.

Moreover, by the end of this year, Vinkovci's Spačva will announce the completion of a project worth more than 30 millio kuna which has been financed entirely from its own sources and loans. Namely, the company plans to achieve better raw material utilisation, at higher speeds and with greater flexibility in the process of tailoring customer requirements to the EU's single market.

Revenues from this Vinkovci company's sales in 2018 amounted to close to 230 million kuna, out of which on foreign markets in thirty countries, sales amounted to 73.08 percent, in the amount of 167.6 million kuna. The most important export countries are Italy, Serbia, France, Germany, and Romania. In the period from 2013 to 2018, Vinkovci's Spačva invested more than 100 million kuna into its machinery, equipment and infrastructure, and in 2019 it plans to invest a further 50 million kuna.

Make sure to follow our dedicated business page for much more on doing business in Croatia and the overall investment climate in various sectors within the country.

Click here for the original article by Suzana Varosanec on Poslovni Dnevnik

''Croats should be more concerned with the economy, and with the future too, rather than with topics that have failed to be solved over the past twenty years,'' stated Mladen Fogec.

As Ana Blaskovic/Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 10th of March, 2019, you could enter the Olympics and break your own personal record in running, but if you're slower than the others, you'll still come last, this is the creative way in which Mladen Fogec, president of the Association of Foreign Investors in Croatia, described the country's huge problems with its current investment climate.

After a highly successful career in business, Fogec still believes that the biggest problem in Croatia is the mentality of the Croats: the tendency to moan and the reluctance to actually work to change anything.

Mladen Fogec talked about just how it has happened that even today, it still doesn't ''sit'' well with many Croats for investors to make a profit, and just why Uljanik is a notorious example of market economy rejection. Fogec spoke in an interview before the InvestCro investment conference, which is set to be held on March the 18th in Zagreb.

For years, you've been working on the white book of business climate recommendations, but you recently announced that you'll just stick a 2018 sticker on it?

It was a statement through which I wanted to reinforce an impression, but it didn't change the fact that there still weren't enough significant changes in the business environment to need to write a new book. Whoever needs it can get the 2017 issue, we'll just put a 2018 sticker on it.

The government is bragging about tax reductions, less barriers and faster procedures. Do you actually see that out in the field?

We do see it, but nothing is quick enough and it isn't to a great enough extent. If we look at Croatia alone, then yes, they're good moves. However, you could go to the Olympics and run faster than you've ever done before, but if your competition is progressing faster, then it's irrelevant that you've topped your personal record - you're still among the last. It's not a question of whether or not reforms work, the question is whether or not they're efficient. You have to look at the other side of the medal - the situation as it's seen by the entrepreneurs. We should be taking into account when changes are being made more. I believe that in life and politics, there is an important compromise in which sides need to come together, otherwise there will be no progress.

You said the problem is the mentality. Jako Andabak, let's say, says that it isn't uncommon in Dalmatia to have problems with permits for hotels because some local responsible for the permits is wanting to make sure that situation doesn't negatively affect his apartments...

I said the same thing a year ago on a radio show and that wasn't exactly welcomed with sympathies. I'm glad it was repeated by Mr. Andabak because he is Dalmatian and he's doing business there. Looking back at my 30-year career, I think it is a general problem in the state of mind of Croats. We're heavily burdened with the former system, with socialism, to be more specific. It's difficult to accept the market economy, it carries a lot of good but some bad stuff. We'd prefer to take everything that's good from the market economy and at the same time keep everything that's good from socialism as well. Unfortunately, such a utopia doesn't exist. The legacy of the old system is still very present, especially in the part of the state-owned economy, and that isn't small.

A good example is Uljanik, which is largely owned by its workers. They're actually striking against themselves, de facto. There are subsidies which exist in all countries, but if you take up to 30 billion kuna in the shipbuilding industry, each employer has given 23,000 kuna from his pocket, the question is whether [it's wise] to continue subsidising something that creates losses for years? Croatia should be more concerned with the economy, as well as with the future, rather than with topics that have failed to be solved over the past twenty years. I think we should invest in modern technology and industries related to digitisation and information technology, and not shipbuilding which has a very low level of added value.

What would trigger an investment wave?

I think it would help us to begin to change, especially our mentality. Croats like to complain a lot, to latch onto problems that are largely pushed by the media. Good news is just bad news, there's no optimism. One foreign ambassador who recently came to Croatia told me that people came to him with various issues and just complained, complained, and complained some more. It's impossible for everything to be so bad. Surveys from Doing Business or rating agency reports are based largely on perception, similar to the corruption index. The same applies to others, but in more developed countries, society fights for it to be a rule rather than an exception. It's the easiest thing in the world to be loud when being critical, we should turn to optimism in order for foreign investors to see that, too.

Have you noticed a change of attitude towards investors?

Unfortunately, I've got to say no. Indeed, and I have to repeat the words of one of our members saying that it isn't a question of whether foreign investors want to come and invest in Croatia, but whether Croatia actually wants foreign investors. It's still a big problem for us to accept a foreigner who comes here with capital, wants to buy land, build a production plant, and hire a workforce because inevitably we come to those [types of conclusions such as] "he will profit and make money on us." We haven't felt that it's normal and expected that someone who invests earns a profit, naturally, in a transparent manner and in accordance with the laws.

Should politics be focused on the growth of companies, and not on EU funds which only fund 20 percent of investments?

This is the core of the problem: to deter entrepreneurs from all hidden, parafiscal impositions. Their number has been reduced over the past ten years but they're so concentrated so instead of four, you have one, but the load is almost the same. This would have made a significant contribution to the growth of the economy. When things start going that way, someone always says that it's beneficial to large foreign capital. It doesn't matter whether the capital is domestic or foreign; If a company operates in Croatia and pays all of its taxes then it's a Croatian company and whoever actually owns it is of nobody's interest.

The owners of Volvo are Chinese and still we all think that Volvo is a Swedish car, not a Chinese one. That was also the case with the change in personal income tax when the criticism was about [the change] going hand in hand with those with higher wages, and not those who earn less. This is turning that thesis around. Those with low wages have so far not been included in the payment of income tax, nor will they be in the future. Those who have higher incomes and pay relatively more taxes will now pay less, but this isn't giving anything to them, they'll just have to pay less. Then we return to the beginning of the story of the traces of socialism because the wages must be viewed as gross, and tax is an individual category.

What do you say about Minister Horvat's plan to compile a list of the most desirable investors who will visit and have the benefits of investing in the Republic of Croatia presented to them?

There are countless potential investors, but I think this is a good move purely because of the reason that it's proactive. The government shouldn't sit around and wait for someone to come and knock at the door, but go to the investors and say: we're offering you this, that is, come to Croatia. I think that's a good idea.

Why is Croatia so far behind other countries, what is it that they're doing better?

It's because as a society, we're not changing, the capacity for change is not at a sufficient level. I'm not just thinking about the economy [when I say this], that's just a consequence. Recently, in the German-Croatian Chamber of Commerce, we had conversations with companies that had apostrophed (especially those who have production in Croatia) that they don't have enough qualified skilled labour, and that they need longer than a year to teach the students who have completed their secondary vocational education. We're returning to the beginning, back to education and the lack of a dual education system. These students should spend at least half of their education in practice so that they can start work immediately when they come to the real sector. We still have the problem of not changing anything in our curriculum. Now we're talking about history instead of turning to STEM areas, computing and digitisation, the things that are pulling society forward. If we had any chance for... let's say, the auto industry with a large factory to come to us, I'm not sure we'd have 5,000 skilled workers for it. We must start to change in all segments, from education onwards, which once again calls for much greater investment, research and development.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated business page for more.

Click here for the original article/interview in its entirety by Ana Blaskovic for Poslovni Dnevnik

Croatian tourism continues to boom throughout the warm summer months, with visitors from across the globe descending not only on some of the country's most popular coastal destinations like Dubrovnik and Split, but further afield to hidden gems located in the rolling hills of the continental parts of the country, including but not limited to Zagreb, but gradually stretching all the way over to overlooked Eastern Croatia.

The more money a sector generates, the more loopholes can be found. The more complicated an industry becomes, the more clauses can be discovered by those who perhaps don't intend to use the system, but rather attempt to cheat it. 

From not registering guests staying in your privately owned accommodation facilities, to not registering said facilities with the appropriate authorities and the tax office, all the way to playing taxi and raking in thousands, there have always been those wanting to get as much as possible out of Croatian tourism and the hustle and bustle of the summer season, without having to jump through any of the burdensome hoops licensed entities have to. Could a new law on its way next month put a stop to that ''tradition''? Maybe.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 8th of March, 2019, the purpose of the upcoming legal changes, as was argued in the competent ministry, is not aimed at punishing people but rather at attempting to raise the overall quality of the tourist services provided. Unregistered activity, or work in so-called grey zone - is considered to be Croatian tourism's very personal plague. However, the new law, which comes into force on April the 1st, should change that.

All contained in one unified service, as it once used to be, there are seventeen types of inspections which have been operating within eight different ministries so far. Come April, any inspector will be able to record so called ''rad na crno'' (working on the black/unregistered) and issue an oral ban on the spot right there and then.

The Croatian Government considers that the consolidation of such types of inspections, or perhaps more correctly the re-establishing of an independent state inspectorate, will be much more efficient and functional. When it comes to Croatian tourism, it will enable a clearer and more concrete fight against the apparent ''plague'' of the black and grey economy.

''Now, aside from tourist inspectors, all inspectors have the right not only to deal with unregistered facilities but also those who are suspected of being unregistered,'' explained Tonči Glavina, State Secretary at the Ministry of Tourism, for HTV.

As stated, the government has claimed that the new law is not aimed purely at seeking out people to make examples of and punish, but rather to create a better environment in Croatian tourism for all. They claim that many people involved in this business need to be educated. They are not well acquainted with the laws, regulations, procedures, and therefore it is education that is missing, and not just control.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle, politics and business pages for much more.

International Women's Day was celebrated as it is annually on the 8th of March, and in honour of that, the Croatian media published a list of the most influential women from the scenes of business, politics and science. It's rare we can sit down and read an impressive list that Croatia can actually be proud of.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 8th of March, 2019, The popular economic weekly Lider highlighted ten influential women in Croatian business circles who were interviewed in an attempt to find out the secrets of their success.

1.) Lada Tedeschi Fiorio: Women have to fight, prove and force things because that's the way of recognising their values ​​in the business community, said one of the richest Croatian women, shareholder and deputy chairperson of the Atlantic Group supervisory board, who is also the mother of two children and a successful marathon runner.

2.) Kristina Ercegović is known as an entrepreneur who expressed her attitude towards the Croatian Government and its tax policy "without filters", telling Minister Zdravko Maric to ''stop flogging a dead horse''.

3.) Going into law is the female job of the future, said Jadranka Sloković at the conference "Women in Business". Women now account for 43 percent of attorneys, while 60 percent of them are trainees.

4.) Medeja Lončar, chair of the management board of Siemens Croatia, has long been one of the few women in the Croatian technology sector. When you prove yourself, obstacles disappear, she pointed out, maybe some initially underestimated my different, ''female'' approach, but over time they learned that it does not mean I'm a simpler adversary.

5.) Vedrana Pribičević, a prominent economist of the younger generation, spoke in an interview for Lider about the lack of capitalism and lack of entrepreneurial culture in Croatia.

6.) The situation is worrisome for women who are underpaid, for women who do not have adequate child care solutions in their living environment, for further education, etc. It's important for women to have quality conditions, a choice of solutions and support, stated Gordana Kovačević, the president of Ericsson Nikola Tesla's management.

7.) Ariana Vela is one of the leading Croatian consultants for European Union funds, strategic planning, preparation and implementation of projects.

8.) Entrepreneurs need to go through changes, enter the digital age, and take their destiny in their hands. I want all of us to find strength, energy, money and the intelligence to be the change that our economy desperately needs, said Tajana Barančić, a leading business consultant from Astra Business Engineering.

9.) Suzana Kovačević is the founder of Lorien, who offered a unique product to the domestic market - designer female socks. Despite the fact that for years she has been struggling with a rigid system that has no time to spend listening to the problems of entrepreneurs, she said that she still isn't going to give up.

10.) Nevena Crljenko, director of Philip Morris International in New York, sent a message to women: Do not allow your ''male'' business environment to demotivate you, you're the one who decides that you will succeed. When you hear your inner voice saying that you can't do something, find a metaphorical hammer so you can knock it back.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated business and lifestyle pages.

Doing business in Croatia in 2018 was rated as better by 72 percent of companies who partook in AmCham's research on the development of Croatia's business climate, a jump in comparison to just one year earlier, in which that figure stood at 65 percent. It appears that the image of doing business in Croatia is gradually improving in the eyes of the foreign business community and their companies.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Darko Bicak writes on the 7th of March, 2019, the international business community is visibly more optimistic about the development of the business climate in the Republic of Croatia, yet the main challenge continues to be the difficulty in finding skilled labour and the functioning of the legal state, as was reflected in the results of an analysis of the American Chamber of Commerce in Croatia - AmCham. The aforementioned results were presented to the public on the 6th of March.

This is a relatively reliable sample because AmCham brings together 230 mostly very successful companies employing nearly 80,000 workers in Croatia alone. While this analysis is similar to that which was conduced by Croatian professional associations or foreign chambers and consultants, the specificity of AmCham's research is that American companies are mostly more global and more inclined to export markets than the Croatian average, and in that same scope, AmCham compares Croatia with countries in its ''region'' which covers a much wider geographic area than what is commonly referred to as "the region" in Croatian terms.

As explained by Andrea Doko Jelušić, the executive director of AmCham, every American, international, and ultimately Croatian company has its own definition of what the ''region'' actually refers to, and in AmCham's case it most often includes, along with the Adria region, central and eastern European countries such as Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, and Bulgaria.

However, 130 members of the management of American, international and Croatian companies who partook in the AmCham research have reported a 72 percent increase in performance in 2018, compared to the previous year, during which it stood at a significantly lower 65 percent. At the same time, as many as 60 percent of them have increased their number of employees, which is more than encouraging.

As far as the business environment in Croatia over the last five years stands, respondents have assessed the main constraining factor in business to be lack of an adequate workforce, an unstable regulatory framework, and tax. The worst deterioration in the last five years is linked to the availability and the quality of the workforce, as well as the ''relaxed'' implementation of legal rules and procedures.

"The lack of an adequate workforce has appeared as a significant problem for the Croatian economy last year, and this year's survey rates it as the biggest obstacle to business in Croatia. At the same time, this is the area in which the worst deterioration has been seen," stated Andrea Doko Jelušić. On the other hand, the biggest improvements are visible in terms of financing, the demand for goods and services, and trading opportunities.

As many as 76 percent of the research's respondents see the impact of state administration on the business environment as either negative or to no particular effect, which, compared with last year, represents a 10 percent decrease. Most of AmCham's members, of which there are 68, also operate in other Central and Eastern European countries (SIEs), of which 65 percent operate in more than five countries in the region.

Only eight percent believe that the business conditions in Croatia are better than those in other SIE countries, while 45 percent believe that conditions in Croatia are worse than they are in other countries.

The biggest disadvantages of Croatia in relation to other countries relate to the small market and in the same threshold, the slow administration and the absence of a long-term government strategy. The main advantages Croatia boasts according to the respondents are the general advantages of the country's membership of the European Union, the tourism potential of the country, and its handy geostrategic position.

In the upcoming three year period, 81 percent of AmChama members are planning to expand their operations in Croatia, and 75 percent of them are planning on opening up new jobs.

Out of the total number of surveyed, as many as a quarter of them are planning to employ more than twenty new employees. On the other hand, seven percent of these companies expect to reduce the number of existing employees over the next three years.

The introduction of the euro into Croatia is seen as welcome by as many as 91 percent of AmCham's entrepreneurs who say it would have either a positive or neutral impact on their business. In last year's survey, 49 percent of respondents emphasised the possibility of using EU funds as the third major positive impact of Croatia's EU membership. However, just 11 percent of the companies involved stated that they were beneficiaries of EU funds that at the time of the conduction of this research.

Among the respondents, the greatest interest appears to lie in obtaining money from EU funds for projects in the field of Information Communication Technology (ICT), 36 percent, and for production projects, or 17 percent, along with related production facilities.

"The optimism of the business community in Croatia continues to be visible from the results of the survey this year," commented Berislav Horvat, Chairman of AmCham's Council of Managers.

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Click here for the original article by Darko Bicak for Poslovni Dnevnik

While many continue to disregard it, gender equality in the workplace continues to be a burning issue for most. Konzum, however, seems to have it well and truly covered.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 7th of March, 2019, women account for over 74 percent of Konzum's employees, while in the retail section they account for almost 84 percent, with 84 percent of women in the chain's retail section also holding leadership positions.

From cashiers and workers in the warehouse through to employees in lower and middle management, all the way up to managers in some of the giant company's highest positions, women make up 74 percent of Konzum's employees.

Thus, more than 76 percent of all leadership positions within this huge company belong to women, and women also account for nearly 84 percent of retail workers. It is also interesting to note that women in Konzum have entered into some of the departments that were until fairly recently publicly perceived as "typically male", such as the logistics-distribution centre or the business support section.

"We are exceptionally proud to point out that the vast majority of employees in Konzum are women. Their great effort, teamwork, creativity, intuition, and their level of responsibility they put into their tasks daily enrich and enhance Konzum's business. That's why we want to thank them with a number of benefits through which we're striving to make the balancing between work and home life less difficult,'' said Slavko Ledić, CEO of Konzum, congratulating the International Women's Day for Konzum employees.

All parents of first grade kids who work for Konzum have the right to have a day off on their child's first day of the school, and there are as many as 222 other employee benefits available this school year. In December, an amount of money intended for children is paid to all parents, along with other benefits for all employees, such as benefits for newborn babies, christmas bonuses and more, the possibility of working part-time is also readily available.

Konzum has emphasised the fact that it as a company cherishes the policy of equal opportunities for women and men so that everyone gets an equal shot at opportunities for further professional advancement, additional education and training, as well as equality between women and men in high positions, and in terms of wages, so that women and men are equally paid for working in the same positions.

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Companies competing for this prestigious global recognition go through a very rigorous assessment process that includes a comprehensive overview of employers' practices in several categories. British American Tobacco, which operates here in Croatia, has come a cut above the rest yet again.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 7th of March, 2019, British American Tobacco (BAT), otherwise one of the largest private investors in the Republic of Croatia, was nominated for the second consecutive year as the best global employer (Global Top Employer). The award is given by the Top Employers Institute, an independent organisation that studies the working conditions of the largest global employers.

Companies competing for this prestigious global recognition go through a very rigorous assessment process that includes a comprehensive overview of employers' practices in several categories: from education and employee development through to business culture and salaries. The Global Top Employer's prestigious award was received by only fourteen companies this year.

BAT employs more than 50,000 people in more than fifty countries and provides very high quality working conditions on all markets where it operates. Business culture, social engagement and innovation is also developing right here in Croatia

BAT is rightfully recognised as a quality employer in the Republic of Croatia. Employment with BAT offers career development in a quality international environment that provides opportunities for acquiring new knowledge and progress within not only Croatian organisations, but also on regional and global levels. In addition to employment, BAT has readily signed cooperation agreements with many faculties and universities across Croatia to provide students with the opportunity to gain experience in a dynamic and challenging corporate environment.

"We see the best global employer certification as a confirmation of our efforts across the entire BAT group to provide a quality work environment for our employees. We encourage employees at all levels to develop their careers to fully achieve their ambitions and expectations,'' said Vera Čubranić Bocak, Human Resources Director of the BAT Adria region.

Last year, BAT employed more than 200 people in Croatia, and the acquisition of TDR increased the total number of employees in all parts of the business by seven percent.

Today, in the Croatian part of the BAT Adria cluster, more than 1,700 people are employed, of which 80 new employees have become part of the global product development team which works on procuding potentially less harmful products. Last year, on the Croatian market, a glowing, combustion-free tobacco heating system was introduced, making Croatia one of the first countries in the world in which BAT introduced its innovative product.

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