issue no. 29bpcc.org.pl/contact-magazine/issues/18.pdf · leadership is a myth. frederic laloux...

Issue No. 29

Contact Magazine Issue No. 29

Editorial note 3

Self-management and leadership: an oxymoron? 4

Millennials – why companies should take notice 6

The value of professional qualifications in accounting and auditing 8

Young talents – challenge for recruitment, but the opportunity for innovations 10

Striving for ethical business standards in a changing world 12

FM sector redefines role as office shifts to workplace 14

How can you benefit from outsourcing recruitment? 15

Employers cannot keep up with the technological revolution 16

RoboHunter – is human-resource management possible without humans? 19

Leadership coaching – its value for a leader and an organisation 21

Better English means higher profits – true or false? 22

Executive coaching: trendy mumbo-jumbo or a real game-changer? 24

Employing foreigners in the IT sector in Poland 27

Is a freelancer's unpaid non-compete clause after termination of a service agreement binding? 29

How to attract and keep the best employees 31

Acquiring and retaining talent 32

Three ways to effectively manage training processes in your organisation 34

Chairman's and CEO's note 35

Labour law in the age of globalisation 36

The Déhora Consultancy Group: A Full-Service Workforce Planning Expert 38

Human resources in a time of Uncertainty 40

Legal and tax aspects of delegating employees - Poznań 42

Table of Contents

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http://bpcc.org.pl/uploads/ckeditor/attachments/11766/Frontiers_in_tax._Polish_edition_-_March_2017.pdf

http://www.dentons.com/en/insights/guides-reports-and-whitepapers/2017/january/24/investing-in-renewable-energy-projects-in-europe


Factoring – a summary of the market and available products 42

Manufacturing risk index 2017 and trends on the Polish industrial market 43

Kraków members learn how to deal with online data security 45

Silesia attractive for foreign investors 46

The BPCC economic debate on the investment attractiveness of Podkarpacie in Rzeszow 47

BPCC members explain UK food market to Mazowsze’s exporters 48

Migrants in Poland - the role of the private sector 50

Time to Report! Facts'n'Fun Silver Jubilee Business Briefing 51

Frontiers in tax - March 2017 51

Antal Salary Report 52

Doing Business in Poland Guide 52

The impact of Foreign Direct Investment 53

Investing in renewable energy projects in Europe 53

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Editorial note

Human resources have suddenly become thenumber one issue for many of our members.

It's back to being an employee's market, withemployers having to concentrate on recruiting andretailing staff like never before.

Twomacrotrendsarecomingintoconflict –on theone hand

demographics, on the other technology. Someemployers are concerned that the Polish labourmarket will run dry; falling birth rates mean thateach year fewer and fewer young Poles arestarting work. Others are saying that robots andalgorithms will soon destroy vast numbers of jobs.What's certain is that these two trends will notcancel each other out. Labour shortages willintensify in some sectors, while many people willbe left without the skills that the labour market willneed most.

The other big trend that's affecting HR is migration.The UK opened its labour market to Poles whenPoland was experiencing record highunemployment. Now, the UK is looking to close itslabour market to Poles – just as Polishunemployment falls to record lows. Tens ofthousands of Poles are already returning homefrom the UK, pushed by a falling pound and a lesswelcoming climate, pulled by rising wages andliving standards. Since Poland joined the EU, it'sGDP has risen by over 160%, whilst the UK's hasrisen by around 25%. But Poland is also attractingever-increasing numbers of Ukrainian nationals toits labour market. Over 1.2m Ukrainians worklegally in Poland, albeit mostly on temporary workpermits, in sectors from agriculture to IT, from

manufacturing to logistics.

The BPCC's members are reporting differentsituations on local labour markets around Poland.Across Lower Silesia, the market is particularlytight, as it is in Kraków, Poznań, the Tri-City andWarsaw. Sectors such as IT and BPO (especiallyin Wrocław and Kraków) are finding recruitmentand retention difficult. Yet in many smaller cities,labour supply is still plentiful. At a BPCC meeting inRzeszów last month, in the heart of Poland'sAerospace Valley, members and new investorssaid they had no difficulties with their humanresources.

It's one thing to find willing employees, it's anotherto ensure that their skills match the job'srequirements. Training, coaching and mentoring,continually raising the qualifications of onesworkforce and management, is an essential part ofmaintaining business competitiveness. As Polandmoves from being a low-cost, low-skills economyto becoming one that's increasingly knowledge-driven, professional qualifications are becomingincreasingly important.

And this is where the UK, Brexit notwithstanding,has an excellent part to play as a global provider ofknow-how – education, training, professionalqualifications, certification, disseminating bestpractice.

This issue of Contact Magazine Online includesmany articles that shed light on the current state ofthe HR market in Poland – and on its futureprospects.

We particularly commend the piece from Deloitte'sMichał Ołbrychowski and the interview withCharles Carnall, the new director of Hays inPoland. If you're looking for ground-breaking newideas which look set to revolutionise the waybusinesses think and act, please read the articleby IBD Business School's Prof Jan Nowak. PaulStrohn from RICS writes about how this venerableBritish professional body is spreading the higheststandards of ethical behaviour and

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building trust throughout the world of real estate.These and many other articles should be read togive a thorough, all-round picture of the Polish HRmarket. We hope you'll find them useful!

Self-management and leadership:an oxymoron?

by Dr Jan Nowak, director of MBA programmes atIBD Business School in Warsaw

In his book Reinventing Organizations (NelsonParker, 2015), Frederic Laloux wrote “Manypeople sense that the way organizations arerun today has been stretched to its limits.

A leader is bestWhen people barely know he exists,Not so good when people obey and acclaim himWorse when they despise him,But of a good leader, who talks littleWhen his work is done, his aim fulfilledThey will all say “We did it ourselves” — Lao Tzu

In survey after survey, businesspeople make itclear that in their view, companies are places ofdread and drudgery, not passion or purpose.”According to Laloux, the answer to this workplaceplight are self-managing organisations that alsorepresent a more soulful and purposeful way to runbusinesses and non-profits. Such enlightenedorganisations are called ‘teal organisations’.

‘Teal’ is not an acronym, but a colour, a greenish-blue. Laloux uses colour symbolism in delineatingphases of evolution of the organisation, from red, toamber, then green and on to teal. The creation ofteal organisations is inspired by shift to the nextstage of human consciousness, currentlyunderway.

Self-management – from self-organising teamsto self-managing organisations

Self-management is not a new concept. Back in

the early 1950s, miners in South Yorkshire beganspontaneously organising themselves into multi-skilled, autonomous groups, whose productivitysoared. Self management gained popularity in the1970s and ‘80s. They became synonymous withparticipative management and industrialdemocracy (Europe), continuous improvement(Japan) and innovation (USA). Self-managingteams contributed to reduced defects (or serviceerrors), increased productivity and cost reductions.They continued to be popular in the 1990s,promising higher productivity and more adaptabilityin environments subject to rapid change.

In more recent years, it’s become apparent thatself-managed teams don’t require organisationalhierarchy with heavy-handed control from the top.If self-management of teams can be more effectivethan managing them from the top, why not extendthe principle to entire organisations? If thathappened, why would we need hierarchy andlayers of managers? Indeed, a Harvard BusinessReview article on Beyond the Holacracy Hype(Jul-Aug 2016) reports C&S CEO Rick Cohenvisiting Harvard Business School, more than adecade earlier, to speak about his company’ssuccess with self-managed teams, and saying tothe students that “the hardest thing is to keep themanagers out of the process and just let the teamsdo what they do.”

In a similar vein, in December 2011 issue,Harvard Business Review published an articleauthored by the management guru, Gary Hamel,with a poignant title: First, Let’s Fire All theManagers. Gary Hamel began by saying:“Management is the least efficient activity in yourorganisation” and continued: “Think of thecountless hours that team leaders, departmentheads, and vice presidents devote to supervisingthe work of others. Most managers arehardworking; the problem doesn’t lie with them.The inefficiency stems from the top-heavymanagement model that’s cumbersome andcostly”. Hamel used Morning Star, an Americantomato processing company, the world’s largestand arguably the world’s most

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efficient tomato processor, as a case to prove thatcompanies are better off without organisationalhierarchy and top-down control. Morning Star wasalso among the dozen companies studied byLaloux as examples of teal (self-managing)organisations.

Is leadership superfluous in self-managingorganisations?

In such organisations self-management replaceshierarchical pyramid and leadership becomesdistributed and servant, which means that there’sno formal management structure with subordinatesreporting to superiors. Does that mean that leadersare not needed? After all, teams organisethemselves, set their own objectives and decidehow to best achieve those objectives! Even thoughthere’s an assumption of no control form the top ina self-managing organisation, the lack ofleadership is a myth. Frederic Laloux wrote: “TheTeal Organizations in this research haveformidable founders or CEOs – it takes inspiredand courageous leadership to build organizationsthat are ahead of their time” (Reinventingorganizations, p. 167).

The leaders of self-managing organisations don’thave hierarchical power, but they often carry muchauthority. They are usually aware that theirpresence, words, and actions carry particularweight. They are role models. These are theleaders who have given up power and control – avery difficult thing to do! Some, like Yann Gontard,the CEO of Sodexho’s Corporate Segment Centraland Eastern Europe, have even given up theircorner offices and share office space with staff,such as accountants. In return, they have gainedtime, which they use to inspire, consult and serve.They have become more authentic and gainedtrust, thus releasing employees’ energy, motivationand enthusiasm, sometimes on an unimaginablescale. A leadership transformation to run a self-managing organisation is both indispensable andvery difficult. Laloux wrote: “Fighting the inner

urge to control is probably the hardest challenge forfounders and CEOs in self-managingorganisations” (Reinventing organizations). One ofthe most important responsibilities of teal leaders isto keep the organisation on a self-managing courseand not let it revert to a traditional, hierarchicalstructure, even if it is hit by a crisis.

Of course, managing in teal-type organisations isquite different from managing in traditionalmanagement structures. It is less aboutsupervision and direction and more aboutdesigning, inspiring, facilitating, and coaching. Andyet, leadership is not less relevant. On thecontrary, it is even more important, although totallydifferent. “You have to lead by example and roundup the troops rather than rely on authority” say theauthors of the Harvard Business Review article onBeyond the Holacracy Hype.

Self-managing organisations in Poland

A number of companies in Poland have beenreported to experiment with self-management.They include: Marco (Gliwice), Kamsoft Podlasie,Masterpress, LeaNCe, Muszynianka, POL-MAK,Parasol Roztocza Foundation, Coders Centre,Sodexho, NotJustShop, GEP Poland, and PolmoŁomianki. They are at different stages of self-management, but they have all tried to become organisations with less control from the top andmore self-managed teamwork, and have, in oneway or another, succeeded in creating a betterwork environment for their employees. Some ofthe leaders of these organisations have gonethrough a profound transformation. For example,Tomasz Misztal, the CEO of Kamsoft Podlasie,told the audience at the last year’s conference inWarsaw (Firma z Duszą, October 24, 2016) acompelling story of his transformation from a red toa a teal leader, to use Laloux’s terminology. Heremarked: “The more I tried to control, the lesseffective I was as a leader”. Today, Kamsoftoperates according to most of the self-management rules. Employees are organised intoself-managing teams and make the majority ofoperational decisions themselves. There are

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no individual KPIs, no bonuses, salary differencesare small and the profit is equally divided amongthe managers and employees. The CEO has moretime to listen to his colleagues, help and facilitatetheir self-management. He has now time to engagein new ventures that he develops according to theteal-organisation concept!

Millennials – why companiesshould take notice

by Konrad Kubacki, business services manager,BPCC Trade

Each year an increasing number of millennialsis entering the workforce. It’s estimated that by2025, about 75% of employees globally will beunder the age of 35.

This is a powerful force that’s changing thelandscape of the workplace. This article takes acloser look at the difference between generations,and outlines key factors that can help employersadapt their strategy to the changing environment.

Millennials, also known as Generation Y, are thedemographic group following Generation X.Although there are no precise dates of birth thatcan clearly describe when this demographicgroups starts or ends, social scientists typicallyuse the early 1980s as starting birth years for‘older’ millennials and the mid-1990s to early 2000sas ending birth years for ‘younger’ millennials.According to the data from the Polish statisticaloffice, GUS, 11 million people or about 30% of thepopulation was born in that time.

So what makes this group different?

Each generation is different in it’s own way, just asGeneration X was different from the generation ofbaby boomers, Generation Y will differ as a naturalconsequence of the changing environment inwhich it grew up. In general, millennials have beenraised in a more stable and prosperous

environment, which has allowed for highereducation levels, freedom of movement andspeech, further strengthened by the introduction ofnew technologies. Millennials are more open toinnovation, eager to travel and discover the world,and not afraid of taking on new challenges to fulfiltheir interests.

Millennials were the first generation to have grownup with the internet and computers widelyavailable, making it a natural part of their lives. Asa result they are much more versatile in adoptingnew technologies and using them in personal andprofessional fields. Millennials are dependent onquick and easy access to information over theinternet and can be influenced by the opinions oftheir peers widely shared via social media.

Millennials are also called the Peter Pan generation(a term first introduced by the American sociologistKathleen Shaputis) reflecting the increasing delayin the moment that they enter adulthood. Incomparison to previous generations they livelonger with their parents, spend more years gettingeducated, have a lower marriage rate and apreference for a ‘single’ way of life, particularly inbigger cities.

Professional development and approach to theworkplace.

Academic research indicates a variety of factorsthat can describe Generation Y attitudes towardswork and how they are different form theirpredecessors. On the one hand, Millennials rarelyfollow the same rules as previous generations; onthe other, they also share some similarities.Generation Y places bigger priority on achievingbalance between personal and professional life,prefers a flat corporate structure, and possessesheightened social awareness and responsibility. Millennials expect their work to be aligned with theirinterests, to be meaningful and creative. They areconfident of their abilities, consequent in theiractions, and not afraid of new challenges.Millennials are not as influenced by the opinions

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of others in the workplace, however they expectclose relationships and frequent feedback fromtheir supervisors. And being adept with newtechnologies and social networks, millennialspossess enhanced collaborative skills and aresulting preference for a team-oriented workingenvironment.

Interest in working in the public service sector hasalso been making a comeback, with more than halfof millennials considering the possibility of a careerin public service. This coincides with the view thatremuneration is no longer the key factor drivingmillennials, who are willing to accept a lower pay tobe able to pursue a path that would be morealigned with their interests and passions.

This is further aligned with the preference to workin companies that are engaged in corporate socialresponsibility, sharing their views about caring forthe environment and working for the betterment ofsociety. This can become a crucial factor forcompanies looking to recruit the top talent,particularly in industries where there the‘employees market’ is dominating.

The spirit of entrepreneurship.

Thetopicofhow

millennials influence the working environment,what are their priorities, and what is their approachto entrepreneurship and professional developmentwas the theme of the conference Millennials – aparadox generation. Entrepreneurs or outcasts,which took place in the University of Łódź on 24February. The event was organised by PAMCentre, during which the results of the AmwayGlobal Entrepreneurship Report 2016 (AGER)were presented.

The AGER report, which is based on a surveyamong 50,000 respondents in 45 countries, showsthat younger generations generally show a morepositive attitude towards entrepreneurship. InEurope, this figure was 81% of respondents underthe age of 35 versus 67% for respondents over 50years old. A similar difference between generationscan be observed in the interest in establishingone’s own business and self-employment (inPoland 43% versus 13%) as well as confidence inpossessing skills and resources to do so (46%versus 20%). The report also finds thatindependence and self-fulfilment (both with a scoreof above 50%) were the key factors motivatingyounger respondents to undertake entrepreneurialactivities.

The conference also included presentations byexperts in the field of HR and sociology, who triedto connect the entrepreneurial spirit of millennialswith the realities of today’s workplace. Dr TomaszCzapla from the University of Łódź, indicates thatwhile Generation Y can be very focused and goal-oriented, this is based on an individual approach,with goals and motivations differing among olderand younger employees. This can createchallenges further down the line when this personachieves a management role in an organisation.

Dr Julita Czernecka, University of Łódź, points outthat millennials as a generation are verydemanding with an egocentric approach to life andwork. They can have little loyalty towards theiremployers and change their jobs quite often, butthis is a result of the life cycle they’re currently inand natural behaviour for young people under theage of 30. Work-life integration is also very naturalprocess for them, where they use their privatephones and take time during work to take care ofpersonal matters over the internet, while alsocatching up on office emails at home, out of officehours.

I also had the opportunity to present during theconference, where I took a closer look at theentrepreneurship of young Poles in the UK.According to a 2015 study, Poles were among

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the most entrepreneurial groups of migrants in theUK. One in ten Poles living in the UK has eitherestablished their own business (with more that30,000 companies so far) or are self-employed(over 65,000). Considering that more than 60% ofPoles in the UK are under the age of 39, we canconclude that young Poles that are moving to thereto find themselves in an environment that booststheir entrepreneurial spirits. This is no coincidence,as the UK ranked seventh globally (third in Europe)in the 2017 Ease of Doing Business reportpublished by the World Bank. In comparison,Poland ranked 24th globally and 14th in Europe.Great Britain has a very business friendlyadministration, tax system, numerous businessdevelopment programmes, as well as an opensociety and positive attitude towardsentrepreneurial and risk taking activity.

In the AGER report, the UK has a higher scorerating for positive attitudes towardsentrepreneurship (83%) and entrepreneurialpotential (44%) than Poland (71% and 41%respectively) as well as the global average (77%and 43%). This shows that the businessenvironment where young people are entering theworkforce can be crucial for their entrepreneurialspirit, which is also an important signal for policymakers and company managers.

Practical considerations.

What practical conclusions for companies can wederive from these academic findings? Employersshould focus on attracting the best candidatesthrough more than just the size of the salary. Theyhave to adapt their offer and working environmentnot just to meet the needs of millennials, but toremove any barriers to their entrepreneurial spiritthat may arise. In essence, they will be seeking:

flexible working environment

meaningful and creative work

clear career advancement path

work in a team, but with individual goals

continuous feedback from superiors, but not strictcontrol

possibility of work-life balance and integration

employers sharing their views on corporate socialresponsibility

HR managers are rightfully concerned thatmillennials can have increased expectations fromthe workplace, are not afraid to switch jobs morefrequently than Generation X to find a companythat better fits their vision of the world. Employeeretention is becoming a top priority for anyorganisation.

The future belongs to millennials, and it is not thequestion whether they should adapt to employersneeds and requirements, but how companiesshould change their approach to accommodate thechanging demands and environment of newgenerations. Mutual understanding and cooperationof employees from different age groups willultimately influence the success of anyorganisation.

The value of professionalqualifications in accounting andauditing

by Marzena Richter ACA, management boardmember, Staniszewski & Richter

More than 20 years’ experience as an employercombined with the role of advisor and auditorto international clients has taught me thatmoral value is intrinsically related to financialvalue.

Being educated in mathematics and physicsmeans that my search for truth which must beproved by means of logic.

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So how do we get from financial value being afunction of moral value?

The answer is ethics – or simply the practicalapplication of moral value in professionalbehaviour. I would define moral value as the sumof a set of principles, or in the case of charteredaccountants – a code of ethics. The key pillars inprofessional ethics are integrity, independence,confidentiality and competence. These are crucialfor good judgment and decision-making inaccounting and auditing.

Judgment after all is exercised by the auditor whois charged with delivering an objective opinion onfinancial statements to those with a vested interestin the performance of the entity. The above keyethical principles can be further broken down intothose qualities sought after in both auditing andaccounting personnel.

So what qualities should a good auditorpossess – and how are these practically relatedto professional ethics?

Qualities of integrity

A good auditor must always seek to convey thetruth constructively however difficult and unpopularthis may be. This will demand courage, sensitivityto relationships and diplomatic language. Theauditor’s fiduciary duty can only be reaffirmed inthis way. Trust is built through ensuring theauditor’s duties are fulfilled to the highest standard.

Qualities of independence

A firm belief in the freedom to speak the truthcombined with lack of concern over the opinionsof the client’s staff should reinforce theindependence of the auditor from the audited entity.Only in this way can the auditor become a figure ofauthority. Independence is a mindset, not astatistical calculation; it is governed by prudence,judgment, courage and control.

Qualities of confidentiality

The auditor must above all be loyal to the clientwho is the investor above all other parties. Theauditor must therefore develop skills which governthe appropriateness of communication to variousgroups involved in the audit process.

Qualities of Competence

The interpretation and understanding of financialstatements – and the ensuing financial data – is anart and great skill which develops with experience.In the world of international business, relevantcommunication skills (including foreign languages),knowledge of different legal systems, reportingconventions and tax regimes are essentialcompetence areas. Concepts embedded inlanguage and differences between systems,markets, economies and jurisdictions enrichcompetence. The overview of an entity within itsgroup structure, economic environment, marketsector and legal jurisdiction in depth and breadthstrengthens the auditor’s assessment andcompetence.

So what qualities are sought of an accountantsuch as a finance director or chief accountant?

Qualities of integrity

Accuracy, correctness, control and the ability tomeet deadlines are all key qualities accountantsmust possess. In addition, accountants’ honestyshould endeavour to use their knowledge to themaximum advantage of their employer’s entity. Forexample, in the application of tax regulations or themanagement of the treasury function. Accountants should provide management with aninsight into seemingly complex regulationsreaffirming decisions taken. Leaving managementin the dark is simply unethical. Communication,oral and written should be concise andunencumbered by bureaucracy.

Qualities of objectivity

Employees should not let personal relationshipsinterfere with the assessment

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of their colleagues’ work and must thereforeexercise objectivity. Accounting functions are oftenteam based. Similarly the application of reportingconventions, tax regulations, standards should bedone with the greatest of diligence in order toensure compliance with the laws and relevantstandards.

Qualities of confidentiality

Employees involved in the accounting functionmust above all be loyal and discrete bearing inmind they have been trusted with highly sensitiveand confidential financial information

Qualities of competence

The level of transparency of reporting, openness tochange (such as increased automation,digitalisation, regulations), knowledge of changes inlaws are all indicators of competence. The higherthe degree of integration of systems, the more anenterprise controls its data. Conversely the lessintegrated a system means increasing the scopefor duplication of tasks and manual controls. Thisin turn increases the risk of fraud and error whichcould result in the abuse of resources.

The stronger the desire for improvement incompetence means that the relevant personnelhave a thirst for self-development, are engaged intheir work and have a passion for what they do!This should make the working environmentexciting and purposeful.

In summary, the financial value of your enterpriseis significantly associated with the ethical values ofmanagement and employees in their professionallife. Investing in professional qualificationsincreases technical expertise; more importantly itshould provide any institution with a strong moralbackbone within its finance function.

Young talents – challenge forrecruitment, but the opportunityfor innovations

Young talent - disobedient, looking forchallenges, dynamic and focused onimprovement – with this explanation PiotrWielgomas – CEO of BIGRAM, began thedebate entitled Young talents – challenge forrecruitment, but the opportunity forinnovations.

The debate took place at the Warsaw StockExchange as a part of Global ManagementChallenge final ceremonies on 6 March 2017.Each year, the GMC competition brings togetheryoung talents, that’s why the finals were anexcellent opportunity to talk about it. The debatewas directed by Marcin Piasecki – the editor ofRzeczpospolita. In the panel discussion took partrepresentatives of reputable employers (Avon,Amazon, Grupa AXA, PKN Orlen, IBM).

As participants stressed, young talent shouldprimarily has a passion. The examples ofemployers who are looking for passionate peopleare Avon and Amazon, companies prepared forinvesting in young talents. Marta Dworowska,regional senior HR manager in Amazon, pointedout that more and more often soft skills areappreciated the same as hard skills. “Youngtalents should have developed

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the ability to team collaboration, accessibility, focuson objectives and leadership. At Amazon we selectpeople with such skills to the managementprogramme, where their job is to organise work ofalmost 100 hundred-person team. We invest inyoung talents, but we expect responsibility.”

Acquiring young talent at the current market is amajor challenge. Companies compete with theiroffers, presenting beautiful offices, attractivebenefits, but also opportunities for developing. "It’s a very good time for young people who areable to demonstrate diligence and activity," saidMarcin Piasecki.

Employers prospecting for young talent take careabout employer branding. By participating inrecognised projects or competitions like GMC,they encourage students and young graduates toapply. Communication with young talent movesinto social media. However, attractiveadvertisement is not enough to attract young talent.Candidates are asking employers about theirmission, the strategic objectives of the company,check the way the company do business, values,organisational culture, the impact on society orecology.

Panellists also wanted to know how best to workwith young talent that’s already been already hired,how to build loyalty in a generation which plans tochange employer every two years, according to astudy by Motywacje Młodych.

“Young talents need to face variable challengesand goals to pursue their own tasks and giveopportunity to demonstrate creativity andeffectiveness in action,” said Maya Krzyżanowskafrom PKN Orlen. For a new generation of talents,work-life balance is increasingly important. Butemployers sometimes require full involvement,because business takes place 24 hours a day. Foremployers who create innovation, it will be mucheasier to get new loyal employees.

Monika Tarlaga, a student participating in the panelsaid, young people are very ambitious. “Theyexpect that after graduation will easily take up aleadership position. Why? Because they have ahigh need for efficacy, they want to affect theenvironment, the business. Therefore, it isincreasingly important to create jobs, in whichyoung talents will see sense and purpose and willbe able to see quickly the results of their work.”

Magdalena Bubeła, HR director, gave the exampleof Avon, where mentors and supervisors ensurethe development of young workers, and anyfailures are discussed at the internal meetings."There’s a space, time and place for a discussionof these failures, to draw conclusions. Thanks tothat, we continuously develop, learn frommistakes, successes, learn from each other. "

Panellists agreed that young talents through theircreativity, commitment and passion are the sourceof innovation and inspiration for business.Millennials are a growing group of employees, butthey are also clients who influence thedevelopment of new products and services.Andrew Horawa, a business developmentexecutive CEE at IBM, spoke about their large rolein the development of the business.

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The debate was moderated by Marcin Piasecki,editor of Rzeczpospolita. The participants wereMagdalena Bubeła (HR director, Avon), MartaDworowska (regional senior HR manager,Amazon), Maya Krzyżanowska (director ofemployee competence and development office,PKN ORLEN S.A), Andrzej Horawa (businessdevelopment executive CEE, IBM), Agata Jach(HR director and board member, AXA Group),Beata Jarosz (CEO, CodersTrust Poland), PiotrWielgomas (CEO, Bigram), Monika Tarlaga (PhDstudent, GMC ambassador). The debate wasorganised by Bigram. In the audience were invitedguests and the GMC finalists.

Striving for ethical businessstandards in a changing world

by Paul Strohm, editor, journalist & copywriter,PropertyEU

Correct guidance on how to act in situationswhere conflicts of interest may occur is crucialas the property business becomes morecomplex.

As the world becomes more open andinterconnected, people expect greatertransparency in commercial transactions. Asuccession of scandals involving

accountants, banks, politicians journalists, andeven sportsmen, as well as major corporate taxavoidance controversies, have underminedpeople’s trust in professional people in alldisciplines and markets. A range of sources,including marketing communications firmEdelman’s annual survey, the 2017 Edelman TrustBarometer, confirm that mistrust of business,media and other institutions is a world-widephenomenon. The property sector has not beenimmune.

However,RICS CEOSeanTompkinscounters:“Ethics hasbeen at thetop of theRICSagendasince the

organisation was established in 1868. It remains atthe heart of everything we do today. Absolutecommitment to ethical standards is the basis of theprofessionalism that distinguishes a RICS qualifiedperson from others.”

Mr Tompkins explains that RICS has a clear andstreamlined set of professional and ethicalstandards to guide individual members and RICS-regulated firms and to ensure that anyone dealingwith RICS members can do so with completeconfidence.

“Our regulatory framework is the best guaranteethat all our members follow the same consistentethical values in their daily practices,” MrTompkins says. RICS has anticipated the risksand challenges posed by changing marketconditions, he notes. “As a global 21st centuryprofessional body, we want to go a step further andadapt so that our standards remain fit for purpose,while increasing transparency and levels of trust inthe RICS qualification.”

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RICS is using an open, collaborative approach,working with other institutions, associations andstandard-setting bodies to harmonise itsstandards. “Over the last few years we’ve beenworking with over 100 not-for-profit organisations inthe land, property, construction, infrastructure andrelated professions around the globe as part of theInternational Ethics Standard (IES) Coalition[https://ies-coalition.org/], to establish consensuson what ethics should mean for the propertysector,” says Mr Tompkins. “As a result, we’vecompiled the first universal set of high-level ethicalprinciples for land, real estate, construction,infrastructure and related professions.’

However, before incorporating the newinternational standards into its own codes, RICS isundertaking extensive market research amongprofessionals around the world to clarify how itsmembers should conduct themselves in certainsituations. Mr Tompkins says: “We want to be ableto explain to external stakeholders and consumerswhat they can expect from RICS professionals.This research will help us understand how ethicsand professionalism are understood in eachdifferent market. Different cultures, traditions andlegislation play an important role in ourinterpretation and implementation of ethicalstandards.”

Conflicts of interest are a particular concern andcan cast doubt on an individual’s integrity; it canalso have a damaging effect on the firm andprofession as a whole. Conflicts of interest arisewhen there’s a potential clash between self-interestand professional or public interest which mightundermine an individual’s or corporate impartiality.A conflict of interest may occur where a surveyoror their firm acts for clients with competinginterests at the same time such as advising boththe seller and buyer of a commercial propertysimultaneously; or has other obligations thatdetract from their relationship with the client, suchas acting as expert witness while having aninterest in the outcome of proceedings; or hasconflicting duties to different clients, for example,acting for two or more parties competing

for an opportunity.

Even well-known politicians have recentlyexperienced difficulties dealing with such conflictsso the property business is not exceptional in thisregard. Real estate professionals and their firmsare frequently confronted with challengingsituations where the interests of clients mightconflict or be perceived to conflict with the interestsof other clients. Some areas of risk are regulatedby national law designed to protect the publicinterest but there is not always clarity andpractices differ from one country to another.

In the UK market, for example, dual agency is aparticular concern to the commercial propertyinvestment market. Multiple introductions, wherebya single firm represents several buyers for thesame investment opportunity, incremental advicewhere an agent is approached to provide advicerelated to a purchase or disposal that isincremental to an existing instruction to advise thebuyer or seller are also sources of concern.

Conflicts may not be inevitable in these situationsand there may be no wrong done. However, ifpotential conflicts of interest are not identified andmanaged appropriately, perceptions can damageconsumer confidence and threaten the integrity ofthe profession and those acting within it. Emphasismust be placed on how conflicts are managed on acase-by-case basis, particularly when dealing withvulnerable consumers.

Views have been sought from industry and keystakeholders to identify areas of particular risk, andthe ways that professional bodies can bettermitigate against risks of conflict of interest. To thisend, RICS has developed additional rules alongwith guidance on how to identify and manageconflicts of interest. The organisation presentedthese mandatory requirements at MIPIM 2017 in aglobal professional statement applicable to allchartered surveying disciplines.

“The statement provides clarity for RICSmembers/firms and give end-users greater

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confidence by creating consistency ofinterpretation of the existing rules of conduct,’ saysMr Tompkins. “It sets out the high-level principlesfor the appropriate identification and managementof conflicts across all areas of RICS practice andgeographies. Professionals will still need toexercise judgment, and take into account theknowledge and experience of the consumer. Ifsafeguards cannot reduce the threat posed by theconflict to an acceptable level, the professionalshould remove themselves from the relationship,”he adds.

RICS is focusing on the future role ofprofessionalism in a rapidly changing propertyindustry, focusing on client requirements; thegrowing value of strategic facilities managementservices to corporate real estate; and the impact ofnew technology and data on property investmentand use. RICS will also publish new industrystandards on conflicts of interest and launch amajor piece of occupier-focused research relatingto facilities management. Mr Tompkins says: “At atime when the industry is responding to newpolitical, trade and societal dynamics, we want toengage all parts of the property world to take stockand to lead meaningful and positive changesacross the profession.”

FM sector redefines role as officeshifts to workplace

by Marianne Korteweg , managing editor,PropertyEU

The growing importance of workplacemanagement to drive business performancehas turned the spotlight on the role of facilitiesmanagers.

The days when facilities management (FM) incorporate buildings was viewed as ‘a cleaner witha spanner’ are well and truly over. Growingurbanisation across the globe and an increased

focus on the environment are driving the need forsmart cities and smart buildings that can houseworkers sustainably over a long period of time.Increasingly, offices are becoming workplaces –extending beyond physical spaces to serviceexperiences that cater to the needs of ever-morediscerning customers: the workforce. The growingemphasis on contented and productive staffmeans that workplace demands in terms offacilities – from restaurant catering to dry-cleaning,gyms, travel, childcare and a host of otherservices – are increasing.

This shift from office to workplace also hasimplications for the organisations which own andoccupy the buildings. Rather than view FM as anecessary evil weighing down on their balancesheets, they can use it as a tool to add value totheir business performance. “In a competitive,global business environment, it is increasinglyrecognised that facilities management has astrategic role to play in the experience of the end-user of buildings and facilities, and ultimately thesuccess of the organisations operating from them,”says Paul Bagust, RICS UK commercial propertydirector.

But to achieve that, the role of the FM managerneeds to be redefined, he says. “We need toreposition facilities management as a profession,its perception needs to change.” The term ‘FM’ canbe an “unhelpful label”, says Mr Bagust, as it isperceived as focusing on the physical environmentalone. This detracts from its impact on the mostimportant organisational resource: the people whouse those workspaces to produce value for thebusiness. To this end, RICS launched a strategypaper at the MIPIM property show entitled Raisingthe Bar with recommendations on how the statusof facilities managers can be raised so that theygain a bigger voice in corporate boardrooms.Recommendations are aimed at FM leaders inoccupier organisations and senior executives inservice-provider firms.

SAY ON STRATEGY

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Worldwide, the FM sector is currently valued atover $1.1 trillion (€1 trillion) worldwide. However,heads of FM rarely get a seat at the strategy table,even though many have developed anunderstanding of how FM can operate as astrategic resource: how it impacts key areas ofbusiness performance such as talent attractionand retention, employee engagement, workforceproductivity and even overall organisationaleffectiveness. “Despite growing recognition thatworkplace design and management are becomingboth more complex and more central to businessstrategy, FM does not receive the recognition ofsome other corporate functions,” the report says.

The Raising the Bar paper distinguishes betweentwo types of FM managers: the operationsmanagers who make the buildings work, and theworkplace managers who ensure that thosefacilities serve the needs of the workforce. “Wealso think of them as two halves of a fullyfunctioning ‘FM brain’. We need excellence in boththe ‘left’ brain/operations management and the‘right’ brain/workplace management roles if FM isto realise its full potential,” the report says.The recommendations are based on over fiveyears of research supported by over 2,500workplace and FM professionals worldwide. Lastyear, the scope of the research was broadenedconsiderably after RICS announced a partnershipwith industry organisation IFMA.

How can you benefit fromoutsourcing recruitment?

by Piotr Dziedzic, director, Michael Page Poland

Companies increasingly often highlight the factthat employees are their greatest asset, at the very heart of their competitive advantage.

This awareness, along with the fact that it’semployee’s marketplace right now – admittedly thedominant feature of many sectors

of the modern economy – enhance the importanceof the recruitment process. Why is it worthentrusting the acquisition of candidates toprofessional partners then?

Companies responsible for staff sourcing keeprunning recruitment processes non-stop, whichallows their consultants to specialise in thisparticular area of HR. Every single day, they makesure clients hit those talented individuals whomatch their requirements. They can boast of beingclued up on the market reality to a much greaterextent than individual organisations, given thescale of their operations.

So for example, if a client wishes to hire anaccountant or sales specialist, by turning on arenowned recruitment agency, they can be surethey’re dealing with a partner who’s already beenable to find candidates for these specific positionsseveral times. The experience and knowledge thusgained about the people interested in changing theirjobs are priceless from the point of view of acompany looking for the appropriate employee.

Exact hiring formula

If a company holds one recruitment for a givenposition during a year, its visual field is by definitionconsiderably more restricted. By opting to run therecruitment process individually, an organisationneeds to anticipate a limited number of candidatesresponding to its job offer. It won’t have access toother potentially interested people.

Such a restriction does not concern companiesdealing with personal consulting. Especially largeorganisations have at their disposal extensivedatabases of candidates, and a specific knowledgeabout the history of their recruitment, theirprofessional status, and their work expectations.Thanks to this, a given offer reaches people whomeet the requirements set by a prospectiveemployer, and they can become interested intaking up a new career challenge. Clearly, thecompanies that lack this particular know-how to alarge extent reach ‘casual’ candidates deficient in

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the required skills and qualifications. This results ina large number of applications that do not matchthe profile of a specific position.

Brand ambassador

Organisations just entering a market benefit fromcooperating with a personal consulting agency.These could be foreign businesses wanting to setup a Polish branch, or domestic start-ups. In suchsituations, the recruitment company enjoys amajor advantage over its client, as it can step-by-step take them through the recruitment process,which – given the lack of necessary experience, ortheir ignorance about the local market – issomething that the person has never dealt withbefore.

And experienced recruiters make the best clientambassadors – primarily in the case of clients whoare not instantly recognisable on the Polish market.The company in charge of recruitment getsinvolved in building the client’s brand: it educatestheir potential employees about the basic activity ofthe entity it represents and makes sure that onlyfactual information is conveyed about its plansrelated to its growth in Poland.

Running the recruitment process is also a time-consuming activity; it engages the resources ofHR departments that can be assigned to othertasks. Effective recruitment requires getting toknow several applications, carrying out theirthorough analysis, holding professional meetingswith candidates, and doing the right selection.Outsourcing the recruitment process safeguardsthe feeling of comfort to HR departments, andconsequently to the entire company. Instead of apile of documents, the people in charge of staffingpolicies receive carefully selected applications andmeet only those few people who best meet therequirements set for a given position.

The assessment of such matching is carried outby a properly trained recruiter who has extensiveknowledge on the currently available candidates,as well as on the client themselves.

Discretion guaranteed

Cooperation with a recruitment agency is also theobvious choice in a situation where an organisationdoesn’t want to spread the word that it’s looking forcandidates. The opening of the recruitmentprocess could be a signal sent out to the market,but as well to its rivals, which the company doesnot wish to know about its recruitment. In thiscase, collaboration with an external partner canensure not only the acquisition of an optimalemployee, but also safeguard discretion, which isso essential in specific situations.

The recruitment process ought to be entrusted topartners who are able to guarantee an adequatelevel of services. Best-in-class companies offercomprehensive management of the recruitmentprocess, from defining the profile of the candidateto the identification of candidates on the market;meeting them; assessing their skills, competencesand motivation; right through to arranging client-candidate meetings. Successful cooperationfrequently leads to a consultant doing his or her jobat the client’s office. This, in turn, proves thesignificant trust that professional personalconsulting agencies enjoy. Their role in an era ofstiff competition aimed at targeting employeescould grow dynamically in the near future.

Employers cannot keep up withthe technological revolution

by Michał Olbrychowski, director, consulting,Deloitte

In this world of new technologies,organisations need to treat their employees inthe same way as they treat their clients.

The way high-performing organisations operatetoday is radically different from how they operated10 years ago. Nonetheless, many businesses stillfollow industrial-age models that are 100 years old,heavily weighed down

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by legacy practices, systems, and difficult-to-discard behaviours. Building the organisation of thefuture is the top priority for almost 90% of CEOsand HR leaders across the world. This is anoutcome of the digital revolution, as well as ofdemographic, political and social shifts that arenow taking place. The latest Deloitte Global HumanCapital Trends Report, Rewriting the rules for thedigital world, emphasises that employers need tofully reimagine their organisational structures,talent management systems and HR strategies tokeep up with the pace of the technologicalrevolution. Polish HR systems are lagging farbehind. Even though companies in Poland place ahigh priority on finding the best talents, 62% ofrespondents from our country admit to beingunprepared for the task.

Technology’s advancing at an unprecedented rate;it’s completely transformed the way we live, workand communicate. As a result, new rules forbusiness and for HR now apply. Rapid change isnot limited to technology, but encompassessociety as well. The increasing gap betweenaccelerating technological advances and the abilityto absorb innovation – the ability of individuals,businesses and the public sector – is of keyimportance from the perspective of effectivelynavigating the world of human capital.

As technology, artificial intelligence, and roboticstransform business models and work, companiesshould start to rethink their management practicesand organisational models. This may be why 88%of companies agree that building the organisationof the future is the most important challenge for2017. Agility plays a central role in the organisationof the future, because companies race to replacestructural hierarchies with networks of teamsempowered to take specific actions.

Technologies are replacing CVs

Careers and learning and Talent acquisition rose,respectively, to the second and third positions inrated importance this year, with 83 and 81% ofexecutives identifying these trends as important

or very important. 62% of Polish employers admitthat their organisations are not ready to acquire themost talented people, and 55% cannot ensurethem the employee experience that could keepthem happy about with their work and workingenvironment. This is probably the reason why - incontrast to the results of the global survey – talentacquisition still occupies the top position on thePolish HR manager’s list of priorities. Asorganisations become more digital, leaders need toface up to the new challenge of recruiting forpositions and looking for competencies which untilnow have not been searched for or have not beenneeded altogether. According to Deloitte'sresearch, only 12% of Polish organisations do notintend to make any changes in their currentrecruitment strategies. This data reflects the scaleof the phenomenon as a whole - conversely, manyorganisations are aware of the need to makechanges and, at various points, actively respond tothe shifts observed on the labour market.Readiness for change has been confirmed by 39%of organisations.

To judge whether candidates will be effective,employers shift their focus from checkingcredentials to confirming skills. More than a quarterof global business leaders (29%) use games andsimulations to attract and assess potentialcandidates, but only 6% think that theirperformance in that regard is excellent. WhileDeloitte finds that cognitive technologies havehelped leaders bring talent acquisition into thedigital world, only 22% of survey respondentsdescribe their companies as 'excellent' at buildinga differentiated employee experience once talent isacquired.

The employee is as important as the customer

More than ever before, employees today expect aproductive, engaging and friendly workingenvironment and work experience. Rather thanfocus narrowly on employee engagement andculture, organisations are developing an integratedfocus on the entire employee experience, bringingtogether all the workplace, HR,

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and management practices. A new marketplace ofpulse feedback tools, wellness and fitness apps,and integrated employee self-service tools help HRdepartments understand and improve thisexperience. Thus, employees are graduallybecoming as valuable as customers, and it is theemployers' responsibility to be able to meet theemployees' needs. Like marketing and productteams that have moved beyond customersatisfaction to look at total customer experience,HR also now refocuses its efforts on buildingprogrammes, strategies, and interdisciplinaryteams that understand and continuously improvethe entire employee experience to attune theworking environment to the needs of people in thecompany, regardless of the stage of their careers.However, only 22% of the respondents ratethemselves as 'excellent’ in this area.

As AI systems, robotics, and cognitive tools growin sophistication, almost every job is redefined. Thesaid process is sometimes referred to as'augmented workforce'. Seeing that this trendgathers speed, businesses must reconsider howthey design jobs, organise work, and plan for futuregrowth. This year, 41% of companies report thatthey have fully implemented or have madesignificant progress in adopting cognitive and AItechnologies within their workforce. At the sametime, only 17% of global executives indicate thatthey are ready to manage a workforce with people,robots, and AI working side by side – the lowestreadiness level for a trend in the five years of theGlobal Human Capital Trends survey. While manyjobs are being reinvented through technology andsome tasks are being automated, Deloitte’sresearch shows that the essentially humanaspects of work, such as empathy,communication, and problem solving, arebecoming more important than ever.

Leader in the digital world

Leadership has been among the top HR trends forseveral years now – this year 78% respondentslisted leadership among their top priorities. Deloittefinds that as organisations

shed legacy systems and dismantle yesterday’shierarchies, it’s important to place a higherpremium on implementing immersive learningexperiences to develop leaders who can thrive intoday’s digital world. The percentage of companieswith strong leadership programs has risen bynearly 22 percentage points (from 47% in 2015 to64% in 2017). The need to transform the leadershipmodel is not so pronounced in Poland – it waseighth in the trend ranking. The survey showshowever that redesigning the leadership model willsoon become an important human capitalchallenge to be handled by Polish employers –41% of the participants express this opinion. Intotal, 83% of respondents stress the need to shapea new leadership model in the area of digitaltechnologies. At the same time, 57% admit that noformal leadership programmes have beenprepared or implemented in their companies so far.

The HR function is now in the middle of theprocess of 'identity change'. To advance to theposition a leading advisor to business functions,the HR organisation needs to structure itself forservice delivery efficiency and excellence in talentprogrammes, it also must adopt a 'digital' mindset,a 'digital' approach to work. Designing theorganisation of the future is a difficult project of trialand error. It’s a continuous, dynamic, and, in asense, never-ending process. Yet for companiesthat rise to the challenge, the pay-off can beimmense in terms of financial performance,productivity, employee engagement, and a host ofother benefits.

Ten most important global HR trends in 2017:

Organisation of the future - 88% recognised it asimportant/very important

Careers and learning – 83% recognised it asimportant/very important

Talent acquisition – 81% recognised it asimportant/very important

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Employee experience - 79% recognised it asimportant/very important.

Performance management – 78% recognised it asimportant/very important

Leadership model change - 78% recognised it asimportant/very important

Digital HR - 73% recognised it as important/veryimportant

People analytics - 71% recognised it asimportant/very important

Diversity and inclusion - 69% recognised it asimportant/very important

Future of work - 63% recognised it asimportant/very important

RoboHunter – is human-resourcemanagement possible withouthumans?

by Karolina Korzeniewska, account executiveEurope, Antal

Today, everything can be researched andmeasured. Psychometric tests and tools,cookies and social media profiles can allprovide nearly all kinds of information on agiven person, including data that may be usedto determine whether they’re a good fit for aspecific position.

We’ll soon be able to take full advantage of thosepossibilities. Currently, we don’t have access toeverything and not all data, even that which isreadily available, is suitable for processing andcreating a consistent candidate profile. Integratingand processing information into a consistent imageof a person is expensive. Additionally, such totaluse of resources runs contrary to the current

idea of recruitment standards and may beconsidered too revolutionary for some.

It’s only a matter of time before appropriate toolsare made available that will make it possible forrecruiters or employers to analyse social mediaprofiles of selected individuals and generate awealth of additional information that will describetheir personality and soft skills and provide ananalysis of their behaviour and professionalaptitude. The ethical problems of such a solutionwill be solved by having users accept the termsand conditions of use.

Let’s imagine that a positive result of such ananalysis will result in a message beingautomatically sent asking the person whether theywould be willing to consider a job change. If theyclick YES, they will be redirected to take aqualifications test. The results will be collected anda computer programme, using predefined criteria,will select the best candidate for the position ofproduct manager, stock broker or babysitter. Ifthey click YES, they accept the offer, if they clickNO, they will decline the offer and be redirected toan automated negotiations panel...

At present we believe that humans are necessaryto optimise the results and mutual satisfaction ofthe employer and candidate, with recruitment.However, will the ongoing automation of processesbring us to a point at which HR management willdo mostly without human interaction? Should weembrace this development?

Based on my own experience and theobservations of Antal’s headhunters, gathered overthe last 21 years, I feel qualified to describe thecurrent situation in detail, if not provide answers tothe above questions.

Recruitment companies are seldom given easytasks, as these are usually handled by the clients,usually medium and large companies, themselves.Such corporations have countless internalrecruiters, therefore they only decide to collaboratewith headhunting agencies

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when faced with challenging processes or onesthat require confidentiality (e.g. when building anew branch of the company or entering a newmarket). Another example would be massrecruitments which, when carried out in a shorttimeframe and in a limited area, may prove difficultdue to sheer number of candidates and the timeneeded to process them.

One of the most interesting types of people thatyou meet in our line of work are passivecandidates – employees that do nothing to changetheir current job. According to Antal's Job-SeekingActivity Among Professionals and Managerssurvey, passive candidates constitute 70% of thePolish labour market, but only 6% of themconsistently ignore all invitations to interviewsabout the challenges that could await them. Theremaining 64% require a skilful approach – theyare passive, but nevertheless willing to take part ininterviews (we may therefore assume that they willbe ready to take part in a recruitment processesprovided that a number of conditions are met).Establishing contact requires finesse (salespitches get cut short remorselessly), knowledgeabout the employer that you’re representing andbeing able to present arguments that may beattractive to the candidate. Automated processescould suffer defeat from the outset of this process.It’s very likely that a generic invitation sent over theInternet will not grab the attention of a passivecandidate.

We must also consider what makes the ‘perfectcandidate’. What’s more important – what’s thedesired competence set or the human factor?Antal's standard involves presenting a shortlist thatincludes five candidates for a given position.Usually all of them have the requiredcompetences, experience and skills, but clientsoften have little difficulty choosing the one theywish to hire. They’re forced to choose between twocandidates at most, and that is because the humanfactor becomes involved and questions arisewhether the superior and the team will get alongwith the candidate. They will have to spend eighthours every day in his or her company

so they must understand each other... and simplyfeel good in each other's company.

Recruitment companies have very differentorganisational structures and, contrary to popularopinion, provide diverse services due to theirdiffering goals and missions. Our motto, ‘Power ofspecialised talents’, forms the foundation for ourmodel of operations, focused on acquiring expertknowledge of the markets in individual sectors.That’s why we call ourselves ‘consultants’ ratherthan ‘recruiters’. Knowledge about the market,candidate and client allows us to place eachprocess into a business context and approacheach task in a way that will be strategic for thebusiness.

I believe that this aspect is very difficult toautomate. Depriving it of the human factor makesthe organisation vulnerable to enormous errors inmanagement. This can be illustrated by a certainrecruitment project during which the CV wasaccepted and the meeting with the candidate wentperfectly – we were sure that a work contract wasabout to be signed. It was only when I started toinvestigate and talk to the people that the candidateworked with in the past that it turned out that theperson was completely unfit for the culture of theorganisation. If he were to be hired, his tenurewould not last long nor bring satisfaction to any ofthe parties, and such mistakes are always costly.

I must admit that I’m strongly in favour ofsimplification. Technological developments are aprivilege that allows us to perform better in ourwork. I’m aware that humans will become less andless involved in recruitment processes, but theywill nevertheless be necessary as long as weourselves are people and can become involved inour work on many levels. ‘Understanding’ cannotyet be automated.

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Leadership coaching – its valuefor a leader and an organisation

by Lucyna Baca-Lönn, founder and managingdirector of Graphology Solutions Group

Leadership coaching is an effective part of anybusiness’s leadership development toolbox. Itcontributes to tangible business outcomes interms of long-term improvements in personaland organisational effectiveness, measured byprofit or cost-containment, or both.

Leadership coaching is a specific type ofdevelopmental intervention that can be carried outstrategically with individuals, teams andorganisations. Its aim is to support leaders to reachtheir fuller potential, enhance their self-knowledge,integrity and feeling of comfort with themselves.Leadership coaching can enhance leaders’progress by focusing on what’s significant for themand for organisational success. It offers themdevelopmental support, bringing awareness thatlearning is a continual and a valuable process.

Leadership coaching can contribute to anorganisation on micro- and macro levels. At themicro level, leadership coaching provides greatersatisfaction in professional and private lives,reduction of stress levels and frustration, andincreased self-value and satisfaction with life. Atthe macro level, leadership coaching contributes totransformation of the organisation’s culture,structures, and patterns of decision-making by theleaders. This in turn can enhance creativity,productivity and motivation of its employees.

The main reasons organisations get involved in theleadership coaching processes include:

Improving leadership skills to meet requiredstandards (performance management),

Developing leadership skills to meet changing jobobjectives (change management),

Improving leadership abilities for future roles (talentmanagement),

Developing leadership qualities to strengthenleaders’ satisfaction and long-term opportunities(career management),

Enhancing leadership qualities to create a leadingorganisation (organisation management).

Leadership coaching aims to enhance theeffectiveness and efficiency of the leaders, but italso has a transformational influence on the mainareas of their lives, often simultaneously. It’s aholistic and a demanding process which implies ahigh quality partnership between a coach and aleader. Transformational leadership coachingconcentrates on leaders’ transformation andstrives for their authenticity and realisation of theirpotential. The transformation that becomes visibleat the leaders’ behavioural level is an outcome oftheir internal deep change. Transformationalcoaching is mostly dedicated to leaders who areopen to constant growth and paradigm change.

Areas of influence of transformational coaching ona leader:

Leadership coaching processes constitutes aneffective developmental method, which contributesto a leader and an organisation. At the micro levelthey enhance self-awareness, satisfaction andself-realization of the leader; on the macro levelthey support transformation of the organisation’sculture leading to improved financial

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performance. Leadership coaching improves anorganisation’s operations in terms of performancemanagement, organisation management, changemanagement, talent management and other areas.Whether you measure profit or cost-containment,leadership coaching provides tangible businessresults.

Graphology Solutions Group is the winner of BestInternational Leadership Development Experts inthe International Emerging Markets Award 2017,and is also a Business Excellence Awards winner,receiving the title of Best Graphology & CoachingConsultancy 2017 – Europe. [podlinkować donewsów]

If you’re interested in leadership coaching, hereis some further reading on the subject:

Baca-Lonn, L. (2014). Transformational coachingprocesses with an application of graphologicalanalysis. Coaching Review (1), KozminskiUniversity,

Ely, K., Boyce, L. A., Nelson, J. K., Zaccaro, S.J., Hernez-Broome, G., & Whyman, W. (2010).Evaluating leadership coaching: A review andintegrated framework. The Leadership Quarterly,(21), 585–599,

Hunt, J. M. and J. R. Weintraub (2002). TheCoaching Manager. London, Sage Publications,

Kets de Vries, M. F. R., K. Korotov and E.Florent-Treacy (2007). Coach and Couch: ThePsychology of Making Better Leaders. New York:Palgrave/Macmillan, Orem, S., J. Binkert, Binkert, J. and Clancy, A.L. (2007). Appreciative Coaching: A PositiveProcess for Change. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass,

Better English means higherprofits – true or false?

by Ewelina Piorun, exams business developmentmanager, British Council

Do your employees know English well? Wetalked to senior managers across Europe tofind out how English skills of their employeesimpact key business areas.

From our conversations with partners and clientswe observed a gap between the increasingimportance of English in the marketplace and thestrategies and tools required to meet thischallenge. Often businesses do not have sufficientknowledge of the English skills of their workforceand job applicants. We wanted to examine thisissue and use our expertise to help companies turnlanguage skills from an area of risk into a businessasset. Why does English matter? Here are ourfindings.

Business intelligence

Poor English can prevent managers from keepingup with industry trends and participating ininternational seminars, trade conventions and otherpromotional events. It may mean your companymisses out on new market opportunities, harms itsreputation or fails to adapt to changing markettrends. For example, if traders in large Germanbanks do not keep their business knowledge ofinternational markets up to date, 75% of revenuegenerated by their investment banking divisionscould be at risk.

Supplier cost

Supply sourcing directly affects a company’s profitas well as its ability to price competitively. Limitingthe company to domestic suppliers only can leadto higher supply costs. Most companies look tosite production in low-cost countries and sourceraw materials in bulk from the lowest-priced

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seller. The importance of English in these cases isnot only linked to sales, but also to costs. Forexample, in Italy’s manufacturing industry,knowledge of English was estimated to reducecosts by 50% by enabling firms to choose thelowest cost suppliers and buy directly.

International projects and tenders

Good knowledge of English can be a critical factorin foreign trade as it can maximise a company’schances of winning a lucrative contract, improvetheir position during negotiations and reduce theirbidding costs. Data from GUS, Poland’s centralstatistical office, shows that Polish entrepreneurshave intensified cooperation with westernEuropean countries and are finding more and morenew markets. As a result, in 2016 Poland recordeda positive balance of foreign trade turnover of over20 billion złoty. Poland already has more than 60companies that operate globally. The internationalexpansion of Polish companies is one of thedrivers for companies to invest in their employees’English skills.

International investments and sales

Expanding beyond local markets requiresmarketing and sales departments that cancommunicate effectively with international clients –and a high level of English is essential. Forexample, for Italian banks, trading on internationalmarkets is an important driver of growth and it alsohelps to diversify risk; companies buy and sellforeign funds for domestic as well as internationalclients. In total, around 30-40% of managed fundsis international meaning that English contributes30-40% of revenue through this channel.

Brand value and customer satisfaction

Our research confirmed that poor English candeeply affect how international customers perceivea company’s brand. A good international brandimage increases the perception of quality andindustry leadership which is critical to winningclients. To keep clients coming back, it is essential

to have a customer service team that can servethem well in English. Employers are well awarethat English is crucial for international clientsatisfaction and 66% of them require English as anessential criterion during recruitment. In Poland, awaiter who communicates well in English withdiners earns four times higher a salary than theircolleague who does not speak this language.

Internal communication and teamwork

Due to the multinational nature of many projectsinvolving teams in different countries, seamlessteamwork also depends on quality English. Theconsequences of a simple misunderstanding canbe costly, leading to inefficiency, higher directcosts and even accidents. Knowledge of Englishas the ‘modern Latin’ is a must, mainly becausethis is the language connecting people from thesame organisation working in disperse teamsaround the world. In the IT and consulting sector inRussia, developers from different countriesregularly work together on projects – 65% ofinternal communication is in English forinternational companies in this sector.

How to assess your employees’ English skills

From our nearly 80 years’ experience providingtraining and assessment we have observed manydifferent ways companies currently assess theEnglish skills of their employees. All of themprovide some evaluation of the level of Englishknowledge. However, there are some substantialrisks and drawbacks.

Do not…

rely on brief conversation in English – it evaluatesonly the conversational ability of the candidate,leaving their writing and reading skills untested,and it does so on a very basic and unreliable basis

use tests that are not backed by research – manycompanies use English tests designed locally orin-house. These tests haven’t been carefully

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trialled and therefore risk producing biased,incomplete and unreliable results

test your employees with basic online tests as itcan produce only a snapshot of a candidate’sEnglish skills that is too broad and does not includespeaking or writing skills.

Do…

ensure that employees across all levels of yourcompany have the right English skills

use reliable testing with specific benchmarks,backed by thorough trials and academic research

when recruiting, choose English language teststhat can give you a full profile of the candidates’skills – speaking, writing, reading and listening

map your employees’ English skills to aninternational standard

choose tests that show precise language skillsgaps to best design and assess trainingprogrammes.

Does your business have the English skills neededto compete in the global marketplace? To find outplease read the full version of the report availablea t www.britishcouncil.pl/en/download-ebook-english-companies-aptis.

Executive coaching: trendymumbo-jumbo or a real game-changer?

Ashim Kumar, CEO of AKA Sp.zo.o., a leadershipconsultancy

The term ‘coaching’ conjures up variousimages.

Some visualise the athletic professional at the localtennis club or, the (not so athletic) coach of afootball team. Others imagine a senior colleague atthe workplace who guides less experienced stafftowards improved skills; yet others see a technicalexpert imparting information on latest best practice.

Executive coaching is none of these! To be clear, itis not about transferring skills and knowledge fromexpert to learner.

“So, what is it?” you wonder.

Executive coaching is a powerful way of boostingperformance through the intelligent use ofexploratory questions. It can be thought of as ‘adesigned alliance’ in which the parties collaborateto release the coachee’s potential.

And it works; few if any, other processes influenceand change behaviour as effectively as coaching.According to a study of Fortune 100 executivesconducted by the Manchester Consulting Group,"coaching resulted in a return on investment ofalmost six times the programme cost as well as a77% improvement in relationships, 67%improvement in teamwork, 61% improvement injob satisfaction and 48% improvement in quality."Additionally, a study of Fortune 500telecommunications companies, conducted byMatrix Global, showed that executive coachingresulted in a 529% ROI.

“Impossible!”, I hear you say incredulously,“how can simply asking questions producesuch transformative behaviour and results?”

The reason is simple... and complicated! Beingasked the right questions, encourages us to digdeep into our unconscious mind; to uncover thecomplex triggers behind our behaviour (andtherefore, our current situation) and start to modifythem.

After all, before we can change something, wemust first become conscious of its existence.

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Coaching invokes thinking in the other person. It istransformational because it makes that which isunconscious, conscious.

“Mumbojumbo”,youmutter;“Ialreadyknowhow tothink!”.

Much aswe would like to believe that about ourselves, itsimply isn’t true! There is extensive evidencewhich demonstrates that the vast majority of ourbehaviours are reflexive; in other words, werespond automatically (and without consideration)to situations that we face daily. There are manygood reasons for this, and I would refer you to‘Thinking Fast and Slow’ authored by Nobel Prizewinner, Daniel Kahneman, for a more detailedexplanation.

If we accept the premise that most of the decisionswe make in life are arrived at without consciousthought, and that those decisions have resulted inour current situation; then we must conclude thatnot only are we solely responsible for where weare in life, but that we got here without thinkingabout it!

A sobering thought that many of us would prefernot to consider.

The American writer on character development,Earl Nightingale put it best when he said:

“If most people were to say what they werethinking, they would be rendered speechless.”

Coaching influences at conscious and sub-conscious levels. It targets unconscious triggers tounderstand and modify behaviours and change ourreality. This is sometimes referred

to as the performance gap – the differencebetween what a person knows and, what they do.In other words, it encourages action to do what wealready know to be the right thing!

“Yes, yes, that’s all very well, but how does thismagic happen?” you demand.

Before discussing the process and its inherentpower, we need to understand some basicprinciples:

The ability to achieve great things resides withinus.

We must take personal responsibility for ourgrowth.

We agree, as part of the coaching process, to beheld accountable for our behaviour

Nothing will change unless the coachee trulycommits to the process. They are charged withinvesting effort, energy and time to achieve theresults they seek. They cannot delegateresponsibility to the coach; change must comefrom within the client.

“But what does the coach actually do?” youinsist.

The coach’s role is to encourage the client to thinkdeeply about their reality and what can be done toimprove it. It explores the fundamental drivers ofan individual’s behaviour and their impact onoutcomes. For example, it examines self-limitingbeliefs and how to overcome them. It will alsodelve into what the coachee really wants in their lifeand explore actions to get there. Coaching willwork on tactical and strategic goals to ensure thatthere’s coherence between them; our short-termgoals become stepping stones towards the desiredlong-term transformation.

The coach is not a professional advisor, nor is ittheir role to judge whether an action was right orwrong. The coach will help the coachee evaluate

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the consequences of an action and modify theirapproach for the future, generating behaviours thatthe individual aspires to.

Perhaps most importantly, the coach will be aconstant companion on this journey of growth.They will be on hand, even outside formalsessions, to help reinforce the client’s commitmentto goals they have set for themselves.

“Can you be more specific? What can I talk tothe coach about?” you ask.

At the commencement of the relationship, thecoach will help the coachee identify priority areas;this will be the starting point for future interactions.As the process matures, the interventions extendin many directions as we move towards a holisticview of the coachee’s current reality andambitions.

It is fundamentally important to recognise that theagenda is, at all times, driven by the client.

Areas where coaching can help, include (but arenot limited to):

How can I set my long-term goals?

How can I overcome the obstacles to growth?

How can I manage my time better to geteverything done?

How can I focus on the important stuff rather thanfire-fighting all the time?

What should I do next in my career?

How can I achieve a better balance between workand home life?

What skills do I need to grow and develop further?

How can I make my relationships moreproductive?

A typical coaching session will be 60 minutes induration. We recommend a minimum of sixsessions. Yet most coachees find suchinteractions so valuable they continue indefinitely.

All coaching interactions are strictly confidential.

“I can find a friend to talk through all this stuffwith me. What’s so special about a coach?”

A certified executive coach has undergonerigorous training. They’ll be intimately familiar withthe complex methodology necessary for aneffective intervention including:

Ethical and professional standards

Techniques for establishing trust

High level communication skills

Formulating powerful questions

Creating awareness of the coachees reality

Designing actions

Planning and goal-setting

Managing progress and accountability

Understanding the stages of the learning journey

The coach will also often be a seasoned businessprofessional. Although they will not (usually) makesuggestions, there will be a rapport based onmutual understanding of the commercial reality.Rapport is fundamental to any successfulcoaching intervention.

“I wouldn’t mind trying it out to see whether itreally does work, but how do I find a goodcoach who practices nearby?” you enquire.

The value that executive coaching adds, has beenincreasingly recognised for many years.Consequently, there has been an explosion inglobal supply of these services. I recommend

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that you select a coach who’s been certified by aninternationally recognised body, such as the JohnMaxwell Grouphttps://johnmaxwellgroup.com/coaches or theInternational Coaching Federation (there are otherreputable certifying bodies). These organisationswill have members’ directories which can beaccessed on-line to find a local coach.

That said, the availability of video Skype andsimilar technology, allows effective coachinginterventions to be delivered wherever the coachmay be. We at AKA Sp.zo.o. regularly participatein cross-border coaching sessions, and find nodiminution in value of the process.

“OK, I believe that coaching will addsubstantial value to me, but what about myteams? Can they benefit from coaching too?”you ask hopefully.

Coaching is often used in a group or team context.Here, individual contribution and learning isorchestrated for the good of the team as whole; toensure that a shared purpose is recognised andachieved. As with individual coaching, the aim is toraise awareness and develop new skills, but it alsoallows issues to be communally addressed bydrawing out a collective wisdom. This reinforcesjoint commitment to a unified purpose and cantransform the results produced.

“Until you make the unconscious conscious, it willrule your life and you will call it fate”(Carl Jung).

Ashim Kumar has over 25 years of internationalbusiness experience in people development and isa John Maxwell-certified coach, consultant andtrainer. www.aka-lead.com

Employing foreigners in the ITsector in Poland

by Łukasz Wieczorek, legal counsel, KoniecznyWierzbicki Law Firm

Over the last few years, increasing numbers ofnon-EU citizens have been employed in Poland.Demand for foreigners’ labour is noticeable inspecialist sectors such as IT.

Legal framework for employing foreigners

The condition for a foreigner to take up a job inPoland is obtaining a work permit, which is issuedby the office of the provincial governor (wojewoda).This applies to employing a foreigner under anemployment contract (umowa o pracę) as wellfreelance contracts under a civil-law agreement(contract for specific work – umowa o dzieło,contract of commission – umowa zlecenie).

Depending on the circumstances related to theplanned employment of a foreigner, the employermay apply for one of five types of work permits(identified with the letters from A to E). Thestandard work permit is type A, which concernsforeigners working in Poland under an agreementwith an employer that operates in Poland. Type Bpermit can be issued if the foreigner is to serve onthe management board of a commercial company(a private limited company or a joint-stockcompany). The other work permit types concernvarious forms of rendering work for a foreignemployer by an employee posted to work inPoland.

The future foreign employee will be the partysubmitting the application to legalise theiremployment in Poland if they is already staying inPoland. The application will be for a stay permitand a work permit (a so-called joint permit), whichmeans that it is possible to obtain, as part of oneadministrative procedure, a work permit and apermission to stay in Poland for

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https://johnmaxwellgroup.com/coaches

http://www.aka-lead.com


a period of not more than three years (with apossibility of extending this period).

The key element making it difficult to employforeigners is the necessity of completing the so-called consultation procedure before the district'schief executive (starosta powiatu). Under thisprocedure, the starosta has 21 days to verify if theemployer’s need for personnel can be satisfied byanyone on the local unemployment registers andthose looking for work. If the starosta issues anopinion that there are no domestic candidates forthe position planned for the foreigner, which isusually the case for specialised skilled employees,the work permit can be proceeded.

The procedure to obtain a work permit entails theneed to pay official fees, which are between arounda hundred and several hundred zlotys.

Employing citizens from eastern Europe

There are special legal regulations concerningemployment of citizens of Armenia, Belarus,Moldova, Russia and Ukraine. An employer canemploy citizens of these countries by filing with therelevant district labour office a declaration that heintends to entrust work to such employees (the so-called simplified procedure). This is the quickest,cheapest, and least formalised way to employcitizens of the above countries in Poland.Registering the declaration at the labour officeusually takes around two weeks. The employerpicks up the registered declaration document andsends it to the foreigner. Using the registereddeclaration, the future employee can apply for avisa to work in Poland. This procedure is free ofcharge.

The unfavourable aspect of the declarations on theintention to entrust work to a foreigner is the above-mentioned need to complete the consultationprocedure before the starosta. And on the basis ofa registered declaration, a foreign employee cannotwork for more than 180 days within a period of 12consecutive months (after which they can re-register).

Special procedural facilitations

Due to noticeable personnel shortages in particularprofessions, the Polish legislature has developed atool that simplifies the procedure of employingforeigners. On the basis of regulations issued byprovinces, lists of jobs classified as being in shortsupply in particular provinces are published. Withrespect to these jobs, no consultation procedurebefore the starosta is necessary. This maximallyfacilitates the registration of the declaration on theintention to entrust work to a foreigner. Thisfacilitation also applies to the procedure ofobtaining a standard work permit.

Foreigners in the IT sector

The statistics of the Ministry of Family, Labour, andSocial Policy show that there is a growing need forthe work of foreigners having high skills,experience, or knowledge of foreign languages.There has been a significant increase in thedemand for IT specialists, health careprofessionals, and teachers. As regards IT, thenumber of foreigners employed in this sector inPoland increased threefold in 2015 versus 2014. Inthe economy sector classified in the PolishClassification of Activity as 'section J' (IT andcommunication), the number of registereddeclarations on the intention to entrust work to aforeigner doubled in 2015 (see table below).

IT professions have been placed on the list of jobsin short supply in the Małopolskie and Łódzkieprovinces. These include programmers,application programmers, computer softwaretesters, computer system analysts, designers(architects) of IT systems, and IT systemssoftware development specialists. Foreignemployees having such specialisations can quiteeasily be employed in Kraków or Łódź byregistering declarations on the intention to entrustwork to a foreigner, without having to consult thestarosta. This is one factor determining the currentdynamics of the demand for the work of foreignersin the IT sector. Employers will be watching out fornew instruments facilitating

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the recruitment of employees in specialist sectors.

Due to the need to implement Directive2014/36/EU, legislative works are currently underway in Poland to change the system of employingforeigners there. A separate and open issue is thefuture of employing UK citizens in Poland once theUK leaves the EU.

Is a freelancer's unpaid non-compete clause after terminationof a service agreement binding?

by Dr Marta Derlacz-Wawrowska, EmploymentPractice, Wardyński & Partners

For freelance contractors, whether on anumowa o dzieło or umowa zlecenie, there's nolegal regulation guaranteeing even minimalcompensation for refraining from competitiveactivity after working under a non-employmentcontract, but this may turn out to be contrary topublic policy.

Statutory guarantee of compensation only foremployees

Persons hired on an employment contract (umowao pracę) in Poland who have assumed acontractual obligation not to work with a competitorafter the end of the employment relationship areentitled to compensation for this. Under the LabourCode, such compensation cannot be less than25% of the salary received by the employee beforethe end of the employment, for a periodcorresponding to the non-competition

period. This is an example of the protectivefunction of employment law. However, theseguarantees do not cover persons working undernon-employment civil-law contracts, such asumowa o dzieło or umowa zlecenie.

An undertaking not to compete after termination ofa civil-law contract is generally governed by theCivil Code, supplemented by the UnfairCompetition Act. But the Civil Code is silent on thetopic of non-competition agreements, apart fromregulations concerning agency contracts (CivilCode Art. 7646–7648). These provide for thepossibility of imposing a ban on competing activity,but on condition that the agent is paid for the non-competition, and that the ban is limited in time andscope.

Agreements not to compete after the end ofcooperation under a civil-law contract (other thanan agency contract) will be governed by theprinciple of freedom of contract set forth in CivilCode Art. 3531. The parties may use theirdiscretion when framing their legal relationship, solong as its substance and purpose don't conflictwith the nature of the relationship, statute, or publicpolicy (literally, 'principles of social coexistence').This speaks in favour of upholding the parties’ability to enter into a contract including anundertaking by the service provider not to performcompetitive activity either during the period ofcooperation or after it ends, even if the contractdoesn't provide for compensation for this covenant.

Unpaid non-compete as an expression of thefree will of the parties

The position upholding the permissibility of anunpaid non-competition agreement aftertermination of a service agreement under theprinciple of freedom of contract was adopted by theSupreme Court in its judgment of 5 December2013 (Case V CSK 30/13). The court reasonedthat the absence of specific regulations governingservice contracts shows legislative intent to allow abroad scope of contractual freedom in this area.This permits a contractor undertake

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not to compete after the cooperation ends, evenwithout compensation. In this case, the contractorwas a sole trader who promised not to take upcompetitive activity for one year followingtermination of the service contract. The court heldthat this undertaking was consistent with the natureof the legal relationship, and did not violate publicpolicy. Similar holdings had been issued previouslyby other courts (e.g. Białystok Court of Appealjudgment of 4 December 2001, I ACa 439/01, andGdańsk Court of Appeal judgment of 14 May 2003,I Ca 174/13).

Unpaid non-compete and principles of equity

However, there's a visible tendency in SupremeCourt rullings to limit the freedom of contract whenit comes to unpaid non-competition agreements atthe end of a service contract.

In its judgment of 11 September 2003 (Case IIICKN 579/01), the Supreme Court held that anundertaking to refrain from competitive activity forthree years following the end of a service contractwas invalid as it violated public policy. Althoughthat case involved hiring of a contractor operatingas a business (sole trader), the court cited Art.1012 of the Labour Code, governing compensationfor non-competition by employees, and found thatthe guarantee of compensation for non-competitionby former employees demonstrates that the failureto award any compensation to an individual forrefraining from competitive activity violates publicpolicy, thus rendering the non-competitionagreement null and void.

Determining whether an unpaid non-competitionagreement violates public policy depends on theassessment of the circumstances of the specificcase. Relevant factors include the degree of thecontractor’s autonomy in performing the servicecontract; any advantage one party had over theother at the time the non-competition agreementwas reached (including whether the non-competition agreement was signed at thebeginning or end of the service contract), and thelength of the non-compete period

undertaking compared to the time the serviceswere performed.

A consequence of a finding that an unpaid non-competition agreement is invalid because itviolates public policy is that the former contractorcan freely take up competitive activity regardlessof the existence of the non-competition agreement.

However, there is no express legal basis which thecontractor could rely on to assert a claim forcompensation for refraining from taking upcompetitive activity. A former employee complyingwith a non-competition agreement after the end oftheir employment can rely on Labour Code Art.1011 §§ 1 and 3 and demand payment of thestatutory minimum compensation, but applicationof this provision to persons working under civil-lawcontracts must be viewed sceptically.

Summary

Based on the Polish reported cases, unpaidundertakings not to compete following the end ofthe cooperation between parties to a servicecontract are generally binding. However, under thecircumstances of a specific case, such anundertaking may be found to violate public policy,rendering it invalid.

It appears that in doubtful instances, particularlywhere the dealings between the parties resemblean employment relationship, it would be sensible toconsider securing the effectiveness of such a non-competition undertaking by using appropriateclauses providing for compensation for refrainingfrom competing activity.Dr Marta Derlacz-Wawrowska, Employmentpractice, Wardyński & Partners

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How to attract and keep the bestemployees

by Taisja Laudy, Gallup strengths ambassador,geniusformula creator

What do workers want most in a job and acompany? The answer can help companiesimprove attraction and recruitment strategies.Three main themes dominate the HR worldright now.

Employees want a job that allows them to do whatthey do best; they want greater work-life balanceand better personal well-being, and they seekgreater stability and job security

What do workers value most in a job andorganisation? What would their dream job looklike? The answers to these questions can helporganisations develop better attraction andrecruitment strategies. These answers can alsogive them insights into why some of theiremployees, including many of their best ones, maybe leaving. More than one in three employees(35%) have changed jobs within the past threeyears, and 91% of employees left their company todo so, according to Gallup's recent research on theworkplace.

Gallup asked employees how important certainattributes are when they consider whether to take ajob with a different organisation. We found thatemployees place the greatest importance on

a role and an organisation that offers them:

the ability to do what they do best

greater work-life balance and better personal well-being

greater stability and job security

a significant increase in income

the opportunity to work for a company with a greatbrand or reputation

We want to focus on the first three factors.

The ability to do what they do best

People in today's workforce are looking for morethan a salary at the end of the month – they'relooking for a purpose and a chance to havecoaching conversations that promote theirdevelopment. This is evidenced in our finding that60% of employees say the ability to do what theydo best in a role is 'very important' to them. This isthe top factor stated.

When employees are a mismatch for their role andorganisation, they often struggle to succeed orbecome bored and restless. Their days – or eventheir careers – can feel wasted, along with theirsense of purpose. Employees do their best in rolesthat enable them to integrate their talent (theirnatural capacity for excellence), skills (what theycan do) and knowledge (what they know), whichrequires matching the right person with the rightrole and the right culture.

The solution to this lies in an organisation'sattraction, recruitment and hiring strategies, as wellas in its human capital and performancemanagement strategies.

Greater work-life balance and better personalwell-being

People are focused on their lives, not only theirjobs. They don't want to compromise one at the

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expense of the other. As such, 53% of employeessay a role that allows them to have greater work-life balance and better personal well-being is 'veryimportant' to them. Female employees are morelikely than male employees to assign highimportance to this job attribute, while millennialsand Gen Xers are each more likely than babyboomers to do the same.

Work-life balance has various meanings that ofteninclude tactical and philosophical components foremployees. Increasingly, people want to be able toadjust their hours and schedules as needed and towork remotely when they can withoutcompromising work quality or productivity. AGallup study on benefits and perks found that 51%of employees say they would switch to a job thatallows them flexitime, and 37% would switch to ajob that allows them to work off-site at least part ofthe time.

That is why it's critical for employees to know howan organisation walks the talk when it comes togreater work-life balance and well-being.Organisations should highlight what they can offerto help employees balance work and life andimprove their well-being, but they also need tomake this discussion about culture. Flexitime andsimilar perks are attractive, but they are beneficialonly when employees truly feel empowered to usethem.

Greater stability and job security

Slightly more than half of employees (51%) rategreater stability and job security as 'very important'in a new role. This number is consistent amongmale and female employees, as well as amongMillennials and Gen Xers. Candidates want to workfor companies that provide a solid footing and arepoised for growth. The more stability they see in anorganisation, the more likely they may be to see afuture with it.

To demonstrate stability in the brand, organisationscan share their history of steady growth or theirvision for future growth.

They can also give specific examples of how theyhave survived tough economic times. What ismost important is that candidates come away witha sense of why a company exists, what itsreputation is and how it is positioned to capturemore customers. Any company can say it hasbeen around for x years, but candidates need tohear a story that resonates with them – a storythat's unique, genuine and compelling.

Current employees also need to believe in thefuture of the organisation and be able to seethemselves participating in it. Leaders andmanagers are critical in creating this vision.Leaders have a duty to show employees where theorganisation is headed and to inspire them to see abetter tomorrow, especially when economicconditions change. Managers must help theiremployees create career and development pathsthat link to a successful future. When employeesare able to do what they do best and see the valuethey bring to their organisation, they develop adeeper sense of job security.

Source for the article: Gallup Business Journal,March 2017

Taisja Laudy & Co. is Gallup Certified StrengthsConsulting/Coaching operating in Europe andAustralasia focusing on supporting organisations increating strengths-based workplaces, which willkeep and attract the best employees on themarket.

Acquiring and retaining talent

by Krzysztof Jaszczuk, managing director, SyscoPolska

A rapidly changing job market means thatemployers face the challenge of attracting andretaining key employees. An important step inbringing in quality employees and keeping theones you already have is to understand what itis that they're looking for.

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The common misbelief is that the main factors forchoosing a particular job post are salary andbenefits while in fact, in many cases, factornumber one is having an opportunity forprofessional development.

On the other hand employers' expectationstowards their employees continue to grow.Operating on global markets with growingcompetition places on companies new pressuresto change their organisations and achieveambitious goals, which is possible only withqualified and motivated people onboard.

Providing your employees with a vision and withthe tools for personal development is critical. Well-balanced training programmes, tailored to theemployee's and employer's needs can significantlyincrease your organisation's attractiveness to newcandidates as well as raising retention andsatisfaction rates among current employees.

The three main trends on Polish HR marketaccording to the Deloitte research Global HumanCapital Trends 2016 are leadership, training andmotivation. A solution that embraces current trendsis the range of the Institute of Leadership andManagement (ILM) training programmes awardedby the City and Guilds of London Institute. With avariety of qualification types and levels, theseprogrammes support the development of allmanagers from team leaders right through toCEOs.

Organisations choosing ILM qualifications canexpect improvements in efficiency andeffectiveness, better morale and reducedemployee turnover. Team leaders and managersbenefit from their increased confidence, a strongersense of commitment between them and theiremployers, and the opportunity to develop theircareers.

Four points make ILM qualifications stand out fromothers available on the market:

Relevance to the work place – qualifications arework-based, the learning and assessment ispractical and tied into real workplace projects andperformance. This means managers andemployers see an immediate and lasting benefitthe moment the learning begins.

Flexible leadership and managementqualification portfolio – ILM’s unit-basedqualifications come in bite-sized chunks, givingflexibility and choice, a wide selection of units giveindividuals and their employers the freedom tocustom-build their qualification to suit the specificrole, industry or organisation

Control over certification process by the Cityand Guilds of London Institute – the delivery ofILM courses must fulfil the quality assurancerequirements of the Institute. The courseassessment and certification procedures undergostrict control at every stage of the qualityassurance process.

Recognised qualifications – the qualifications areoffered by the UK’s leading leadership, coachingand management qualifications provider that hasover 2,500 approved centres that deliver ILMqualifications in 48 countries.

In Poland, ILM qualifications are available throughSysco Polska that has been delivering management training in compliance with ILMstandards since 2009. Sysco has trained withinILM courses over 1,400 managers in Poland. TheILM training provided participants with practicaltools, blend of skills, knowledge and understandingthey need to deliver in their broad and complexmanagerial roles.

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Three ways to effectively managetraining processes in yourorganisation

by Katarzyna Izabela Syrówka, Gi Group Training

Long hours spent on collecting offers andselecting training providers, a constantnecessity to look for new suppliers due to thegrowing training needs of the organisation, anever-ending struggle against time, pluslooking after the day-to-day needs of manyemployees across a large company – thisdescription reflects a typical job of most HRmanagers responsible for the development ofemployees and training.

There are, however, several ways to optimise yourHR budget and save time, both of which are themost important elements of every HR specialist'sjob.

Chose training providers with narrowspecialisation

Many HR managers face a similar situation on adaily basis: they find out that a large number ofemployees needs to be trained in a new customerservice system which is being implemented at thecompany and at the same time, the sales directormakes a request for a training course in negotiationskills – all on the same day. And on top of this,they realise that admin employees clearly don’thave advanced Excel skills and marketing teamneeds training in lead generation. To coordinate theorder of these several different courses, we'd needto spend many hours and days searching forappropriate suppliers. Then we'd have to dedicatetime to gather offers from selected partners andverify their reliability and the quality of theirservices. Given how saturated and fragmented thePolish training market is, we may conclude that aweb search is a good but extremely time-consuming idea. That’s why it’s helpful to rely

on recommendations made by people from our lineof work who cooperate with training companies ona daily basis. It's also important to pay attention tothe specialisation of training providers. If thecompany declares to be good at everything, it'susually not true. Training companies that claim tospecialise in, say, training games, team building orclient service will not only be better prepared forthe initial meeting with potential client but will havethe ability, resources and experience to providetraining on the highest possible level.

Be up-to-date with trends in your line of work

... and save time – not only for yourself, but also forthe employees. Everyone who works in HR knowsthat training courses, although necessary for one’sdevelopment, take up a lot of time. It’s still quitecommon to see a training room full of employeeswho stare at their laptops instead of learning andmaking the best use of the coach’s knowledge andskills. As a result, the opportunity to broaden one’sknowledge is wasted and the quality of work donein a hurry is far from satisfactory. That’s whyseveral-day training courses which are too muchof a strain on employees’ agendas are no longerwidely used, and the leading trend on the trainingmarket is a method called blended-training. In thismodel, training is performed by combining, orblending a series of short meetings, on-lineassignments, webinars and practical exercises.This solution makes the training course adjusted tothe needs and capabilities of every participant. Arelatively new training form – short modules –sometimes taking up only a few of hours, whichfocus on developing specific skills of anorganisation’s employees, making it much easierto plan a training process. There’s no need foremployees to dedicate two whole days for anothersales workshop, as they're going to learn onlythose skills which they need to develop inaccordance with a previously conducted analysisof needs. As a result, they'll only spend three hoursin the training room mastering, say, the ability tomanage difficult situations during negotiations,storytelling skills or learning how to overcomesales objections. They will learn only what

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they need in their job, and the content of the coursewill not be a mere repetition of previouslyconducted training programmes. Short trainingforms will be gaining more and more popularity andin the near future they will become another leadingtrend, just like it was the case with blended-learning – precisely because of the time-savingbenefit.

Plan and follow up on results quickly

Planning and quick adaptability is of greatsignificance in the dynamically changing businessenvironment, the current reality faced by moderncorporations. A list of trusted training suppliers whowe can turn to in case of an unexpected trainingneeds always comes in handy. It’s good to reachout to a partner who can quickly implement atraining process based on the same action plan.This saves us time, as implementation of actionsstarts as soon as we place the order. Another areawe should consider is assessment of results. HRspecialists are often expected to prove that thetraining courses they ordered brought the desiredresult. Because of work overload, we tend to forgetabout it at the order stage, which later results inunnecessary stress. Choosing a supplier whoassesses effectiveness of their actions with morecomplex measures than just a simplequestionnaire may make the work of the personresponsible for training a lot easier in future. Thiskind of measures may include exercises forparticipants handed out for several weeks after thetraining took place.

It's easy to give advice, but I'm aware that it'sdifficult to change our habits and procedures at ourcompanies. It's worth trying. Our decisionsregarding training providers will be much moreeffective and less time consuming. We may usethis time to meet with employees to analyse theirneeds and plan their career development – a thingwe've never had time for before.

Chairman's and CEO's note

by Antoni F. Reczek OBE, chairman of the board,and Paweł Siwecki, CEO

On 29 March, a day tinged with great sadnessfor many of us, Theresa May’s governmentformally initiated the process of UnitedKingdom leaving the European Union,submitting the letter to the European Councilof Ministers triggering Article 50 of the Treatyof Lisbon. The two-year count-down to Brexithas begun.

Since the day of the referendum – 24 June 2016 –the BPCC has kept its members informed (Brexitupdates) about the lead-up to Brexit; we'll continueto do so until UK’s departure. We will also feedback your business concerns to the UK and Polishgovernments, doing what we can to ensure thatBrexit does as little harm as possible to UK-Polisheconomic relations.

Our Jubilee Year is in full swing, with a host ofevents happening around Poland; please makesure you’re signed on to receive our newsletter.The Chamber is extremely active – don't miss out!

We're delighted to announce that Adam Zamoyski,the famous Polish-British historian and KasiaMadera, BBC World news presenter will be ourspecial guests at our Silver Jubilee Gala Dinner onThursday 19 October, to inspire and entertain you.So please put the date in your calendars and lookout for new announcements. A live concert of ayoung Polish star will finish the celebrations on thedance floor.

In terms of policy work we have never been busier.In the past two months, Agnieszka Garbacz, headof policy groups, organised no fewer than 12meetings, supporting our members and involvinggovernment bodies – ministries and regulators – inthe dialogue. The launch on 1 March of a majorreport commissioned by the BPCC

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http://bpcc.org.pl/en/brexit-updates

http://bpcc.org.pl/uploads/ckeditor/attachments/11574/inwestycje_zagraniczne_EN_01.03.pdf


along with 12 other bilateral chambers ofcommerce showed the importance of foreign directinvestment to Poland's economy over the pastquarter century.

1 April is in the UK the beginning of another fiscalyear; for the fourth year now, the BPCC TradeTeam is supporting UK exporters on behalf of theBritish government. Certainly the chambers haspart in export growth from the UK to Poland(statistics). Some of our successes are visible toPolish consumers. British lamb is now available insupermarket chains such as Biedronka andAuchan; LG Harris paintbrushes are to be found inthe hands of Polish decorators, while Triumphmotorcycles are dramatically increasing theirshare of the Polish big-bike market thanks to theBPCC. Last year, the value of British goodsexported to Poland rose by 16.2% to £4.2 billion,helped by a weaker pound in the second half of theyear, and by the work of our Trade Team, findingPolish distributors and importers for Britishproducts.

Please make sure to join us for our Annual GeneralMeeting on Tuesday 25 April at the BritishEmbassy (12.00 – 13.30). It is your chance tohave a say as to the running of the BPCC, theelection of its board members, and to hear howyour chamber is performing.

The next edition of Contact magazine will be aspecial printed edition, celebrating 25 years of theBPCC’s work.

Labour law in the age ofglobalisation

An interview with Aleksandra Minkowicz-Flanek, partner, head of Employment andLabour, Dentons.

Changes in business models, globalisation andinternational networks all affect the way legalcounsels specialising in employment law work withclients. Their services increasingly involve putting

together comprehensive solutions across manyjurisdictions to help multinationals manage humanresources efficiently.

How has international expansion affected thework of legal counsel specialising inemployment law?

HR directors admit that managing globallydispersed teams can get tough. For this reason,they need effective advice and assistance.Demand for cross-border advice has grownconsiderably. Management teams and HRmanagers want their questions concerning multiplejurisdictions answered by one professional, all atonce. Their role in global corporations is to managechange and coordinate the implementation ofefficient solutions across entire regions rather thanindividual countries. Legal counsels are expectedto keep pace with their clients’ managementteams, understand their needs and provide addedvalue.

Many corporations have had dispersedorganisational structures for a long time now.So why in your opinion has the scope ofservices needed by corporations changed?

Globalisation is a process. Just a few years agocorporations would have a head office andbranches in several countries, but the current trendis to have a presence in anywhere from 10 toupwards of 50 jurisdictions. This means that HRspecialists in international companies who startedoff as HR heads for five countries have now beenassigned, say, 20 branches within the space of ayear. This means they're expected to coordinateemployment-related matters not only in Europe butalso across Asia and South America.

In a global company, contracts and employmentfiles used throughout the corporation must bereviewed for compliance with the local laws ofevery single country where it employs staff.Naturally, the costs of employment and terminationor lay-offs will also vary from country to country. Aglobal corporation must visualise and take

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all of the above into account in its organisationaland financial plans. The recent changes in thescope of duties of HR departments have a directbearing on the way that we as legal counsel reactto client needs. For example, we recently workedfor an international client who required urgent legaladvice in Singapore. The issue referred to us wasstraightforward, but it had to be dealt with in lessthan 24 hours. The client expressly reserved theright to seek a different counsel if we failed todeliver on time!

What happened?

We sorted it out, and retained the client!

Will law firms without a well-developedinternational network be up to suchchallenges?

That could be difficult. On the market, there aremany networks of independent law firms whosepartners give mutual support in situations of thissort. However, this type of networking is basedmerely on the goodwill of all the parties involved.Global or globally expanding corporations require aconsistently high standard of service, which isn'teasy to deliver when it involves severalindependent counsel based in different marketswho are working in line with their own standards.And when assuming this mode of legal advice, itmay be difficult to choose one lawyer from amongseveral different law firms to coordinate workperformed in, say, ten jurisdictions.

Are there sectors where demand forcoordinated multi-jurisdictional legal servicesis on the rise?

We haven't noticed any substantial differencebetween sectors; globalisation involves everysector of the economy. What matters most is theclient’s organisational structure. That said, there'sone very perceptible shift on the market, namelyone towards eastern markets in the area stretchingfrom China to the Pacific rim.

Which labour regulations do global firms findthe most taxing?

Let’s take local regulations concerning overtime forexample. There are vast differences in this area.Polish regulations tend to be rigid and stringent,which is a problem for our Japanese, UK or evenGerman clients who are used to certainmechanisms whereby the working hours ofmanagerial staff can be made more flexible. Theyare surprised to hear that managers in Polandcould be eligible for overtime pay despite theexpress regulations of the Labour Code stating theopposite; corporations run the risk of being sued iftheir working hours are not properly organised, withthe courts likely to uphold management staffclaims.

Are Polish labour laws less flexible thanemployment laws in other countries?

Currently, Polish labour law is quite flexible asregards the forms of employment. Despitewidespread complaints that labour costs in Polandare allegedly high, there are countries in Europewhere costs are significantly higher and therelevant regulations tend to be even less flexible.Foreign investors find it surprising that group lay-offcosts are not as high as in other jurisdictions. Thatsaid, US corporations tend not to understand thenumerous restrictions concerning the gatheringand processing of personal data of employees inEurope, or the obligation to keep all employee filesin hard-copy form.

Are Polish managers hired as salariedemployees?

Not necessarily, but that's very frequently the casein Poland. You may find it surprising from thepractical point of view that a Polish labour courtissued a ruling whereby a discharged boardmember may claim reinstatement at work if thedismissal was defectively made. Not damages butreinstatement – and reinstatement even ifsomeone else has been hired in place of thedismissed employee. When we warn our clients of

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this risk, they find it perplexing and hard to believe.

What kind of employment-law support dointernational corporations typically expect fromtheir legal counsel?

We very often advise clients on restructuringrelated issues, eg where a company isreorganising its business and intends to lay offsome of its staff in different parts of Europe or evenoutside our continent. HR departments need well-structured action plans complete with succinctdescriptions of procedures, costs and risks,presented in clear, easy-to-follow ways. Dependingon how well-defined the organisation’sassumptions and expectations are, a restructuringproject may take anything from two weeks toseveral months, especially if the project prioritiesor business assumptions change in the course ofthe restructuring. Smaller organisations want us totackle problems connected with their keymembers of staff being employed simultaneouslyin several countries on a split-contract basis.

Nowadays, practising employment law is muchmore complex than it used to be. In addition totypical legal advice on Labour Code regulations,we add extra value by advising on related tax,social security, and corporate issues. We'realways prepared to keep pace with our clientsacross geographical borders and keep our eyes onthe wider perspective, be it regional or even global.

The Déhora Consultancy Group: AFull-Service Workforce PlanningExpert

2017 marks the year of the Déhora ConsultancyGroup’s 30th anniversary. To celebrate thismilestone, we look back at the last 30 yearstogether with the company’s CEO Ben Jansen.

We want to know how he feels the field ofworkforce planning and optimisation has changedsince the company was founded in 1987. What hebelieves the future holds for his

company that is specialised in workforce planningand optimisation and that, after the Netherlands,Belgium and Poland, is soon opening its first officein the Czech Republic.

How did it all start? What inspired you to set upyour own company?

Before I set up my own company in 1987, I workedas a lecturer and researcher at the University ofAmsterdam. I worked as an occupationalpsychologist and was responsible for managingthe shift-work research team. We were oftenasked to carry out research and advise manydifferent types of companies operating in the publicand private sector. At some point, however, therequests from these companies started to conflictwith the topics we studied within the Shift Workresearch team. This, combined with my growingdesire to become an entrepreneur, led me to set upthe Déhora Consultancy Group. I started mycompany on 1 September 1987, a couple ofmonths later I received my doctorate in researchabout working hours.

What do you consider to be the mostprominent changes in workforce planning andoptimisation when you look back at the past 30years?

Even though change did not always come fast,over time workforce planning has developed into aserious business. Not so long ago in manycompanies a person responsible for workforceplanning might have had some planning skills andexperience, but very little to no workforce planningeducation. Now the job of a workforce planner orplanning manager is considered to be a seriousprofession. Highly skilled and educated plannersplay a crucial part in running a successfulbusiness. These planners and planning managersare therefore properly educated to do their jobseffectively. For us, as a company that also offersmany workforce planning courses and trainingsessions, this means that we’re now seeing agrowing number of students applying for coursesat the Déhora Academy. This demonstrates

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how the profession of planner or planning manageris looked upon by employers and that employeesin turn are now also able to educate themselves inthe field of planning up to even university levels.Unfortunately, in many companies, people are stillunaware of the impact that efficient workforceplanning has on the success of a business.Successful workforce planning can boost yourcompany results and determine and secure astrong (international) position.

What are your ambitions for Déhora for thecoming years?

The consultancy landscape has changed quite abit over the past 30 years. Clients and potentialclients have become more demanding and criticalwhen hiring our trainers, consultants and planners.More than ever before there is an explicit need forclearly visible added value by our interim-planners,consultants, the planning outsourcing that wefacilitate and the courses that we offer. To me thatis a very good development. Equally so, I find itpositive that the market is asking for a sharedresponsibility with regard to the company results.One of my goals is therefore to show that Déhoraembraces these developments and does offerpractical solutions and clearly visible results. Forexample the Planning Service Centre concept thatwe’ve developed is a great example of our full-service and result-driven approach to workforceplanning and optimisation. By using our PlanningService Centre, you place your workforceplanning into our hands. We take care of yourentire planning and the positive impact on yourbottom line will speak for itself.

To add to that, my ambition does not stop with thecurrent size of our company and the fact that wenow operate all over Europe. Even though we arethe largest full-service bureau specialised in thefield of workforce planning worldwide, I still believewe have great potential to grow even more.Especially when organisations come to realise thatstrategic workforce planning and optimisation canoffer companies so much, the demand for ourservices will grow tremendously.

Specifically right now in the Czech Republic wherethe economy is booming and many companies areunaware of how much more successful they couldbe with our help.

Why do you think workforce planningoptimisation is important for companiesoperating on the Polish market?

Poland is a country that has shown solid economicgrowth over the last few years, outperformingmany other EU member states. This hasincreasingly led to labour shortages and an influx offoreign workers, in particular in the production andmanufacturing sector where Poland holds arelatively strong position. But also the public sector– healthcare in particular – is facing the problem oflabour shortages. In response, companies havestarted to raise salaries to attract workers and indoing so are creating an upward wage spiral, thateventually is unsustainable. At least if Polandwants to remain competitive and avoid the socialproblems associated with mass migration. Theonly real solution is effective workforce planningand optimisation.

What do exactly do you mean with workforceplanning and optimisation?

In practice, companies for many years have beenusing the same work schedules and routinely findthemselves understaffed or overstaffed. This leadsto work stress and extra costs in terms of lowerproductivity, higher illness rates, higher staffturnover and higher error margins. Why not thinkabout schedules that for instance match theseasonality of your workload? Or a system ofcombined schedules that caters to varioussegments of the labour market, so that you can tapinto a greater reservoir? Think about, for instance,having on top of your full-time roster, part-timerosters for working mothers or older workers.

We also see that there are still companies thathave 12-hour (night) shifts. This makes yourcompany unattractive for new workers, inparticular for those over 45 years old. Productivity

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is also much lower during these long shifts, inparticular during the last hours of a 12-hour nightshift. Why not change this for a more employee-friendly solution? Ever thought of self scheduling?Where employees book, up to a certain point, theirown shifts and thus have much more control overtheir work-life balance. And thus are happier.

But besides reconsidering the work schedules, itcan also mean that our researchers andconsultants investigate the planning processes in acompany. How does the sales departmentcommunicate with the factory? What are theresponsibilities of HR? How flexible is yourorganisation in relation to its external suppliers(agencies)? What KPIs do you have in place tomeasure the effectively of your workforce?

Who are your clients, which companies will youtarget?

We have experience in practically every sectoryou can think of. Production, manufacturing,healthcare, governmental organisations, security,and logistics. Wherever workload changes within acertain time frame, and where it can be a challengeto manage this workload in an effective andefficient way, our full-service workforce planningand optimisation bureau offers support. Whetheryou need advice from our consultants or the bestplanning software, whether you need highly skilledand trained interim-planners, or you require trainingand support for your planning professionals, orwould like to outsource your planning with us, weare there to help support and grow your business!

Human resources in a time ofUncertainty

Michael Dembinski talks to Charles Carnall,managing director of Hays in Poland

Charles Carnall has been running the Polish officeof recruitment firm Hays since December 2016.Before moving to Poland, he was

director of MacKenzie King, a recruiter specialisingin accountancy and finance. Prior to this he was anoperations director in the accountancy and financesector at Hays. He has a BSc from the Universityof Hertfordshire.

We begin by discussing the regional differences inthe labour market supply and demand acrossPoland. “We carry out recruitment across allsectors, and it is indeed a mixed picture. Forexample, IT contractors are generally hard to find,but it's geographically tougher in Warsaw and Tri-City,” says Mr Carnall. “Companies are makinginvestments, relocating to these areas. A shortageof suitable housing stock is another limiting factor.In Kraków, it's a struggle, in Katowice, the situationis a bit better.” I mention two recent meetings theBPCC held, one in Lower Silesia, where HRdirectors in the manufacturing sector were allreporting increased difficulty in recruiting andretaining factory workers, while in Podkarpacie,employers in the aerospace sector were sayingthat it's not that difficult to find specially qualifiedemployees for manufacturing activities.

We move on to the question of salaries. “Paylevels are being pushed up; after a relatively longperiod of deflation, prices have started to rise, justas unemployment is at a record low. Employersare finding the right employee hard to find, so theyhave to pay more. We'll be seeing salary inflation,which has been manageable, becoming a moresignificant factor for employers. Richer companiescan dig deeper to keep up,” he says.

Brexit is the unavoidable topic. When the UKopened its labour market to Polish citizens afterEU accession, Poland was experiencing recordhigh unemployment. Now, as the UK is looking torestrict the inflow of migrant workers, Poland isexperiencing record low unemployment. “Themovement of workers from the UK back to Polandwill have positive effect on Poland's economy,especially because many employers will prize theskills that the returnees have acquired during theirstay in Britain. Many of those returning, especiallythose who've been away a long time, will hardly

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recognise the Polish labour market,” says MrCarnall.

“While the effect of Brexit at this stage is unknown,things are starting to move. The east coast ofEngland, especially in the agricultural sector, isheavily dependent on non-UK labour. Brexit islikely to have a severe impact on productivity.

With uncertainty uppermost in the minds of manyinvestors, looking to relocate to within the EUmakes perfect sense. Many BPCC members inareas such as real estate advisory are noticingincreased levels of enquiries about movingproduction, logistics, back office activities or evenR&D to Poland. Concerns about the UK's futureaccess to the single European market, and indeedits membership of the Customs Union make itlogical to at least consider a Plan B.

I ask about that sector of the Polish economy thatis increasingly interesting to the BPCC's membersoffering business advisory services, namely mid-sized Polish companies owned and run by thefounder. Many Polish entrepreneurs are starting tothink business succession or selling their firms asretirement age looms. “For these guys, it's reallydifficult giving away decision-making powers toexternal managers,” says Mr Carnall. Thefounders are emotionally tied to their business, andalthough in many cases they've grown intosuccessful medium-sized companies employinghundreds of people and turning over hundreds ofmillions zlotys, they are still run like micro firms.The owner-managers typically find delegating theirauthority difficult.

“Very often the finance function in such firms is runby a number-crunching accountant, rather than afinance head with a commercial sense,” says MrCarnall. Without a good CFO or head of HR thatcan think strategically rather than just operationally,it's difficult for Polish mid-sized businesses toscale up and reach their potential. Smallbusinesses can outsource all their HR box-tickingwork, but once a company becomes mid-sized,the HR function becomes strategic in nature

rather than merely compliance-oriented. This iskey to further growth.

The subject of qualified managers brings us on tothe next question, which concerns professionalqualifications. “We're finding that professionalqualifications are now becoming more sought-afterby employers than experience. Without thosequalifications, candidates are hitting glass ceilings.The notion of 'being qualified by experience' getsyou only so far these days, but not into the toppositions. All the big corporate employers requireprofessional qualifications; CIMA in managementaccounting, CIPS in procurement, RICS in realestate,” says Mr Carnall.

The Chartered Institute of Personal Development(CIPD) is not yet present in Poland; a recognisedqualification for HR professionals would bewelcomed in this market.

Poland's long-running boom in shared servicesand business process outsourcing looks unlikely torun out of steam, though investors have noticedthat the Kraków and Wrocław BPO/SSC marketshave reached a saturation point from the point ofview of labour supply. Retention is the mainconcern of employers in this sector. “Getting anemployee to change jobs for 200 złotys a month isrelatively easy, the problem is stopping them frommoving again. In these two cities, the staff turnoverrate in the BPO/SSC sector can be as high as 30%in a year. We're finding that the most effectiveretention tool is having a good, strong benefitpackage in place,” says Mr Carnall. “Long-servicerewards for three, five, seven years in service; agood healthcare scheme, other incentives to makepeople stay.” I mention corporate socialresponsibility (CSR) programmes, which offeremployees – especially the Millennials – thechance to give something back to society – as away of binding BPO/SSC employees to anemployer. “CSR is a big thing in the UK among theyounger employees, but volunteering and charitywork is less popular in Poland than it is in the UK,where it has longer traditions,” says Mr Carnall.

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He speaks very positively about Poland'seducation system, with school leavers andgraduates having a strong grasp of thefundamentals. “They are also highly motivated,these are the first generations to have the chanceto make something of their lives, without thesafety-net of inherited wealth.” This is the mainreason that Poland continues to be an attractivedestination for foreign direct investment. But thelabour market is getting tighter.

“We're finding more and more Ukrainians for workin Poland, in IT contracting in particular,” he says. Imention our manufacturing HR event in LowerSilesia, where around a quarter of the 1.2mUkrainian nationals working legally in Poland arecurrently employed. Employers there say thatmany Ukrainians want to work longer than thelegally permissible 48 hours, earning as much aspossible to save or to send home. “Like Poles inthe UK,” observed Mr Carnall. “They also worklonger hours than native British workers.” Whichbrings us back to Brexit; “the fall in the value of thepound after the referendum has meant that moneysent back to Poland is not as good as it was, thiswill impact movement.” Indeed, last year saw a16% drop in applications from Poles for NationalInsurance numbers, down to 93,000 compared to113,000 in 2015.

“There is trepidation on the market right now. Stockmarkets are at a record high, companies arefeeling that they need to have plants here andthere, they're looking at servicing the EU marketas well as global markets; hedging againstuncertainty is the main tendency that I can see,”said Mr Carnall. This uncertainty will certainlymake itself felt in the HR market, in Poland andglobally.

Legal and tax aspects ofdelegating employees - Poznań

On the 8th of March 2017 a seminar ,,Legal andtax aspects of delegation of employees” washeld in Poznań.

The meeting was based on the expertise ofprofessionals representing law firm Rödl & Partner,and took place in the company headquarters. Theevent was co organized by the British PolishChamber of Commerce.

Speakers raised the most current issues related tothe topic, focusing on the lately empoweredlegislative changes, and on the analysis of specificexamples, based on their professional practice.Participants had the opportunity to take notice ofpractical tips, as the experts stressed theimportance of various nuances of newlyestablished law, that are easy to overlook, but cancause fatal trouble in the form of overwhelmingfinancial penalties.

Main agenda included exploring current challengesemployers are facing, focusing on the newobligations introduced to legislation, and also inresponse to questions asked by the audience,analysis of the regulations from the specificindustries perspective. Experts presentedminimum conditions of employment with particularemphasis on delegation, as well as in reference tothe subject in the context of the tax lawsimplemented within European Union.

The entire event took the form of a discussionpanel ith numerous questions asked to the experts.The networking part turned out to be a greatopportunity for a personal exchange of view on thesubject with each of the experts.

Factoring – a summary of themarket and available products

The seminar held on 14 March 2017 in Wrocławat the business incubator at the cooperationwith BPCC and Plusfactor, was aimed atintroducing participants to the concept offactoring.

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This form of business finance has developed veryquickly in Poland in recent years, as it has aroundthe world. Thanks to his being able to versatility tohelp the financial liquidity of the company with theimprovement from all industries at preserving thesafety above all.

Straightest it is possible to define the factoring asthe serving tool for financing invoices until theirrepayments by the recipient. Factoring is a bundleof services comprised of financing and accountsreceivable management, taking over the risk andthe collection of the payment on behalf of thecustomer. On receiving an order and dispatchingthe goods, the customer send the invoice to thefactoring company, which pays the customer alarge proportion of the invoice's value (typicallyaround 85%), paying the rest minus the sevicecharge on collection of the payment from thecustomer's client.

The various types of products on the market, suchas recourse factoring, non-recourse factoring,incomplete export factoring, full export factoring,imported factoring and reverse factoring wereexplained.

Currently recourse factoring is the most oftenencountered form of this services, while reversefactoring is becoming more common amongsuppliers.

The popularity of factoring is growing fastest in theUK, China and France and in Germany. Poland isin 15th place globally in terms of the use offactoring, and within the next few years is predictedto climb to tenth place. Currently, Poland is in ninthplace, but shortly will be in fifth place, behind theUK, with France, Germany and Italy.

Factoring is often is being compared to credit,however once the necessary documentation hasbeen completed, decisions are taken more quickly

and efficiently. The factor sets the limit, checkingthe credi-worthiness of the recipients of thecustomer's goods, whereas when seeking credit, itis the borrower whose credit-worthiness ischecked.

In the course of conducting the procedure,contracting parties supporting the factor in theobjective of verification and collection of thepayment.

Factoring is directed at large, medium and smallercompanies; everything depends on the industryand the individual situation of the company. Toexamine the possibilities it is best to discuss one'ssituation with the factor who will suggest the bestsolutions for the company. Factoring is a tool thatserves to improve the financial liquidity of thecompany, whilst debt collection isn't.

Manufacturing risk index 2017 andtrends on the Polish industrialmarket

During the meeting organised by BPCC, globalreal estate services firm Cushman &Wakefield’s experts presented research report‘manufacturing risk index 2017’ andcommented on trends on the Polish industrialmarket and activity of manufacturing sector inPoland.

The presentation was held by Tom Listowski,Partner, Head of Industrial Poland & CEECorporate Clients and Joanna Sinkiewicz, Director,Head of Key Clients & Tenant Representation atCushman & Wakefield.

The ‘manufacturing risk index’ is an annual surveyof the manufacturing sector, assessing howpolitical, economic, technological andenvironmental risks are managed during portfolio

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assessment and site selection by occupiers. Thereport contains an Established Index which ranksthe 30 largest countries by manufacturing outputand a Pioneering Index which measures theattractiveness of less mature markets wheremanufacturers are seeking lower operating costs.According to the report, the manufacturing sectoris at the centre of a period of great change with farreaching implications for businesses across theglobal industrial landscape.

Asia-Pacific countries continue to dominate the top10, occupying seven places within the top half ofthe Established Index. When examining Europeregion, the report shows that the market overallhas remained relatively stable in the past 12months. Going forward, the implications on tariffsand trade as a result of the UK’s decision to leavethe European Union will be an important challengefor the manufacturing sector. The weakening ofsterling has held up the sluggish market in the UKitself and as yet there is no prospect of modernproduction facilities being relocated or closedpurely due to the result of the Brexit vote.

Looking at the market as a whole, the report statesthat in the short term, manufacturing remains partlyconstrained by a lack of capital investment inplants, reducing near-term radical shifts in locationdecisions. However, in the medium term, manyquestions will be raised about locations thatfundamentally service a different era as the sectormigrates into what management consultancyMcKinsey has called Industry 4.0, which places agreater emphasis on emerging technologies. As aresult of the findings from this report Cushman &Wakefield anticipates different criteria becomingmore important to future decision making.

Tom Listowski presented the changing trends anddynamics of the major global manufacturinglocations and the fundamental challenges whichcompanies face when deciding where to locatemanufacturing facilities in the future. He alsopointed out that Poland’s consistently high rankingover the last several years (#13 out of 30 countriesglobally) is underpinned by the record high levels

of industrial activity witnessed in 2016, re-iteratingthe positive attributes and foundations Polandholds in not only attracting new manufacturingoperations but also supporting the expansion plansof global companies with already establishedplatforms.

In the second part of the meeting, JoannaSinkiewicz presented the data according to whichPoland’s total industrial and logistics stocksurpassed the 11 million sq m mark at year-end2016. Leasing activity remained strong for anotherconsecutive year, leading to record high take-up,with more than 3 million sq m being transacted.The largest leasing volumes were recorded inWarsaw’s suburbs and Upper Silesia, and – of thesmaller markets – in Szczecin and Bydgoszcz-Toruń.

Warehouse take-up hit a record high in 2016 with a25% increase compared to the previous year’sfigure, driven largely by logistics operators (32%),the FMCG sector (12%), e-commerce (11%),automotive companies (8%) and lightmanufacturing (6%). The largest leasing volumeswere recorded in the Warsaw region (760,000 sqm) and in Upper Silesia (494,000 sq m). Strongoccupier activity was also noted in Wrocław(355,000 sq m), Poznań (340,000 sq m) andCentral Poland (307,000 sq m), and in smallerregional markets such as Tricity (97,000 sq m) andKrakow (89,000 sq m). Improvements in roadinfrastructure have benefited emerging marketswhich saw record high take-up levels, includingSzczecin (338,000 sq m) and Bydgoszcz-Toruń(128,000 sq m). New lease agreements andextensions accounted for 69% of the total leasingvolume with renegotiations making up 31%.

During the meeting the participants also had adiscussion about availability and high quality oflabor pool in Poland, e-commerce potential and itsimpact on Polish industrial market, as well asPoland’s competitiveness in the dawn of Industry4.0 revolution.

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Kraków members learn how todeal with online data security

On 28 February 2017, the BPCC KrakówBranch held a training session entitled Apractical guide in the world of everyday traps inIT in companies in cooperation with twomember companies who operate in the area ofdata security in the internet. The training tookplace in a newly-opened hotel and new BPCCmember, Mercure Kraków Stare Miasto.

Michał Czarnocki, board member of SafeLaw andAnna Buczyńska-Borowy, operations director,DPO of Omnitec, carried out the training.

Issues presented included: who is the owner of thecontent of the e-mail correspondence and theattachments; who can read it and where; who canstore, analyse and publish it without the properknowledge and approval and how it is treated byour company. Why has one of the banks present inPoland recently banned the use of SMS among itsemployees? How is it that one of the most popularmessaging services, provided by one of the fivebiggest IT firms, managed to be easily hacked,despite assurances that it is safe? Whenconfiguring access to business e-mail box on aprivate tablet, are we doing something wrong? Howshould we react when we receive an offer, that wehave not ordered? A crucial part of the trainingwere video clips showing how easy it is to stealsomeone`s identity and how important encryptionis as one of the few effective methods ofprotecting our own data.

Participants were also given a possibility topurchase the Safreum system at special ratesthank to the promotional codes given toparticipants during the workshop.

In addition, the extremely important regulatorychanges in the area of processing

of personal data (new EU Regulation 2016/679 of27 April 2016 – known by its Polish acronym,RODO), were also presented during the meeting.The most important aspects of the implementationof the requirements of the RODO law, as it affectsbusiness processes were set out, particularly inthe area of management and security of data in ITinfrastructure, the flow of data in computersystems, and the vital role that the IT systemadministrator and data protection supervisor haveto play.

All these efforts help businesses prepare theirteams to implement the upcoming changes in thearea of managing confidentiality, privacy,protection of personal data in relationships withclients and counterparties.

The speakers:

Anna Buczyńska-Borowy – managing director,data protection officer, auditor, trainer, author ofarticles and essays on personal data protection.Operation director responsible for processes offront and back office in the area of processmanagement in organisations, combines theorywith experience with practise in personal dataprotection. A passionate of issues related toprivacy and safety of personal data. She receiveda special award from labour minister Anna Kalatafor social commitment, creativity, exemplaryprofessional activity and entrepreneurship. Authorof projects aimed children and youth called Iprotect my personal data” and Safety has manynames which aim at raising awareness aroundsafety and personal data protection. Originator andfounder of the brands DPAG and Privacy ByDesign.

Michał Czarnocki – member of the board atSafeLaw. Co-author of the system for safecommunication Safreum. He has 25 years ofexperience in IT, including 12 years in corporate ITwhen he was implementing CTI systems, systemsautomating business processes related to safetyand billings as well as systems of projectmanagement. He obtained PMP certification

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in 2003. Currently he deals with safecommunication in companies and supporting ABIprocesses from the perspective of IT tools.

Silesia attractive for foreigninvestors

BPCC investment debate partnered withaudit/advisory/outsourcing firm GrantThornton.

On 2 March 2017, entrepreneurs from UpperSilesia and Zaglębie along with representatives oflocal business support and developmentinstitutions met for an event organised by theBPCC. The event took place at the RedenPanorama Bar in a newly-opened Hotel HollidayInn in Dąbrowa Górnicza. The economic debatewas dedicated to investment climate in Silesia,focusing on the factors for choosing the region as abase for the operations in Central Europe. Guest ofhonour was Marcin Bazylak, deputy mayor ofDąbrowa Górnicza.

Urszula Kwaśniewska, regional director of BPCC,greeted the guests, after whom spoke PawełSiwecki, the BPCC’s CEO who said that in thechamber’s Silver Jubilee year, the BPCC is evencloser to its members in the regions as well asoffering comprehensive investor support.

The debate was initiated by Anna Zapart, seniormanager at Grant Thornton, who discussed theresults of the 10th edition of the survey Investmentclimate in Poland. The survey is conducted eachyear by PAIiIZ (recently transformed into thePolish Agency of Investment and Export, PAIH)and Grant Thornton. The overall rating for theinvestment climate in Poland is 3.75 in the scale of 1-5 and is a noticeable improvement compared to2007 when the report was conducted for the firsttime. Upper Silesia was rated at 3.84, slightlybetter than the rest of the country.

The advantages of doing business in Polandinclude a large and receptive market, availability ofmaterials and components, availability of sourcesof finance, a much improved transportinfrastructure, support from public institutions andeconomical zones which offer attractively locatedland with easy access to transport routes. Theavailability of well-educated graduates andprofessionals was also noted. As an ideal placethat combines business, education and publicsector Ms Zapart gave the example of Opole, thecity that’s well managed and supports itssustainable development. The quality of the legaland regulatory environment and the inflexibility ofauditing authorities were indicated as areas forimprovement across in Poland and Upper Silesia.

97% of respondents would choose Poland as aplace for their operations again.

Michael Dembinski, the BPCC’s chief advisor, presented the results of the foreign directinvestment report conducted for 14 international chambers operating in Poland, including theBPCC. It assesses the impact of FDI on Poland’seconomic development, and looks at the directand indirect benefits that foreign capital invested inPoland has brought over the past 25 years. Thereport was premiered the previous day at theMinistry of Economic Development in Warsaw.The overall cumulative value of foreign directinvestment in Poland is 712 billion zlotys.

The report showed that among the main benefitsfor Poland was the acquisition of know-how andknowledge on how to do business on internationallevel and improving the organisational culture infirms. As a result, Polish firms can compete moreeffectively on international markets. The majority ofincome generated by foreign firms remain mainlyin Poland, with more than half of profits gettingreinvested. However, international and Polish firmsall seek a greater legislative and regulatorypredictability.

Mr Dembinski referred also to the impact of Brexitto the value of British

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pound. Currently the exchange rate is attractive toBritish exporters, having fallen against the zloty by16%. The final outcome of Brexit will all be down tothe negotiations, and will affect different sectors indofferent ways. Should the UK leave the Europeansingle market and the customs union, theautomotive industry, with its complex supplychains, could be hard hit, but the IT sector is lesslikely to be affected. Because the UK’smanufacturing sector contributes a lowerproportion of the country’s GDP than countries likePoland or Germany, the UK is forced to importmore goods than it exports, it is likely to maintain ahigh trade deficit after Brexit, and will still have toimport many goods – and indeed food. Although itwill be harder to export to the UK because of newtariffs, regulations and customs barriers, the UKwill still be a great opportunity for Polishmanufacturers because of Poland’s lower costbase and relative proximity to the market.

Both Ms Zapart and Mr Dembinski answeredquestions from the participants in the opensession, and the area of interest seemed to be thelegislative field and regulations. The talks werecontinued in an informal way during the lunch thatfollowed the meeting, and many business cardswere exchanged.

The BPCC economic debate on theinvestment attractiveness ofPodkarpacie in Rzeszow

I can see with my own eyes that theSubcarpathian region is well prepared for newinvestments. Coming into Rzeszów by trainthis morning, I could see fields waiting forfactories – the roads laid out, with electricityand other infrastructure in place.

New investments, good governance of the region,municipal support, instruments offered

by economic zones, availability of qualified humanresources mean that is a good place for foreigninvestors. This region has a huge potential that ispromoted in the UK, said Michael Dembinski, theBPCC’s chief advisor, in his foreword.

The debate with the participation of representativesof the business world, entrepreneurs, investors,universities, the provincial marshal’s office of thePodkarpacie region, Rzeszów’s city hall, theAviation Valley Association and the specialeconomic zones, took place on 16 March 2017 atthe Rzeszów Hotel. The event was organised incooperation with the BPCC regional membercompanies such as K&K Selekt HumanResources Consulting and consultants Roedl&Partner, the event’s content partner.

The conference was opened by UrszulaKwaśniewska, the BPCC’s regional director.Welcoming the guests, she discussed the mainobjectives of the BPCC and underlined thechamber’s intentions to intensify its activities inPodkarpacie. Referring to a recent study drawn upby the Polish Investment and Trade Agancy(PAIH), she emphasised the attractiveness andhigh growth potential of Poland, with a particularfocus on Podkarpacie.

Michael Dembinski briefly discussed a reportentitled The Impact on Foreign Direct Investment– Contribution to the Polish Economy in the pastquarter century, prepared by Polityka Insight incooperation with 14 bilateral chambers ofcommerce operating in Poland. According to thereport, British investors are ranked fourth in termsof the size of FDI in Poland – 6.2% of all FDI. Overthe past 25 years, the value of FDI in Poland hasexceeded 712 billion złotys. Adopting robustassumptions about the struc¬ture of the growth ofthe wage fund in the econo¬my, it was determinedthat wages are now about 8.9% and employmentapproximately 8.5% – higher than they would havebeen if the value of FDI remained at the 1990 level.

Mr Dembinski referred to high demand for Polishproducts in the UK, Poland’s second largest export

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market after Germany, and the fact that in the UKare nearly 30.000 company owners from Poland,fifth in the ranking of countries of origin of foreignentrepreneurs in the UK. After the Brexit vote thepound sterling fell - and that would affect the tradedynamics between Poland and the UK. In the longterm, however, he said that he saw Brexitchanging rather than stopping short economicrelations between the UK and Poland. “Polish firmswith global ambitions – or simply those interestedin the UK as a market of 65m consumers – willcontinue to move to the UK, an excellentspringboard from which to enter the markets ofNorth and South America, the Middle East andAfrica and the Far East. On the other hand, UKfirms not wishing to lose access to the singleEuropean market should consider investing inPoland so as to retail a foothold in the EU.

The next presentation was given by MarcinDojnik, senior specialist, Investor and ExporterService Centre (COIE). He outlined all supportservices and funds available for foreign investorsand underlined the importance of cooperationbetween clusters and business supportorganisations, including BPCC. Mr Dojnikdiscussed a service path of potential investors,starting from initial information on the market and acompany’s potential, through a presentation ofparticular offers and incentives; organisation ofmeetings and fairs; and ending at on-goingservices for investors as well as monitoring of allactivities. He also talked about the availability ofEU and Polish funds for businesses looking togrow in the Podkarpacie region.

The second part of the conference was adiscussion panel moderated by Mr Dembinski.The panelists included: Katarzyna Kordoń (K&KSelekt Human Resources Consulting), Mr Dojnik,Łukasz Szczygieł (Roedl&Partner), AndrzejRybka (Aviation Valley Association) and AndrzejUjda (Rolls-Royce). The discussion was joined byPaul Bennett, special project manager, of Poeton– a British investor that’s planning to open itsproduction plant in Rzeszów. The company,specialising in functional coatings

for the aerospace sector to combat of all types ofwear and corrosion will create 2.000 jobs.

BPCC members explain UK foodmarket to Mazowsze’s exporters

Over 50 companies from across the Mazowszeprovince heard how they can get their foodproducts on the shelves of British shops at aconference held at the Warsaw LifesciencesUniversity (SGGW) on 28 February.

The event, organised jointly by the BPCC,Mazowsze’s Marshal’s Office and the Mazowszedevelopment agency, ARMSA, gave BPCCmembers to meet Polish firms interested in the UKmarket.

After the official opening, the BPCC’s chief advisorMichael Dembinski talked about the UK as amarket for Polish food, which makes up almost18% of the value of all Polish exports to Britain. Hetalked about how bilateral trade might change afterBrexit. Wojciech Górski of BSI Group talked aboutthe certificates that food producers need to beconsidered by UK buyers, and how the BritishStandards Institution can help with this. Hestressed the importance of the BRC (British RetailConsortium) standard on the UK market.

Marek Schejbal, head of the BPCC Trade Team’sfood unit, covered market entry strategy – howdifficult it is to break into the Big Four retailers’listings, and how working in partnership with acomplimentary UK producer on a two-way tradingrelationship that adds value at both ends can help.His message was followed up by Andrzej Faliński,the former head of POHiD, the Polish retailers’ andwholesaler’s body. Mr Faliński talked about own-brand or private label as a way forward for foodcompanies, looking at the many sub-niches which

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have emerged recently. Competing on cost alonemakes no sense, he said, but competing on cost inthe premium segment, certainly does for Polishfood producers.

Sebastian Szułkowski of Ardens Solicitors talkedabout English law in the context of trade contractsand collection of payment, explaining the ways inwhich Polish exporters can check thecreditworthiness of their UK partners. He alsotalked about some of the fraudulent practices tobeware of. Edyta Cieślik of Ipsen Logisticscovered the specific problems of getting foodacross the English Channel, highlighting theoptimal solutions for exporters.

The increased volatility in foreign exchangemarkets, and how Polish exporters can hedgeagainst significant fluctuations in the złoty/sterlingrate, was explained by Jakub Makurat of Ebury,who said that political risk now has a greaterimpact on exchange rates than macroeconomicfundamentals. He gave several useful pointers asto how exporters can plan ahead – failure to do so,he said, can mean that what looked like a profitabletrade ends up making a loss simply because ofcurrency fluctuations.

Getting paid by UK customers – especially largerones whose terms of payment can be very long –was covered by Tomasz Rodak of Bibby Factors.He explained how factoring frees up workingcapital that would otherwise be tied up in unpaidinvoices.

Participants at the event also had the chance tolearn about EU funding for R&D activities in thefood sector. Tomasz Mróz and Marta Krutel fromthe National Contact Point for ResearchProgrammes (KPKPB) talked about the Horizon2020 programme and how it intends to supportPolish SMEs researching food safety and organicfood.

Another programme aimed at SMEs in theWarsaw agglomeration – Grow with GreaterWarsaw – is being coordinated by the capital’s

authorities; Andrzej Czajkowski explained howfirms from in and around Warsaw could benefit.

Małgorzata Rudnicka from the Marshal’s Officecovered the Mazowsze province’s intelligentspecialisation programme and its role in theregion’s economic development, with support fromEU funds.

After presentations of the Mazowiecki Science andTechnology Park in Płońsk and the AgroBioCluster, it was time for a well-earned lunch and fornetworking and swapping of business cards.

The BPCC’s Trade Team made many newcontacts with Polish food producers, and severalBPCC members also were present to takeadvantage of the chance to meet new potentialclients.

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Migrants in Poland - the role ofthe private sector

On 15 March 2017, a joint meeting of the BPCCpolicy groups for HR and Corporate SocialResponsibility considered the benefits thatbusinesses may draw from cooperation withthe International Organisation for Migration(IOM) in Poland.

The host of the meeting, Anna Rostocka, head ofIOM's Poland office, introduced participants to itsobjectives and tasks. Established in 2002, IOMPoland, addresses the growing operational andsocio-economic challenges in managing migration.

The 17 goals agreed to be achieved by 2030adopted by UN General Assembly in September2015 for the first time in the history included anexplicit reference to the issue of migration. This isa response to the dramatically increasing scale ofissues that the signatories face in ensuring fullparticipation in the social, economic and politicallives of all people living in their territories andincreasing racism present in society.

In Poland, a significant proportion of migrants arepeople coming to work or study. At the same time,employers notify growing shortage of workforce -both low and highly qualified – and hence

it is extremely important to them to implementeffective models ensuring smooth integration offoreign workers and their families into localcommunities.

To facilitate mutual recognition of differences andremoval of distrust - and thus building of productiveteams, consisting of native and foreign workers –IOM organises cultural orientation training,addressed to immigrants. Employers wishing totake on board foreigners from outside the EUarewelcome to join dedicated training sessionsfocused on specific procedures involved. The nextsuch workshops will be held in Kraków (14 April2017) and Wrocław (21 April 2017). Such practicaltraining sessions may be held at an employer'spremises, subject that a minimum of eightemployees are signed-up. Employers canadditionally organise a training for their employeesoutside the EU, focusing on their rights andobligations in Poland – such events are free ofcharge for groups bigger than 30 persons.

IOM also runs an information hotline forimmigrants and employers. The latter group isencouraged to use mobile application addressing awide range of issues relating to the employment ofimmigrants: http://www.aplikacja.migrant.info.pl/

Following the presentation Janina Owczarekdescribed tasks and current challenges of theNational Cooperation Platform, which was formedin 2010 to facilitate exchange of experience for allimmigrants living and working in Poland, identifyingcommon problems and solving these in co-operation with stakeholders such as localauthorities, NGOs and business.

The Platform is currently formed by over onehundred people from various institutions andorganisations from all over Poland, experts onmigration and integration. The Platform’s objectiveis to develop long-term, sustainable formula ofactivities involving all those, who are interested inaddressing the problems faced by immigrants andworking towards systematic solutions to supportthe integration of migrants into Polish society. More

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information: https://www.krajowaplatforma.pl/en/

Time to Report! Facts'n'Fun SilverJubilee Business Briefing

On 9 March 2017, the BPCC held its annual UK-Poland trade and investment briefing, whichthis year took the form of an evening mixer, sothat members could enjoy some networkingover canapés and wine after learning about thelatest developments in bilateral economicrelations.

The event took place in the conference roomdownstairs from the BPCC’s offices, on the fifthfloor of Zielna 37.

Members also had the chance to get to know tworeports that the BPCC has recently published:Doing Business in Poland, jointly with the Instituteof Export, and FDI’s Impact on the Polisheconomy, produced with the other members of theInternational Group of Chambers of Commerce inPoland. The Doing Business in Poland guide waslaunched in January at the Polish Embassy inLondon in the presence of the Polish ambassador,while the FDI’s Impact on the Polish economyreport was launched at the Ministry of EconomicDevelopment on 1 March.

BPCC chairman Antoni Reczek welcomedmembers, and reported back from the high-levelBritish-Polish Belvedere Forum, created by HMAJonathan Knott to ensure a dialogue between thetwo nations in the run-up to Brexit. MichaelDembinski, the BPCC’s chief advisor, presentedthe top-line bilateral trade results and talked aboutinvestment between the two countries. RussellTowlson, director of BPCC Trade presented theDoing Business in Poland guide,

and introduced the Trade Team, explaining how itcan help UK exporters find new markets in Poland.

The formal part of the evening over, members hadample time to network and swap business cards.

Frontiers in tax - March 2017

The current issue of our magazine Frontiers inTax contains recent changes in the tax lawwhich often cause entrepreneurs difficulties,including the new post-BEPS reality and theincreasing importance of the economicjustification of transactions.

In the March issue of the magazine the authorsalso examine the amendments in the regulationsregarding the R&D grants and the uncertaintiesassociated with the application of the clauseagainst tax evasion to advantages obtained beforeits entry into force.

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Thisissue

includes:

Introduction – Anna Sińczuk

The post-BEPS reality – what to be prepared for? – Joanna Koronkiewicz

The economic justification of transactions isgaining importance – Tomasz Lewicki

Uncertainties associated with the application of thegeneral antiavoidance rule (GAAR) to advantagesobtained before its entry into force – WojciechMajkowski, Michał Mrozik, Marcin Michna

R&D tax credit – amendments without dispellingthe doubts – Michał Niżnik, Michał Klimczak,Arkadiusz Kalicki

Materials received from KPMG Sp. z o.o. kpmg.pl

Antal Salary Report

Salaries offered to professionals andmanagers.

We would like to present to you the sixth edition ofthe Antal International report about the salariesoffered to professionals and managers. We made

every effort to make it a valuable source ofinformation for both employees and employers.The current situation in the Polish market bodeswell for professionals and managers allowing themto make optimistic growth plans for the future. Theeconomy is stable and foreign investment is on therise contributing to the feeling of security andopening new paths of career development.Employers will be faced with the challenge ofdealing with an employees' arket. The winners willbe the companies who will not only draw in thebest talent, but will also be able to retain it. Thedata presented in the report may serve as areference point when negotiating salaries anddetermining remunerations of specific positions.The data is accompanied by comments of ourexperts describing the trends and forecasts forindividual industries and disciplines. Therefore, webelieve that this report will provide you with areliable profile of the professional and manageriallabour market.

We hope you will find the report inspiring.

Doing Business in Poland Guide

The IoE guide is an essential tool for Britishbusinesses wanting to explore the largestmarket in Central and Eastern European.

It presents information about the Polish market,some specific sectors with useful information

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and insights. It also offers cultural and logisticalinformation and detail the help available to new andexperienced exporters. The guide is available inthree formats – as a printed booklet, as a .pdf filefor download (16MB), and for the smartphone viathe BPCC app (available for IOS from Apple AppStore and for Android from Google Play Store –look for the Doing Business Guides App).

The impact of Foreign DirectInvestment

Contribution to the Polish economy in the pastquarter century.

The influx of the foreign direct investment (FDI) isone of the most important triggers that boosteconomy – it accelerates consumption andinvestment demand, enhances productivity ofcompanies and their employees as well as raisesremunerations and decreases unemployment.Furthermore, FDI are the most effective conveyorof new, more effective technologies

and innovations in corporate culture as well as thefastest way to engage national companies into theglobalised economy.

Investing in renewable energyprojects in Europe

The renewable energy market never standsstill. Technical advances and the increasedprevalence of competitive tenderingmechanisms are driving down costs globally.

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Changesinpoliticaland

economic conditions can trigger regulatorychanges that transform the climate for renewableprojects in a country overnight – and not always forthe better.

Across Europe as a whole, however, therenewables industry continues to expand anddevelop. Commercial success in the renewablessector continues to hinge on understanding currentand anticipating future trends, spottingopportunities as they arise, minimizing risk andputting in place an agile business model that iscapable of surviving shocks and uncertainties.

Download the 2017 edition of our guide “Investingin renewable energy projects in Europe”. Ithighlights key regulatory developments and givessnapshots of the prospects for renewable energyprojects in 16 jurisdictions across Europe andCentral Asia, including Belgium, France, Germany,Italy, Poland, Spain, Romania and Turkey.

Dentons produced this guide in cooperation withRecharge, the global source for renewable energynews and intelligence.

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issue no. 29bpcc.org.pl/contact-magazine/issues/18.pdf · leadership is a myth. frederic laloux...

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